Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot and any unrecognizable characters and dialogue.

Have I ever told any of you how much I actually enjoy Cora as a character? Yes, she's a horrible, heartless person (pun very much intended) and she doesn't care who she hurts to get her way (even her family) but she's also tragic in a way.

She has herself so convinced that everything she did was for Regina's best interests, even though everyone could see that everything she did was in Cora's interest. I mean, I get it, she had nothing and didn't want her daughter to grow up the same.

But Regina was raised a princess... at least I think she was... did they ever clear that whole line of succession thing up with how Regina's grandpa was a king but she wasn't a princess? Henry I must have had older siblings, given that Cora was 'fifth in line to be queen' when they married.

Anyway, even though I actually enjoyed Cora as a character (hate her as a person though), I'm going to be cutting out her backstory because I'm selfish and wanted to write more about Peter and Lily. I also saw who Rumple's mother is... ooh I'm gonna have fun with the sixth season...

Enjoy!

Chapter Playlist: 'Berliner Messe - Kyrie' by Arvo Part

Neverland

She hadn't been sleeping again. Peter watched Lilith glide silently around the camp, tired eyes glowing red. She had to be keeping herself up by magic, if her sagging posture was anything to go by. The lost boys, now far more in tune to her moods, much as they were with Pan, gave the sorceress a wide berth. Some, such as the younger boys who looked to her as a mother-figure, watched with concern while the older boys merely waited for her to explode.

He wondered what had set her off this time.

Usually it was nightmares, about her mother and father, sometimes about the admittedly graphic murder of her brother. Other times, well, she'd never confided in him about them. All he knew was, when she woke up on certain nights, she looked like a walking corpse for at least a week after. His attention was drawn to the boys when a great cry went up, smiling at the sight of several wrestling in the dirt.

Focusing on the impromptu tournament, he also missed the presence of their resident Captain, catching sight of the leather-clad man as he skulked towards Lilith just past the sentries. The moment Hook was near enough to her, his good hand clamped onto her forearm. Rather than throw off his touch as she usually did, Lilith turned her head a fraction to listen to whatever the pirate was whispering in her ear, eyes trained on the forms of the sentries.

When Lilith's head turned to face Killian, Peter saw that her eyes had returned to blue. While she still looked heartbeats away from murdering the next person that looked at her the wrong way, she visibly relaxed at whatever passed between her and the pirate. Flicking up her hood, she allowed Hook to tuck her beneath his arm before they slipped into the darkness of the jungle.

Interest peaked now, Pan followed them at a discrete distance, his magic ensuring that Lilith wouldn't sense him. Though she too had a connection to Neverland, she'd refused to nurture it, and as such it was even weaker than when she'd been a toddler stumbling around the jungle in her dreams. Tracking them was easy - with her volatile emotions, Lilith left a magical trail wherever she went, no matter if she tried to hide it - and he found them on the Beach of Lost Things, sitting on the sand beside one another.

"How are you holding up, lass?" Hook asked, eyes trained on the surf.

Lilith closed her eyes, letting the scent of the sea wash over her. Corona, from what little she remembered of her grandmother's kingdom, had been a port city, much like Arendelle across the sea. "It's… the dreams they're… they won't stop." She drew her knees up and folded her arms over them. "I don't know what to do - the voices… "

Peter saw Killian stand to attention at her words. "Voices? What voices?"

"I… I think they're the island." She whispered, shivering violently. "It's like… like I'm being called to by the island."

Hidden, Peter listened with narrowed eyes. He was the one she should come to about this, not Killian. He was the only one who could help her. But before he could ruin the game and reveal himself, Killian spoke.

"Perhaps Pan would be a better help than I?" He held up his hand to stave off her furious reply. "I know, but you have to know that he'll be able to help you, lass."

Lips pressed together in a thin line, Lilith bit off the scathing retort. He was right, he knew it and so did she. Instead, she sighed heavily and rested her chin on her arms. "I just want to wake up from all of this."

"All of what?"

"Everything. Neverland, my family, magic… I just want it to stop." She felt Killian's intent before he'd even moved, but didn't try to stop him.

Cautiously wrapping an arm around her thin shoulders - he'd need to have a talk about her eating habits soon - Killian waited for her to explode. Other than Baelfire, she hated to be touched, and since her arrival, Killian and even Pan had bowed down to her wishes and never so much as brushed against her if they could help it. Now, Lilith leaned ever so slightly against him.

"Well, much as I wish otherwise, we can't wake up, lass. This isn't a dream."

Jolly Roger

Eyes closed as they sailed across the water, Lillian let the wind whip through her tangled curls, a small smile on her face. Neal eyed her, focusing most of his attention on steering the ship and helping teach his son to do the same. Still, he found his gaze continuously drawn to the dark-haired teenager, taking in the slight changes on her perpetually young features as her upturned face came into view.

Her skin was paler than it had been on Neverland, and from what he could tell, she had almost constant dark, bruise-like circles beneath her muted blue eyes. The shape of her face had slimmed down, though he wasn't sure if that came from time, or the fact that he hadn't seen her eat more than a bite in the last forty-eight hours.

She'd always loved sailing, that and flying. He remembered when in the first few years of her stay on Neverland, whenever she and Pan fought, she would run off to join Hook's dwindling crew and sail around the island for hours, sometimes even days at a time. She would be flushed and sunburnt and grinning ear to ear whenever Pan dumped her back into the lost boy's camp.

"Hey Lillian! Look!" Henry called the teen from where she stood at starboard. "I'm sailing a ship!"

She startled, as if coming from a trance, and slowly turned with a wide smile. "I can see, you know," she teased, nose wrinkled in mock annoyance. When she crossed the swaying deck to meet them, Neal extended his hand. She took it, squeezing so tightly that he felt both their bones pop from the pressure. She ruffled Henry's windswept hair with a fond smile. "You look like you're having fun," her eyes cut to Neal searchingly. "The both of you."

Knowing her presence might not be appreciated, and aware that someone needed to make sure Gold didn't keel over on the trip home, Emma helped the injured man to settle in what appeared to be the captain's quarters below deck. Gently dabbing at his sweat-soaked brow, she frowned.

"You don't look comfortable."

It took every ounce of his dwindling strength not to seize something and throw it at her head. "The poison racing towards my heart will have that effect," he snarled instead.

Ignoring his mood - which was surlier than normal - Emma stood to fetch another cloth. "Tell me about this, uh, knife of yours." She began, wanting to fill the heavy, awkward silence. "Cora and Regina… if they do have it, they can make you do anything?"

Gold allowed his eyes to slip shut. "Indeed."

"Like… kill us all?"

"Yeah." He nodded weakly. He wasn't so far gone in the haze of pain that he couldn't see the look in her eyes. "You're hoping I bleed to death now, aren't you?"

Her expression hardened at his words. "You're Henry's grandfather," she told him soberly even when her insides clenched as if in protest. "We're family now. I'm going to save you."

He managed a sneer. "Oh, I feel so reassured."

Storybrooke

"He, I just talked to Emma." David's voice echoed from the machine. "It's a bad wound - she says it's poison. They can only cure it back here in Storybrooke. They're taking a ship home."

"Well, let them know that they have the knife, okay?" Mary Margaret told her husband, worry leaking into her voice. "Who knows what that wicked woman would do?"

Before Regina could react, though she sensed her mother's growing ire, Cora swiped her hand at the speaker. It clattered off the desk and onto the floor, cutting off David's answering reply mid-sentence.

"Mother," Regina scolded halfheartedly, not sure why she was even surprised.

"I don't like what that enchanted box was saying," Cora retorted evenly as her daughter went to retrieve the machine. "I'm not… I'm not wicked."

Regina replaced the speaker on her desk. "It's not an enchanted box," she explained, more than a tad exasperated. "It's a phone tap."

"I don't care," her mother sniffed in disdain. "What matters is, they've been warned. Rumpelstiltskin and Lilith are smart. And now, they have time to think."

"But he's injured."

Retrieving the dagger from her jacket, Cora's eyes widened at the sight of Rumple's name slowly fading from the blade. "More than injured, I'd say." She said offhandedly, as if it was no matter to her if he was alive or dead. "He's dying," she showed her daughter, whose brow creased in concern. "And when his name disappears, all of that power of his will just… boil off into the air and… then there will be no new Dark One."

"Okay," Regina nodded. "So we have to use him to get Henry back before he dies."

Cora shook her head with a rueful smile. "Not in his condition. I don't want to kill him faster. No, there are no other options. I have to stab him with this knife, and take his power as my own. I have to become the Dark One." She announced somberly, unaware of how damning that was to her daughter. "And with his power, there's nothing I won't be able to do."

"But Henry's never going to forgive that. And the whole point of this is… wait," she exhaled shakily, replaying her conversation with Mary Margaret in the diner. "What is the point of all this?

"To protect our family."

"Or you gaining your power."

"Whatever power I gain is for us – to protect you, to protect Henry." Cora told her, smiling despite the stinging accusation. "If we lose this battle, we'll spend the rest of our short lives on our knees in front of them. And that, my love? Is something I'll never do."

Neverland

Though more than half the crew thought him mad, Killian allowed Lilith to board the ship with an easy smile. After the past few years, he felt comfortable enough to trust her on board his ship.

"'Tis very bad luck, indeed," one whispered, averting his eyes when Hook flashed him a dark scowl.

With little prompting, Lilith joined Hook at the helm, breathing in deeply at the smell of the salt and the sea. Distantly, she remembered her papa taking her out on a boat on the rare occasion they visited her mother's homeland. She'd always loved it, and was grinning before Hook had even offered to teach her how to steer.

"I don't think I'll be very good," she pointed out, but didn't resist when he caught her wrist with his hook and gently hauled her toward him. As he helped her adjust her hands, her eyes fell on the ragged scratched out marks just beyond the helm. "Bad day?" She asked lightly.

He ignored her. "Turn it three knots starboard, lass." He grinned when she followed the command with shaky confidence that grew once she realized she'd done it correctly. "You've the sea in your blood, it seems," he eyed her with curiosity. "Whereabouts are you from anyway?"

Mulling over the question, Lilith quickly decided telling him would do no harm. Her past was one that, until she'd turned eight, hadn't included Rumple at all and nothing she told him would help in his quest to kill her teacher. "Corona."

"The Sun Kingdom?" He asked, brow raised playfully. "You don't strike me as one of those shiny, blonde-haired do-gooders."

She smiled thinly. "Looks can be deceiving, captain," she returned her attention to the helm, cautiously turning the boat away from the island, taking them further out to sea. to her surprise, he let her do it, and she wondered if there was a way to sail out of this land. "Where does it end?"

"It doesn't. Not unless he wishes it." Hook added darkly, lips twisted into a scowl. He caught the surprise in her gaze before it became shuttered and an air of carefully constructed apathy took its place. "He is Neverland, lass, and that lesson will never stop being a painful one no matter how many years one weathers on this accursed rock."

"Magic can do anything," she reminded him lightly, a faraway look entering her eyes. "For the right price, at least."

His own gaze fell to his hook. "Aye," he agreed, Milah's smiling face overtaking his vision. "A terrible price indeed."

Storybrooke

Henry clung tightly to Lillian as they watched Ruby and Neal carry Gold off the ship. Though color had returned to his cheeks, they still looked far to waxen for anyone's peace of mind, and Lillian could feel him weakening with every heavy exhale.

"Will he be alright?" Henry whispered to her as Mary Margaret and David drove up in their pickup. Lillian didn't answer him, but she tightened her hold on his shoulders for a moment before she led them after Emma down the gangplank.

"Are you okay?!" The former called to her daughter as the blonde stepped off the ship.

"Yeah," Emma told her, so tired that she didn't even flinch when her mother went to hug her, practically falling into the dark-haired woman's arms. "Yeah, we're alright."

She watched her father take over for Ruby, who was no great fan of Gold and still recovering from the last full moon. David and Neal led the poisoned man to the bed of the truck, with Henry darting toward his younger grandfather.

"Uh, I drove a ship," he announced, rocking back on his heels with a proud expression.

David fixed him with an amused stare that softened fondly. "Did you now?" He asked, making sure that his hold on the paling, trembling man wouldn't slip.

"That's… me." Neal waved awkwardly at the man Henry had pointed out as his other grandfather. Cool blue eyes appraised him for several terse heartbeats before David, recognizing that they had more pressing problems, returned his attention to Gold.

"Thank you," the older man muttered as he was set on the back of the truck. "Thank you."

"Is Cora trying to control you with the dagger?" David demanded. As Lillian slipped past him to go to Gold, she briefly touched his fingers with her own and squeezed.

"Oh, you'd know if she was," Gold wheezed as his assistant settled at his side, her fingers gently prodding the wound while everyone gathered around them. "'Cause most of you would be dead by now."

Everyone watched with bated breath as Lillian, muttering too low for anyone but Gold to hear, placed her hands over the wound. They began to glow a pale, muted shade of gold for several heartbeats, but just as quickly as it started, the glow faded until there was no sign of magic at all. Lillian, however, continued to repeat the words, eyes screwed up tightly as the shame rose, threatening to choke her.

Emma watched curiously, and was more than a bit put out when, after a cursory glance around, everyone but her and Henry seemed to know what was going on. David's eyes were soft with sympathy and he carefully approached the younger woman, gently drawing her trembling, bloodied hands away from the wound.

Gold reached out to weakly pat at them. "It's alright, Lilith. I understand."

Clearing her throat loudly to draw the attention away from Lillian, Mary Margaret spoke. "Well, then we'll just have to take the fight to her before that can happen."

"We will," David promised, regarding her in a wary manner that Emma frowned at.

"And this time, we finish it."

As if Mary Margaret's words drew her from the disappointed stupor she'd fallen into, Lillian laughed lowly. "Well, well. Look who grew a backbone while I was away."

David ignored the teen. "Mary Margaret… "

Her eyes went steely at the pleading in his voice. "David." She returned evenly, daring him to even try and touch her right now. "She needs to be stopped, and to do that, she needs to be killed. This is our family." She gestured in a wide, sweeping movement of her arm, including Gold, Lillian, Neal and Ruby. "We are going to protect it."

David nodded, letting go of Lillian to approach his wife. "Of course we will, but what you're talking about goes beyond that."

"Does it?" She demanded, voice growing harder with every word. "Because she is the reason you've never met my mother."

Emma started at that, brow creased at the thought. "Wait, what?" She looked between her parents, more surprised than ever when they both avoided her gaze.

"We found some stuff out while you were gone," David finally said, glancing once more at her mother, who was glaring down at the ground, hands clenched into tight fists. "Cora she…she poisoned your grandmother, Queen Eva when Mary Margaret was a little girl," swallowing roughly, he fixed earnest eyes on his wife. "I know what happened to your mother, and I have zero problem with Cora dying for it." He told her softly. "But not by your hand, and not out of vengeance."

"Why?" Mary Margaret scowled darkly at him.

He reached for her, and this time she let him grip her arm. "Because you wouldn't be able to live with yourself. You have the purest heart of anyone I have ever known. That's who you are, and that's who you're going to stay."

Lillian raised a hand. "I, however, am perfectly capable of murdering Cora in cold blood." She smiled thinly at the look David threw her. "My heart's already well on its way to becoming black as coal - another heart crushed won't change it much."

Rolling her eyes at the teen's behavior, Emma swept past her to address Gold, who had begun to sit up on his own. "You okay?"

"Ah, I'm beginning to feel a bit stronger," he said, struggling to use his cane to sit up straighter on the tailgate. Lillian was at his side instantly, helping him into a more comfortable position. "Take me back to my shop. There's magic there that can protect us."

Nodding, Emma turned to her son, who was already looking at her in resignation. "Let me guess," he began before she could even open her mouth. "I get to go with Ruby."

"You got it, kid." Emma replied, shoulders slumped in relief that neither her son, not his babysitter argued this time.

"I'll keep him out of the crossfire," Ruby promised, reaching out to draw Henry beneath the shelter of her arm.

Mary Margaret flashed her a grateful smile. "Thank you."

"Don't look so worried," Henry piped up soberly. "You'll stop Cora. I know you won't let her get away."

Neverland

As the days slipped by, the rest of the crew slowly became used to Lilith's presence on board. She slept in the captain's quarters - Hook had gallantly offered the use of them, while he bunked down with the rest of his crew - and was given free reign of the ship as they sailed round and round the island. Away from the constant shade of the dark jungle, her too pale skin quickly tanned, though she was red as a lobster for the first few days.

Hook watched her from the helm as she walked onto the deck, hair tied into a messy knot at the base of her skull, cheeks still flushed from sleep, and smiled at how content she looked. Away from Pan's ever watching eye, though he doubted Pan wasn't still keeping a close watch on them even now, she had come alive again.

"Ahoy, lass!" Hook called lightly, smiling faintly when she waved back, expression far warmer than he'd ever seen on her. "You've slept half the day away," he teased when she joined him at the wheel.

"It was a long night, cap'n," she retorted evenly, but he caught the glimmer in her eye.

Even with their unexpected guest, the crew had insisted on continuing the tradition of music night. Though he usually abstained, too concerned with brooding in his cabin over ways to escape from Pan's thrall to finally have his revenge on the crocodile, Hook had agreed to join in once he'd found out the Lilith intended to do so. While she'd refused to dance despite the prodding of the men, she'd eventually acquiesced to sing a tune, if only to make them stop asking. Even now, Hook could still feel the warmth that her low, smooth voice had brought him.

"Aye, that it was." He agreed easily, shifting over so that she could try her hand at steering once more. She took the helm carefully, handling it so gently he wanted to laugh. "Where did a little thing like you learn a song like that?"

Had she been another girl, she would have blushed. Instead, she steeled her spine and met his eye with small smirk. "I've been told brothels are where most people pick up such shanties." She demurred, the smirk widening when Hook chuckled in response.

"Oh, you are full of surprises, lass," the captain managed once he'd gotten his mirth back under control.

Lilith opened her mouth to retort, only for a low, amused voice to ruin the camaraderie they'd managed to create.

"That she is."

Storybrooke

The moment she set foot inside the shop, Lillian went to work. David watched her as he helped settled Gold in the back room, concerned gaze following her as she swept her hair into a ponytail before her hands began to glow a shimmering white. He'd seen her cast enough protection spells to recognize what she was doing, so he returned his focus to helping Gold be as comfortable as possible.

Scanning the shelves, Lillian plucked an empty jar and headed into the back room where the others were waiting. Gold looked up weakly as she entered, visibly slumping in relief when he saw what she had in hand. "You found it."

Lillian nodded tersely before she handed it off to Emma, who stared at the seemingly empty glass in bemusement. "There's nothing in it." She told them patiently, quietly assuming that Gold's injury had left his brain fried. Lillian, well…sometimes she wasn't sure if the girl wasn't crazy as her adopted father appeared to be. Shaking the glass container for emphasis, Emma froze when something in the empty jar began to make noise. "What the hell?"

"It's invisible chalk," Lillian told her when the blonde reached into the container, holding something between her thumb and forefinger. "You need to go to the front doorway and draw a line. It'll create a barrier to protect us."

Gold nodded along with her instructions. "The rest of you," he wheezed out as Emma, eyes practically bulging out from her head, slipped back into the main room, this time addressing the others. "You might want to prepare for battle."

Everyone began to filter out, with Mary Margaret at the rear. Before she could follow her husband to the front of the shop, Gold weakly called out to her.

"Oh. Oh, wait, wait," he gestured to the nearby cabinet. "Please. Can you… get me a warmer blanket? In that cabinet."

Though she frowned at him, she did as he asked, moved by how feeble he looked. When she opened the door, her heart dropped somewhere around her stomach as she took in the sight of the two-sided candle. Hand trembling, she reached into the cabinet and withdrew the candle, holding it like it was diseased.

"Why do you have this?" She asked slowly, never taking her eyes off his.

"For a rainy day."

Neal watched Emma draw with the invisible chalk, her expression uncomfortable, and he held back a snicker at how ridiculous she looked. Movement made him turn to see Lillian, fingers twisting round and round as she placed another barrier around the shop.

"You okay?" He asked, stepping closer so they could speak privately. She nodded, red eyes focused on the ceiling of the building, but didn't verbally respond. "This is… this wasn't the reunion I was hoping for, ya know?"

Her hands paused mid-spell, and her eyes were soft when she turned to look at him. She looked so young, he realized as he took in her haggard features, too young to deal with all the bullshit his family constantly threw at her. Without a word, he opened an arm and she accepted, pressed her face into his shoulder affectionately.

"I missed you too, Bae," she whispered. "Every single day, I missed you."

Pressing a kiss to the top of her head, he released her to finish her spells, frowning when he saw how badly she was shaking. Turning away to give her some space, he stopped at the sight of Emma's head snapping back to the floorboards, cheeks tinged pink. Clearing his throat, he settled for evading the subject at all costs, knowing it wasn't just his story to tell.

"Missed a spot," he called, leaning on a case.

She froze but, to his relief and her own, chose to play along. "You're hilarious."

"I didn't know you were magical," he began conversationally, but there was a hitch in his voice that she easily noticed.

"Oh, my. Are you getting judgy about this?" She demanded, waving the stick of invisible chalk around. "'Cause you're not allowed to have opinions about surprises, Mr. Son-of-Rumpelstiltskin."

"Oh… " He looked away, rubbing the back of his neck, correctly reading her tone just as she had his.

"What 'oh'?"

"I didn't mean for Tamara to be a surprise."

The black scowl faded to be replaced by a careful, guarded expression before she tossed him a disinterested look. "You think I care that a guy I dated a decade ago is engaged?"

Before he could reply, David reentered the shop and looked between them suspiciously. "We're all clear outside." His gaze fell onto Emma, who studiously avoided his gaze. "Everything okay?"

Unaware of her daughter's inner turmoil, Mary Margaret was still locked in a stare-down with a dying Gold. Her grip tightened on the candle, a cold reminder of what she had always secretly seen as her greatest failure.

"You're not getting any better, are you?" She asked, debating how wise it would be to lob it at the older man's head.

"The candle can save me." Gold told her instead, avoiding the question even on his deathbed. "There's nothing else."

"I wouldn't use this to save my own mother," she reminded him coldly, heart aching anew. "What makes you think I would use it for you?"

"Because you're all grown up now." He mocked, though stopped once he saw her scowl blacken. "And for once, our interests are aligned."

"She dies instead of you."

"I know you can do this. I know you want to do this."

"There's no coming back from murder."

"And there's no coming back from death, either." He snapped, wanting to scoff at her naivety. "And that's what will happen to your loved ones."

She held the candle up, drawing his gaze to it. "Even if I were to do this… the candle only works if you whisper the victim's name over them."

His lips pulled back into a sneer. "The heart will do.

She suddenly felt cold all over and struggled to hide her disgusted expression. "Cora's heart – it's not in her body."

"Use the candle, curse the heart. And then… " He shifted and, had he not been dying, would have laughed. "Here comes the tricky part."

Her eyes went flat. "That's not the tricky part?"

"You have to put the heart back inside Cora's body." He explained. "She will die, and I will live."

After several silent heartbeats of staring at the candle, she glanced at the fading man. "There's another way." She announced quietly, lips set in a thin line. "I get Cora's heart, I control her and make her do the right thing, and I let you die. Takes care of two evils at once."

Rather than rail or shout at her, Gold merely calmly kept eye contact. "I'm just imagining poor Henry's face when he finds out that you killed his grandpa."

Before Mary Margaret could respond to his scathing words, Lillian entered the room, face drawn with exhaustion and Emma on her heels. "Emma drew the line - and I cast at least three protection spells. Should I do any more?"

"No, you're not." Gold's eyes cut to Emma. "She is."

The blonde had the look of a startled rabbit. "Excuse me?"

"You're going to cast it," he said. "I'm relying on you."

Conflicted, Lillian opened her mouth in warning. "Gold- "

"I can't cast spell," Emma shook her head in denial. "I can spell 'spell'."

"You can," Gold told her tiredly, settling back on the couch and closing his eyes. "It's in you."

"How? Here? Like, from my brain?" Emma sputtered, clearly stalling.

While unsure why he wanted Emma to do so, Lillian wasn't in the mood to fight with him just now. "Just try it, you ninny." She snapped at the blonde, whose head swiveled around to shoot her an offended glare.

Shifting awkwardly, Emma twisted so her back was to gold, eyes screwed up tightly. Concentrating on recreating the energy she'd seen Lillian produce in the front room, she held her breath as the silent minutes ticked by.

"Stop thinking!" Gold exploded suddenly, startling Emma. "Conjuring magic is not an intellectual endeavor, it's emotion." He scolded, struggling to sit up in his irritation. Not even Regina, who had been his thickest student to date, had been this difficult. "You must ask yourself, 'why am I doing this? Who am I protecting?' Feel it."

Pride stinging, Emma closed her eyes again, focusing on the faces of her parents, her son… even Neal and Lillian. As she did, a wave of shimmering magic passed from her outstretched hands, enveloping the entire shop in its glow.

Gold smiled in satisfaction at the feeling. "Oh, yeah, you feel it?"

"Yeah… I think I did." Emma lowered her hands, twisting them together when they sparked slightly. She caught Lillian's eye, more disturbed by the grim acceptance than she could say.

"Good girl." Gold praised lightly, leaning back onto the couch to shut his eyes in relief. "Very good girl."

Neverland

"Pan, so good of you to join us." Hook called out pleasantly, unable to completely hide the wary expression the sight of the original lost boy brought to his face. "Quite rare to see you on board my ship," he continued, swaggering just so to make sure that Lilith, who had gone deathly white at the sight of Pan, was out of the boy's sight. "What's the occasion?"

By now, most of his crew had come onto the deck, all eyeing the lost boy like he was some deadly species of animal. None of them said a word, and while none of them made any obvious movement toward their weapons, it was obvious that one false move and they would be on him. However, Pan was unconcerned with anything that did not deal with Lilith, and therefore ignored the adults surrounding him.

"I'm afraid this isn't a social call, Killian." Pan replied just as easily as Killian, head tilted innocently to the side. Forest green eyes gleamed maliciously in the sunlight as he looked around the ship. "I'm sure your men have better things to do."

Each of the crew members stiffened at the not so subtle dismissal, heads swinging to their captain for a command. Inclining his head, so slightly that Lilith barely saw it, Hook waited for his crew to slowly trickle back into the hold of the ship. None of them looked particularly happy, though it was Smee who hovered the longest around his captain. Only when the leather-clad man hissed an order did Smee finally follow his crew mates down into the ship, if a tad bit reluctantly.

Pan smiled charmingly all the while, and it did nothing to calm Hook's sudden nerves. While he'd known the leader of the lost ones might not appreciate Hook spiriting Lilith away, he'd thought the pros outweighed the cons. He still did, provided Pan refrained from acting out on the murder in his eyes. Lilith, sensing the turn his thoughts had taken, stepped from behind Killian, refusing to cower like a child.

"What is it?" She asked, expression as cold as the sea itself.

"The boys miss their mother," Pan replied lightly.

Lilith's expression rapidly twisted into an ugly grimace. "I'm not their mother. I'm not anything to anyone."

"Oh, I think little Baelfire would disagree with that."

Against his will, Hook sucked in a breath at the taunt. Even in their short acquaintance, he knew that the subject of Milah's boy was a sensitive one that was all but guaranteed to rouse Lilith's wrath. As expected, her eyes narrowed into slits and her lips thinned. Though those minute changes were the only outward reaction she allowed, it was enough.

Pan's thin lips broke out into a grin. "Come on, love. Why don't we go and see him?" He held out his hand patiently, though it was more than obvious that Lilith had no intention of taking it. He remained unruffled in the face of her searing hatred, and even chuckled fondly when she all but spat at him. "There's that fire, Lily."

Killian watched, uncomfortably aware of how Pan looked at the hissing girl. While twisted, the devoted expression, hidden deeply beneath layers of malice and amusement, reminded the pirate captain immensely of how he'd appeared when he looked at Milah. It was an unsettling thought, but one he'd been unable to shake for months.

"Lilith- " Hook began, taking a step toward the two.

"I've got this, Killian," Lilith snarled in reply, though he was not so sensitive as to think the rancor in her voice was directed toward himself. When Pan did little more than smile at her, head tilted just so to the side, something snapped.

Her fingers began twisting, shrouded in a pale black smoke. Hook, who had never seen such a thing, from her or the Dark One, took a wary step away. Pan, however, stared at her in a close approximation of shock. Before she could register the expression or the emotion, Lilith reacted, slamming an invisible force into Pan. Though it didn't fling him off the ship as she'd meant to, it was enough to make him flinch at the unexpected attack.

Clutching his shoulder in one hand, he glared heatedly at Lilith, who met his gaze fearlessly. "Where did you learn to do that, Lily?" For once, there was no mocking in his voice, and that disturbed her more than his playfulness.

"Nowhere you need to know," she spat instead, straightening her spine defiantly. "Now, kindly go away." Flicking her fingers once more, she sent another invisible blast toward him, though he was ready for it this time.

Before she could react, he was in front of her, arm about her waist as he hauled her into his arms. Hook moved to stop him, but was flung back by a wave of Pan's arm before they vanished in a flash of green. Struggling onto his elbows, the captain glared at the spot where they'd vanished, panting angrily. He'd caught the frightened look in Lilith's eyes when Pan grabbed her, and it made his blood boil.

Storybrooke

David noticed the disturbed expression on his wife's face almost immediately, even though half of his attention was focused on Lillian. The teenager already looked drained from the protection spells she'd placed, which wasn't surprising to him. From the beginning of their partnership with the Dark Lilith, it had been more than obvious that protection spells were not her strong suit. She was more suited for attacking, though healing took a close second.

Dragging his worried gaze, he settled on Mary Margaret, pitching his voice so only she could hear. "What's wrong?" She startled at his words, pupils blown wide in distress, though rapidly tried to cover it up. "Did Gold tell you something?" She had been the last of them to emerge from the back room, clearly troubled.

"No," she said quickly. Too quickly, she realized. "I mean," she amended, avoiding his eye. "He just said that Cora's determined to hurt us."

"I won't let that happen." David swore, and she winced at how easily he swallowed her lies. "We'll do whatever needs to be done."

The candle burned a hole in her pocket. "You're right. You're absolutely right."

Any more conversation was cut off as a tremor rocked the foundation. Everyone sprang into action, with Lillian and Mary Margaret remaining in the front room as David rushed to warn Emma and Neal.

"It's them." He called at the doorway. "Regina and Cora - they're here."

Outside, no words were exchanged between mother and daughter as they both summoned a fireball. Throwing the separate attacks at the store, they watched grimly as it shattered several of the barriers in place. Inside, where Emma and Neal had joined the others, now armed with swords, the latter swore.

"It held," he clapped an awkward hand on Emma's shoulder. "Nice job, Swan."

Lillian's eyes never left the door. "They're not done, Bae. Not by a long shot."

As if to prove her point, they watched as Regina and Cora worked together to summon a larger fireball. This time, their combined attack shattered through the remaining barriers, flinging open the door.

Emma was the first to react when the pair strolled into the shop. "Regina. Think about what you're doing."

The dark-haired mayor glared at her. "Don't talk to me." She snarled, summoning another fireball and flinging it at them.

Lillian darted in front of it, catching and putting it out between her hands. As she did so, Mary Margaret ducked behind the counter, slipping out of the side door. Before it swung shut behind her, no one noticed Lillian's fingers twisting, or the soft shimmer that touched Mary Margaret's skin.

Regina summoned another fireball and threw it, scowling when David leapt forward and deflected it with his sword. Thinking he was the best swordsman, Regina flung David out of the shop, locking the door behind him.

"David!" Emma cried, unable to protect herself when Cora threw her backwards.

Neal charged Cora in return, though fell through nothing when she disappeared in a swirl of red smoke. Lillian, fingers flexing, prepared to face off with Regina, was distracted when the dagger clattered to the floor. Without a word, she held out her hand, summoning the dagger. It smacked into her palm, the familiar hum of dark magic sending tingles through her hand.

The sight of Lillian wielding the dagger startled Regina from her attempts at choking Emma, allowing the blonde to seize a knife from a display case. Grabbing hold of Regina, Emma twisted the other woman's arms until she was subdued with the knife at her throat.

Cora reappeared, eyes widening at the sight of Lillian clutching the dagger. Taking in the scene rapidly, her attention became focused on the dagger, ignoring her daughter's plight.

Regina's eyes widened in horror. "Mother!"

"Better choose wisely, Cora," Lillian taunted as Neal flanked her.

He tightened the grip on his sword and challenged, "What's it gonna be?"

Making a split second decision, sensing that Lilith was weakening, Cora sent a blast at the teenager. Unable to summon enough energy to block the attack, Lillian was flung into one of the display cases as the dagger was torn from her hand. With the dagger restored to her possession, Cora turned to deal with Snow's charming daughter, only to fall backwards when Regina was thrown at her.

Without waiting to watch the two fall into the glass counter, Emma turned tail and ran toward the back room, Neal at her heels. "Fall back to Gold!" She held up the invisible chalk as Neal swept Lillian into his arms. "I have the chalk."

The moment Neal crossed the threshold, Lillian limp and bleeding in his arms, Emma drew the chalk across the floor. A shimmering barrier formed at once, distorting the images of Cora and Regina. What it couldn't hide though, was the wounded look Regina wore when she regarded her mother. Lillian, who had already used magic to clear her head, wiped away the line of blood welling at her temple and set to work.

Lips pursed in annoyance as barrier after barrier was set up - Lilith's work, no doubt - Cora addressed her daughter, brushing shards of glass off her sleeve. "Help me take out Rumpelstiltskin, and then we'll go back- " She jolted, lips parted in sudden pained surprise.

"Mother?" Regina's voice pierced the fog, and Cora slowly turned her head, disoriented. "What is it?"

"My… my heart." Her hand reached up to grip the spot above where her heart once was. "It's with my things in your vault. Someone's there."

"Mother?"

"Go." Cora shook herself, voice hardening. "Go!"

Regina's expression twisted, as if to protest, but instead she nodded and turned on her heel. One problem taken care of, Cora turned back to the barrier, shaking her head in disappointment.

"Really, Rumple," she muttered, raising her hands. "Hiding's beneath you."

Neverland

"Let go!" Lilith demanded, twisting irritably in Pan's grip. Though he was thin - his waist was smaller than her own - he was much stronger than he appeared. Though the stories claimed him a child, he was far from it. Slender, muscled arms locked around her legs as she was hoisted over his back, hissing and spitting like an alley cat. "Damnit, Pan, put me down now!"

Without ceremony, he did just that. Dumping her arse over teakettle, he glared down at her, an expression she gladly returned once regaining her bearings. Really, who did he think she was, one of his ruddy lost boys? She answered to no one, especially not to him, and what she did was no one's business but her own. Without a word, she heaved herself up and began to walk in the opposite direction. She made it all of three steps before his hand clamped down on her arm, though he didn't spin her to face him as he had her first few weeks on the island.

"What?!" Spinning around, ready to attack him bodily this time, she paused at the odd expression he wore. He was staring at her hands, green eyes clearly troubled and brow creased. "What?"

He blinked at her repetition. "How did you learn to do that?"

She scowled. That was what he was worried about? "I was Rumpelstiltskin's apprentice - where do you think I learned it? Everything I know I learned from him." The lie fell easily from her lips, and it was apparent at once that he saw through her. However, instead of calling her out on it, he merely appraised her in silence. Unnerved by his reaction, she took several cautious steps before she turned on her heel and stalked away.

Pan watched her go, troubled eyes staring in her direction long after she'd disappeared into the foliage. While her magic hadn't done any lasting damage, the fact that it had effected him at all was worrying. The Shadow had made it plain from the moment Katerina promised her unborn daughter that Lily and Pan wouldn't be able to use their magic on one another as long as there was an intent to do harm.

But now… his chest still ached from Lilith's attack, and he rubbed the area absently. Lilith hadn't attempted to attack him since those first days on the island, quickly accepting that her magic wouldn't hurt him. But on the Jolly Roger, she'd been more furious than he'd seen in almost a year. He dimly wondered what had st her off - the mention of Baelfire, his condescending attitude, or the fact that he'd interrupted her idyllic time on the ocean.

She'd loved sailing as a child, and part of him was relieved that at least one thing hadn't changed, that he could recognize some part of the carefree, spirited girl in the twisted, apathetic shell she'd become. The pain in his chest faded and he allowed his hand to fall limply at his side.

Things had become more complicated than he'd ever expected.

Storybrooke

With both sorceresses distracted, Emma scrambled for her phone when it rang loudly in the back room. David's picture flashed across the screen, and she quickly accepted the call.

"David?"

"Are you safe?"

She nodded shakily, responding verbally when she realized he couldn't see her. "For now," her gaze went to the barrier. "I've got the spell up in the back room, and Lillian is setting more up every second."

Breathing a sigh of relief, David switched topics. "Is Mary Margaret okay?" He asked a little breathlessly. "I lost track of her during the first assault."

"She's not with you?" Emma asked, her troubled expression drawing attention from Neal.

"No." David felt his blood run cold. "Where the hell is she?"

Across town, beneath the Mills Family Mausoleum, Mary Margaret was tearing through the boxes hidden inside the chamber. Fingers trembling with unease, as there was no guarantee that this foolish plan would work, she switched to a nearby cabinet. Stopping cold at the faint sound of heartbeats and swallowing past the bile that threatened to rise in her throat, she carefully reached inside.

Eyes focused on one of the boxes - though she couldn't say how she knew which one was Cora's - she removed the lid. Bathed in the soft glow of the blackened heart, she suddenly slammed the lid shut as what she was about to do truly hit her. Eyes squeezed shut as she thought over her options, she had to admit that there weren't many.

Coming to a decision, she reopened the box, grimacing at the sight of the beating heart. Taking out the candle before she lost her nerve, Mary Margaret lit both ends and held it over the heart. Eyes closing once more, she whispered the name of her victim.

"Cora… Cora… " The name echoed softly in the chamber. Once it faded, she drew the candle from the heart and blew out both ends, praying silently that one day she could find the strength to forgive herself.

Neverland

Bae looked up when she entered, his gaze flaring with relief before he rose and shot into her arms. She smelt like salt and leather, and he knew at once where she'd been.

"Why would you go anywhere near Hook?" He asked once they'd slipped away from the camp, making sure to be out of earshot of the sentries. While both knew there was little they could do to escape Pan's notice, the lost boys were another matter. "He took my mother from me - he's part of the reason my family was torn apart."

"And your father hates him," Lilith added, lips twitching though she didn't allow herself to smile. "I know you hate him Bae and you have every reason to… but I don't." It was freeing to say the words, as if leaching herself of some kind of poison.

Bae stared at her in confusion. "What do you mean?" He asked, too puzzled to fire back.

"Bae… Hook has never done anything to me. At least not personally. And while I might have been angry at him on behalf of you and your father, I find that I can't anymore." She held up a hand to stave off any objections he might have made. "Something's wrong with me, Bae. I-I can't explain it but I feel like I'm losing my mind. Being with Hook, being on the open sea really, it calms me. It helps."

"Helps with what?"

She paused, unsure how to put her thoughts to words. Seeing her struggle, Bae quickly took pity on the older girl and placed a hand over hers. Startled, Lilith eyed him warily for several heartbeats, entire body still as a statue. Then, she slumped, as if invisible strings holding her upright had been severed. Twisting her hand around so her fingers could grasp his, she smiled thinly at the dark-haired boy.

"Thank you Bae."

He returned the expression a stirring of pity welling inside him at the faint quirk of her lips. She always smiled like that, as if so unused to the action that she barely remembered how to do it. Her brow creased as she sensed the turn on his emotions, but before she could comment on it, she became aware of a third person behind them.

Fingers twisting, Lilith spun around and threw the knife Bae stored in his boot. However, when she saw intruder's face, she caught the dagger just before the tip could embed itself between his eyes.

"Killian."

He flashed her his trademark smirk and lightly pushed the dagger away with a negligent finger. "I daresay I should have announced myself." His charcoaled gaze slid past her to where Bae stood, glaring mutinously at the pirate. "Bae."

"Hook."

Storybrooke

Teeth pulled back in a snarl, Lillian paced angrily in front of the barrier, never taking her blazing red eyes off Cora. The other sorceress ignored her, intently breaking down the magical chalk barrier. Every layer the older witch stripped, Lillian merely replaced, though her hands were beginning to shake from fatigue. Defensive magic had never been her strong suit, and Cora had learned the same trade, from the same master. It was only a matter of time before she got through.

"It's getting weaker," Neal began to panic from behind her, head swinging from Emma to his father. "She's going to get through."

Gold struggled to open his eyes, weakly focusing on his son. "Maybe it's for the best. At least this cursed power will pass from this world."

"No," Neal snapped in return, shifting so he was turned toward his father. "No, you're not dying."

"I am dying." Gold corrected him, barely able to keep his eyes open. "That much is certain. I need to talk to Belle… Emma… " He held out his hand weakly toward the blonde. "Please."

Eyes soft with understanding, Emma obediently pulled out her phone, swiping through the contact list. Neal busies himself with checking on Lillian, awkwardly aware that he was out of the loop. His once 'sister' was pacing in front of the barrier, feral expression so reminiscent of their former captor's favored look that he almost flinched at the sight.

Realizing Lillian wouldn't thank him for bothering her, Neal backpedaled. "Who's Belle?" He asked casually as Emma dialed a number before handing the cellphone to his father.

"Your dad's girlfriend," she said, biting back a smile at the rapidly dawning disbelief on his face.

Though he knew it wasn't the brightest idea, Gold still awaited for her to answer with bated breath. After several rings, during which his heart almost stopped, Belle's hesitant voice answered the phone.

"Mr. Gold, I… I told you before, I… I-I don't remember you." Belle whispered into the phone, guilt lacing her words for her previous behavior. The broken look on his face that last time they met still haunted her, though she couldn't say why.

"I-I… I know." He replied with an inhale that rattled his lungs. "I know. It's just… sweetheart, I… I'm dying."

Her heart sank and, because she really had nothing else to say, she said, "Oh. I'm, uh… I'm… I'm so sorry."

"I know that you're… confused about who you are." He said over her gently, unable to hold back a raspy cough. "So, I'm going to tell you. You are a hero, who helped your people. You're a beautiful woman, who loved an ugly man. Really, really loved me." He said, tears pricking his eyes as he recounted their unlikely love story. "You find goodness in others. And when it's not there, you create it. You make me want to go back. Back, to the best version of me. And that never happened before." Across the room, Lillian turned just so to watch him from the corner of her eye. Neal listened raptly, unable to believe what the father who abandoned him was saying, while Emma pretended not to listen awkwardly. "So, when you look in the mirror and you don't know who you are, that's who you are. Thank you… Belle… "

Gold hung up the phone, lungs burning and his entire body shaking. Before he could summon up the will to ask, Lillian was at his side, slipping the phone from his limp fingers. After handing it off the Emma, the teen returned her attention to Gold, fingers beginning to glow a muted magenta.

Neal cleared his throat, breaking the heavy, awkward silence as Lillian healed his father. "Didn't know you had it in you," he said, unable to come up with anything else.

"Oh, I'm full of love." Gold wheezed sardonically, clasping hands with Lillian when she stopped healing him, eyes swimming. His eyes were drawn to his pensive son. "I've spent a lifetime looking for you, Bae. For a chance to say 'I love you'. And I'm sorry."

"I didn't think you would go back on our deal."

"I just made the wrong choice." Gold admitted faintly, swallowing past the lump in his throat before he held out a trembling hand. "May I?"

"I'm still angry," Neal stated after observing the offered hand.

"I know… "

Ready to retract his hand, Gold nearly jumped out of his skin when Neal grabbed hold of it desperately. Clasping both hands over Gold's, Neal pressed his forehead to their joined hands, biting back tears.

Clutching the boy between sweat-dampened palms, Mary Margaret rapidly climbed the steps into the upper floor of the mausoleum. As she went to leave the stone walls, she stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of Regina storming towards her.

"You have no right to be here." The older woman snarled, eyes locked onto the heart box. "And you have no right to that!"

Without missing a beat, without even really thinking about what she was doing, Mary Margaret held the box out to her step-mother. "I was going to give it to you."

Regina visibly recoiled. "What?"

"She can't love you, you know. She doesn't have her heart." Mary Margaret told her, wearing an innocently earnest expression. "With it, maybe she can. That's why you've never felt she loved you. She doesn't have her heart." She held the box up higher. "But I do."

"You're doing this for me?" Regina had to ask, feeling hysterical laughter bubbling up inside her chest. The very thought was ludicrous.

"Think about it. What would happen if Cora had her heart back? Back inside her?"

"She told me she took it out to protect herself."

"And did it work?" Mary Margaret asked, eyebrows raising ever so slightly. She had to do this right or Regina would shut down completely. "The person she was before… do you think that person survived? She can't love, so she can't love you."

Unwilling to show how much Mary Margaret's words had shaken her, Regina met her gaze coolly. "She always wanted the best for me. That's love."

"Imagine real love." Mary Margaret cajoled gently, already too tightly wound nerves threatening to snap. "You'd have a mother, and a start on making a family Henry could be a part of." Reading the expression on her step-mother's face, she rapidly switched tracks. "Or, you could have her be the Dark One. The choice is yours."

Without another word, and swallowing thickly, the short-haired woman held out the box with trembling fingers. Regina stared at it, never taking her eyes off the box as the faint, rhythmic sound of a heartbeat emanated from within.

Enchanted Forest

Pan watched in silence, one leg hanging off the thick branch, as Lilith and Hook slipped through the jungle side by side. It had been a few months since her last escape attempt - always with Baelfire in tow - and it was obvious that she had had enough of the lost boys. Once more, she slipped away during the most recent celebration, done in honor of their newest lost boy, and made her way to where Killian awaited her.

While never sure if Pan knew that she and the pirate were in constant communication, Lilith couldn't summon the desire to care about Pan's opinion. It was easy enough to sneak out of the camp, especially given that none of the lost boys practiced magic. While only mildly worried that Pan would catch them, the chance out freedom outweighed anything that Pan could throw at her.

As they made their way toward the beach where Hook had a rowboat waiting, both stopped dead at the sight of Pan perched on the edge of the dingy. He waved mockingly at them, head tilting to the side when that odd black smoke formed around Lilith's fingers. "Going somewhere?"

"I'm leaving, Pan," she snapped, shrugging off Killian's attempts at drawing her away from Pan's notice. "And you're not going to stop me."

He watched her, eyes drawn once more to the movement of her fingers before thoughtful emerald eyes met her rage-filled ones. Whatever that magic was, she hadn't learned it from Rumple and he had an inkling about where it came from… one that didn't bode well for him if it turned out to be true.

"Who says I was going to?" He asked lightly, rising to his feet. He towered over her, yet she stared up at him fearlessly. She didn't react as he reached out to touch her hand, cupping it in both of his. He twisted her fingers around, holding back a flinch when the magic lanced through him. "I was just going to give you a proper send-off, love."

With a flourish that made her eyes narrow, Pan lifted her smoke-shrouded hands to his lips, pressing a gentle kiss to her knuckles. With one last smirk in her direction, he vanished and she let her hand fall limply to her side.

"Lass?" Killian called, cautiously approaching the obviously shocked girl. "What was that all about?"

Her skin tingled from where he'd brushed his lips. "I have no idea."

Storybrooke

"Mary Margaret!" David shouted, panicked at the sight of his wife, sitting hunched on the steps of the Mills Family mausoleum, tightly curled within herself. He ran faster, practically leaping over headstones until he was at her side. "Are you okay?!" Caught up in concern, it took a moment for him to fully take in his wife. "Are you… what did you do?"

"You were right," she whispered, head clenched tightly between her hands. Her eyes stung but the tears refused to fall and she tasted bile in her mouth. "This isn't me."

Glancing down at the dagger to see Rumple's name rapidly fading, Cora upper her attack. It took several tries but finally, she was able to shatter through the increasingly weaker barriers that Lilith put in place. As she did so, she sent another blast out, this time at the girl herself. Lillian summoned a barrier, teeth clenched together tightly as her knees threatened to buckle.

"Lily!" Neal shouted as, too weak to fend off another blast, Lillian was knocked off her feet and flung across the room. He moved to help the unconscious teen, but was stopped by Emma.

"We'll get Lillian, but first let's deal with her." Emma pointed her sword in Cora's direction.

She openly sneered as they prepared for a fight. "You two - out of the way." With a flick of her wrist, she teleported them out of the room and into the woods that bordered Storybrooke. Alone at last with Rumple, she warily strode toward the dying man; she knew him too well not to be prepared for some kind of trick.

Instead of attacking her or vanishing, Gold weakly raised his eyes. "A vision told me about you," he said quietly. "Told me this day would come. But it didn't tell me everything. Didn't tell me what I really wanted to know."

With a tenderness he didn't expect of her, Cora seated herself at the edge of the makeshift bed and gently brushed a loose hair away from his damp face. "And what's that?"

He made what could be considered an attempt at a snarl. "Did you ever love me?"

Gently, she reached out to touch his face. He flinched, clearly expecting a blow, and didn't relax even when she merely stroked the side of his face. "Why do you think I had to rip my own heart out? You were my weakness. You are the only man I ever truly loved."

Pressing a kiss to his sweaty brow, Cora rose to her feet and prepared to stab him with the dagger. Before she could though, Regina stormed into the back room and shoved her mother's heart back into her chest. The dagger fell to the ground with loud clatter, one that suddenly startled Lillian back into consciousness. Gold watched, the pain in his chest lessening with every breath, as Cora staggered backwards into her daughter.

Eyes wide as what her daughter had just done washed over her, Cora felt her lips tug into a relieved smile. Regina, breath catching at the sight, smiled back hopefully.

"Mother… "

Smile widening until her cheeks began to hurt, Cora began to laugh, a light, girlish sound that Regina had never heard from her before. Going to embrace her mother, Regina watched in horror as, after pausing, Cora winced in pain. Both their eyes were drawn to the sudden gaping wound in her chest that began to bleed freely.

Even though her head was swimming, Lillian forced herself to stand and stumble to Gold's side and check the wound in his chest. As her fingers roved over the healed, unblemished skin, Regina cried out in shock behind them as Cora suddenly titled to the side.

Regina caught her mother and sank to the ground, cradling Cora's suddenly limp form in her arms. "Mother?" She called, gently shaking the trembling form as Gold stood and retrieved his dagger from the floor, Lillian at his side. "Mother, what's wrong?"

"This… would've been enough." Cora wheezed, using the last of her strength to trace her daughter's features with a loving hand. "You… you would've been enough." With a last exhale, one that Regina knew intimately, Cora's eyes slipped shut and her chest fell silent.

"Mother? What's going on?" Regina cupped her mother's cooling cheek, resisting the urge to slap her until she woke up. "Mother? Don't leave me, please… what am I going to do?"

Unmoved by her desperate plea, Gold gazed down dispassionately at her. Your mother did you no favours." He told her coldly, refusing to feel any guilt over what had transpired.

"Shut up!" Regina lashed out with one arm, though Lillian blocked the attack. "You stole her life! You cast some spell." She accused, glaring hatefully at the both of them.

"We did nothing."

"Regina!" Mary Margaret shouted, frantic with guilt, as she and David ran into the back room. "Stop!" She came up short, eyes widening at the sight of Cora dead in Regina's arms and Gold no longer near death's door.

Holding Cora even more tightly in her arms, Regina glared hatefully up at Mary Margaret, words dripping like poison from her lips. "You did this."

Thoughts? Comments? Questions?