(A/N): Hello all! Here is a holiday present for all you wonderful readers, and a birthday present to myself. That's right, it's my birthday and I'm giving you a gift on it because I'm just that awesome.
Shoutouts to Bronzelove, , Carol542, FrumiousBandersnatch10, Najada, ReadLikeHermione, Eadane, jcanderson33, pendora59, OneWomanStorm, EraticMind, tayaboo72, KindaTwisted21, NicoleR85, and Guests for reviewing! I love hearing your thoughts on what's happening! You're all rays of sunshine!
Special shout out to MilandaAnza for her continued help with this plot. It's very helpful to have someone who has seen the show in its entirety since I have only gotten to season 5. OUAT is not on Netflix here and it hurts my soul.
Heartfelt gratitude towards fringeperson for indulging in my obsessive fangirling self. If you haven't read her works then I highly recommend! She has two SPECTACULAR Emma/Jefferson stories that helped inspire parts of this story that you should read when you have the chance, along with some Rumbelle and a OUAT/HP crossover of her own!
This chapter is all of episode 4 and I hope you enjoy how much we've started to deviate from the episode plot lines. They're there, of course, but now we just leave Emma to her heroing while Hermione goes off and does her own thing. Any familiar dialogue is not mine and belongs to OUAT creators.
Lyrics in this chapter come from "Invincible" by Adelitas Way.
As always, thanks go to Hannbells!
Hope you enjoy!
Bow down I'm in invincible tonight
I'm alive, take a look into my eyes
This time I'ma take you for a ride
I'm invincible tonight
"We have got to find someplace else to live," Hermione informed her sister, carefully studying the newspaper as they sat in their regular booth at Granny's.
"We've already looked there," Emma reminded her. "There's nothing in this town. We'll just have to make do at the Inn unless you want to take Mary Margaret up on her offer," she teased.
Hermione glowered at her sister. "No, I do not."
Emma shook her head in amusement, sipping at her coffee. "I don't get why you dislike her so much; you don't know anything about her other than her supposed fairytale self from Henry's book."
"If it was reversed," she asked softly. "If I had been the one abandoned in the woods less than an hour after being born with nothing more than a blanket, would you be jumping for joy at spending any time with someone potentially responsible?"
Her hands tightened around her mug at the thought of her baby sister being abandoned the way she was. "Hell no," she finally growled.
"Exactly. And I think I'll go speak with Mr. Gold today and see if he knows of any apartments." Her quick change of subject caused Emma to blink at her.
"I forgot that I needed to finish at least one cup of coffee before trying to deal with you," she grumbled, downing the last dregs left in her cup. "Why would Gold know about apartments anyway? And I thought we were avoiding him since everyone seems to hate him."
"Since he owns most of the buildings in town, he would know of any vacancies," she explained. "And everyone hates him because he's so powerful- no one really likes their landlord, especially a strict one. Besides, considering the fact that everyone here is a just a character in Regina's little story, isn't it curious that she would make one man almost as powerful as she was?"
Emma considered her words, thoughts racing. "You're right," she slowly agreed. "Regina doesn't seem like the sharing type, so it doesn't make sense why she would give Gold any sort of control. She did make sure that no one likes him though, he's hated even more than she is."
"He won't be staging a coup anytime soon," Hermione concurred. "But that doesn't mean he wouldn't be a good ally against Regina and I certainly like him more than her."
"Just so were clear," Emma leaned forward, dropping her voice. "This is a platonic like, right?"
"Emma!"
"What?" she teased, grinning at her sister's obvious embarrassment. "I'm just checking. You do, after all, have a habit of crushing on older men."
"You're a monster and I'm leaving." Hermione slid out of the booth and snatched her bag, hurrying out of the restaurant.
"Okay, but behave yourself," she heard Emma calling after her. "Make good choices!"
Hermione turned to look at her through the diner's front window and stuck her tongue out as she hurried past.
Believe me
You never met a motherfucker like me
Bet you've never seen the things that I've seen
Bottled up inside
This time I'm taking back my life
"Welcome back," Gold greeted as Hermione walked into his shop. "I didn't expect to see you again so soon."
"Well, we did make a deal," she reminded him, moving to lean against the counter in front of him and setting her bag on the floor. "And I would hazard a guess that you have as many questions for me as I do for you."
He set down his pen. "That we did. However, I do have a shop to run so if you're going to be hanging around here, I expect you to make yourself useful."
"What did you have in mind?"
"It would seem that my cursed self never felt the need to keep a ledger of the items that are in the shop. If you wouldn't mind helping me catalogue each item, I would be much obliged."
Hermione frowned. "Aren't all the items in the shop from your collection in the Enchanted Forest?"
Gold scowled. "They are, but when I was looking for something earlier I realized that it wasn't here; it seems that not everything came through with the curse."
She rolled her eyes and was unable to keep the sarcasm from her tone. "I see. So, do you just want me to list out what I've found, or would you like me to try and match it up with its original owner?"
He smiled blandly at her. "Whatever you think is best, dearie. And I do believe that you now owe me three questions."
Hermione froze, staring at him as she leaned over the counter to grab one of his notebooks from where he kept them stashed beneath the cash register. She went over their conversation in her head and scowled at him. "You know, this is why people don't like you."
"I am aware of that." He retrieved a blank notebook for her. "Do try and refrain from plastering yourself anywhere else in the shop."
She grumbled for a moment before taking the notebook and sighing. "Alright, ask away."
"Tell me how Emma came to be part of your family," he instantly ordered.
Hermione smirked at him. "I'm sorry, but I only agreed to answer your questions, not your demands."
Gold gave her that smile that told her he was pleased with how quickly she'd caught onto his game. "How did Emma become your sister?"
Turning to walk over to the shelves on the right side of the room, Hermione studied the objects in front of her without really seeing them as she tried to compose herself. "Our mom is American," she finally started. "She met our dad when he was here for a semester abroad.
"They were both studying to become dentists and Dad came to the states to see whether he wanted to do his dental schooling here. The way he tells it, they had one class together and after speaking with her once, he never looked back." Rumpelstiltskin stayed silent, staring down at one of his many ledgers with a pen in hand, knowing that he would get more from her if he allowed her to speak at her own pace.
"Once they'd graduated, Mum and Dad got married and moved to a practice in Minnesota for an internship that one of their former professors had arranged for them. They'd only been in Minnesota for a month or so when they met Emma. She'd been brought in for a cleaning by her foster mother and I think it was love at first sight for Mum. Here was this tiny, adorable, blond child who had clearly been abused. She never said anything to me, but I know that Emma was being mistreated at that foster home and that's why she got taken out. As soon as she was removed, Mum and Dad fought to have her placed with them.
"The system was so crowded, and they were having trouble placing all of the children in homes, so the State agreed to allow them to foster Emma since Mum was still a citizen and provided that Emma was alright with it and they submitted to monthly, random checks. A few months later they legally adopted her and moved back to Britain shortly thereafter. I was born a year or so later and that was that."
He'd watched her as she wrote down each item she'd found as she talked, a little impressed at her ability to multitask. "Your sister doesn't have a British accent," he commented, wondering if she was distracted enough to continue talking.
She wasn't. "That wasn't a question," she commented glibly, still scribbling away.
"Why did your sister move to America?" he finally settled on asking.
She smiled slightly down at her notebook. "After she graduated from secondary school, Emma got to choose where we went on vacation since she did such a great job. She chose America and after our vacation was over, she decided to stay here." Hermione decided to throw him a bone and added, "She got a job as a bail bondsman and she worked to hide her accent so that she would stand out less."
"I see," his tone was light but there was something else there, something he had somehow managed to infer from her words. She just wasn't sure what that was though; maybe he knew she was giving him the lite version of the truth. "And your parents were alright with you joining her here?"
Hermione inhaled sharply. "Our parents are currently in no position to have an opinion on my being here and that's not likely to change." The pain in her voice was enough to tell him where their parents were. "My turn to ask a question," Hermione said, hoping to distract him. She turned to look at him and he inclined his head at her, silently telling her to get on with it. "Why does Regina hate Snow White?"
He smirked. "I'm surprised that Henry's little storybook didn't tell that particular tale. Well, if you really want to know, then I'm happy to oblige. Once upon a time," he started, clearly amused and Hermione gave him a look before focusing intently on his story.
By the time he was finished, Hermione was practically vibrating in anger. "So, let me see if I got this right," she started, her hair sparking ominously. "Regina was in love with Daniel, her mother didn't approve and her father was too spineless to say anything, and Snow White informed Cora of their plan to run away together which led to Daniel's death."
"That about covers it." He seemed delighted by her anger.
Hermione could understand why Regina had come to hate Cora and Snow, though why the woman had thought she could entrust her secret to a child without someone as manipulative as Cora finding out was beyond her, but this still seemed a bit excessive. "Regina had to have known that she couldn't run from her mother forever," Hermione commented. "From what you've said about Cora, she was an accomplished magician and would probably have been able to track them down quickly enough, so the end result would have been the same. Cora wanted a noble for her daughter, not a servant. She would never have been able to stay with Daniel."
"True, but grief is a powerful thing. By focusing her anger on Snow White, Regina doesn't have to face the fact that Daniel's death is partially her own fault. Their love may have been strong, but Regina knew just how powerful Cora was. If she had really wanted to protect Daniel, she should have stayed away, or done away with her dear mother first. But she didn't, and now here we all are."
"Here we are," Hermione echoed. "Trapped in a small town in Maine; it's like a dream come true."
"Depends on what kind of dream you speak of."
She smirked. "Your turn."
"Why do you seem to hate Snow White?" Gold asked, watching her shoulders hunch. "I must confess, I would have thought you'd like her more simply because she's Emma's mother, yet you seem to hate her as much as Regina."
"That's because I do." Her pen pressed into the pages so harshly that the ink bled through. "Regina may have been the one to cast the curse, to cause so much pain to the residents of your world, but Snow is the one who stood by and did nothing time and time again. I have fought in a war, Rumpelstiltskin. I have fought and lost and bled in order to save everyone from a dark magic user like Regina. The reason he lived so long, the reason he caused so much damage, is because the people who were supposed to fight him limited themselves in their attacks. They were told that killing is wrong and that their enemy should always be brought in alive if at all possible, despite how many times they managed to escape their cages. We were told that love," she sneered, "Is the most powerful magic of all and that by remembering that feeling we would emerge victorious."
It still burned how much Dumbledore had mislead them. She would never know for sure just why it was he had lied to Harry about how he had been saved, but, if she had to guess, Hermione assumed it was because he had been worried that Harry would turn out to be another Dark Lord if he learned about the more complicated sides of magic. The parallels between Harry Potter and Tom Riddle were easy to see for one who knew both stories and Dumbledore was far too controlling to leave anything to chance so he'd done everything he could to limit Harry to only "light" magic.
Harry had told them Dumbledore's explanation of how he'd supposedly survived the Killing Curse- had explained how Lily's love for him had saved him. If that were true though, then his placement with the Dursley's wouldn't have made sense because they certainly hadn't loved him. No, Lily hadn't saved Harry because she loved him; she'd saved him through her blood. Lily Potter had sacrificed herself to save her son and had invoked a magic more ancient than any taught in Hogwarts and it had been bound by her blood. That was why Harry had carried that protection with him until he had come into his own magic, why he had been placed with an aunt who hated him but was his mother's only blood relative.
Too bad those kinds of magic were far too gray for the Chosen One.
"Those seem to be very similar sentiments to what Snow White and Charming believed in the Enchanted Forest," he commented.
Hermione turned to look at Rumpelstiltskin with burning, golden eyes. "Love didn't save them when they were being ripped apart by the monsters lurking in the dark. It didn't stop mothers from being forced to bury their children. It didn't save the innocents from being tortured. Love isn't what ended the war.
"People like Snow White like to pretend that war isn't bloody and ugly- like to think that self-righteous thinking and clean hands will be what lets them prevail when in reality, all that kind of thinking does is increase the body count. How many people died because of their inaction? How many parents were taken from their children? How many hearts were ripped out of chests? How many people were left to wonder where their loved ones were and whether or not they were suffering?
"How many people were burned by the fires of war before being torn away to this land, the memories of who they were locked away forever?"
Rumpelstiltskin stared at her, wondering if this is what he would have become had he not escaped from fighting in the Ogre Wars. "And what did fighting in the war cost you?"
Hermione stared at him for a moment longer, thoughts of parents turning away from her darting into remembrances of burning pain as she lay on a marble floor and staring down at the body of little Colin Creevey flashing through her mind before she turned away from him again. "Sorry, but you'll have to wait your turn before you get to ask another question."
It was quiet for several moments as Hermione worked to recollect herself and remember the questions she had wanted to ask him. Finally, she asked, "How does the Dark Ones power differ from the other magic users in your world?"
She could hear the smile he was wearing as he spoke. "In the world we originated from, magic was everywhere. It affected every living creature and shaped everyone's lives. While the people who had the most interaction with it were magic users, even those who had no powers themselves could affect the magic in the land. However, all magic comes with a price. For those who actively used magic, that price would usually come from themselves- it would leech away their energy so to speak. The Dark One, however, takes the price of the magic used from others which allows for almost limitless power."
"So," Hermione started, intrigued. "That's why you needed to make deals. In order for you to use your magic to give them what they asked, they had to sacrifice something themselves. Although, it seems to me that you would occasionally take the cost of the magic from something else rather than the person you were dealing with in order to get what you wanted."
He didn't respond to her comment, though he didn't really need to. "How does the magic in this world work?"
"The fundamental aspects of magic here is not all that different from the Enchanted Forest," she began to explain. "Here though, almost everyone needs a wand in order to channel their magic and non-magic users are unaware of the magical world. Most witches and wizards come from magical families except for the rare few born to non-magical parents. In Britain, children are sent to a magical school where they are trained for seven years on numerous magical subjects."
Rumpelstiltskin hummed in thought. "In my world, children generally need to find a private tutor in order to use magic unless their parents also have the ability."
"Who trained Regina?" Hermione asked, though she suspected she already knew the answer.
"I did," he stated, unapologetically. "She reached out to me and I could sense how powerful she could be so agreed to help train her."
"For a price of course," she snorted.
"Of course," he echoed.
Back and forth they went as Hermione slowly worked her way through the shop. Hermione focused most of her questions on the different ways magic was used in the Enchanted Forest and trying to understand the minute differences between the worlds so as to try and have a better grasp of Regina's brand of magic. She knew Gold wouldn't directly tell her anything about the curse but even a good grasp of the basics of their magic would help her slowly unravel the details of the curse.
Gold seemed to take a keen interest in Arithmancy and prodded her to explain the science behind it. Hermione could tell he was frustrated by her inability to explain the exact details about some of the processes, but those depended on what the practitioner was looking for so until Gold was willing to share what he wanted to use it for, her hands were tied.
It was just about time for her to meet Emma for lunch, when the ring on her finger began to burn. The design of it was simple, just a silver band with a sapphire in it, her birthstone. Emma had a matching band with an opal that Hermione had tied to hers so that they would be able to sense each other if the other was in trouble, and even be able to feel what the other was if they concentrated. This was the first time she had gotten such a negative wave of emotions from the other girl though and Hermione was panicked for a moment until she realized that Emma was more enraged than hurt. Hermione had the sneaking suspicion that it was Regina causing it so she set off another charge into the town wards. Hopefully that would send the Mayor scurrying away.
Refocusing her attention on Gold, she asked her final question. "Do you know of any apartments available for rent?"
"Have you and your sister grown tired of Granny's unique hospitality?" he asked with a smirk.
Hermione gave him a droll look worthy of Professor Snape. "Obviously."
"Well then, let me see what I can do."
I'm rising up
I've had enough
I'm feeling invincible tonight
I'm alive, take a look into my eyes
"Your sister's in the laundry room," Ruby told her the moment she walked into the diner. "And you should probably know that the Mayor stopped by to talk to her. Whatever she said seemed to really upset Emma."
"Of course." Hermione sighed in annoyance. "How someone so vulgar became mayor I will never understand."
Ruby shrugged. "Well, it helps that everyone's too afraid of her, so she always runs unopposed."
"Yes," Hermione muttered. "Very convenient."
The old Hermione may have been more sympathetic towards Regina after hearing part of her story from Gold. Losing the man she loved in such a way would have broken anyone, especially if they had been forced to marry again so soon after. However, a tragic backstory only went so far and the person she was now couldn't summon even an ounce of pity for the monster Regina had become. The only thing Hermione cared about now was her family and she would show no mercy to any threats against them.
Making her way to the laundry room, Hermione knocked once before entering. Emma was standing over the washing machine glaring at the timer as if that would make it move quicker. "I heard you had a bit of trouble this morning," she greeted.
Emma glanced over at her. "Heard or sensed?" she asked, looking pointedly at her ring. "I'd almost forgot about our connection since you tweaked the spell so we would only be able to sense each other when we focused on the link or when the other really needed help. Good to know it still works I guess. Also, it seems Regina has started looking into our past so that's fun." Reaching into her pocket to pull out a folded-up letter, Emma passed it to her younger sister. "This came for you, by the way. Thought you were keeping your location a secret and the only ones who knew were aware that they shouldn't use owl-post?"
Hermione frowned. "I am and they are." She unfolded it and glowered at the messy scrawl on the front. "I'll talk to Kingsley and remind him later." Glancing up at Emma, she asked, "Did anyone see?"
"No," Emma shook her head. "I think it waited till I was alone to drop that off. So, I guess that means that your wards are still holding since it didn't go directly to you but to the address on the envelope."
"Small relief there," Hermione muttered. She shoved the letter in her bag. "What exactly did Regina say?"
"Just that she knows I move around a lot and she isn't worried about me sticking around for long," she muttered. "She also knows that you disappeared for several years and Regina apparently thinks that you must be involved in something illegal."
"She's not technically wrong," Hermione commented with a smirk. "Though if she knew just what exactly I was getting up to, I doubt she'd be so brave."
That finally pulled her sister from her morose thoughts and Emma gave her a small smirk. "You going to stick her in a jar too? Or just continue attacking her wards?"
"No, I learned my lesson from that with Skeeter," she scowled. "If you get to the point where you're trapping your enemies then you best make sure that they're properly leashed before you let them out again. And she's been running around power-mad for nearly 30 years, a few jolts won't kill her. Might deflate her ego a bit but she could do with a bit of grounding."
"Oh, I don't know," Emma teased. "I for one enjoyed reading about all your exploits- really helped me feel like I was staying in touch with what was going on in your life."
"My apologies, I would have kept you more in the loop if I wasn't so busying making love potions for so many men at one time; it was getting really difficult there to keep on top of things."
Emma snorted. "I would've thought you'd let a few of them be on top."
Hermione flushed. "Weren't you the one who said to never let the guy be on top because they might get the idea that they hold any power in the relationship?"
"I did," Emma winced. "Forgot what a bitch I used to be."
Hopping up onto the table next to the washing machine, Hermione shrugged. "To be fair, you did have a very good reason to be. Besides, none of those guys were good enough for you anyway."
"Also forgot how disapproving you could be." Emma joined her younger sister on the table. "Mum and Dad used to joke that they didn't have to be threatening towards anyone I brought home because you would do it for them. You were a straight up terrifying child."
"Yeah, well, they all deserved it. I only regret that I didn't get to Neal before he ran," Hermione said, tone dark.
"You and me both." They sat in silence for a moment before Emma asked, "How did it go with Mr. Gold?"
"Well enough. I helped him catalogue his shop while we spoke. He said he would get back to me tomorrow about any places for rent here in town."
"Ah, organizing. You're favorite thing to do when you have free time. How did he know?"
"America has made you far more playful and I'm not sure I approve of it," Hermione frowned in mock disappointment. "Whatever happened to that stoic British person you used to be?"
"I realized how uptight most British people are and I gained a newfound hobby of making them as uncomfortable as possible." Emma grinned at her sister. "It's really easy too. All I have to do is make a joke or sarcastic comment and they start to fall over themselves in confusion."
"This is why you didn't have any friends in school," Hermione told her primly, lips twitching.
Emma snorted. "Like you're one to talk. I don't remember you being Miss Popularity in primary school."
"That's because the other children were intimated by my intelligence but were too stupid to realize that's why they didn't like me."
Her sister laughed outright. "That's not why they didn't like you- it's because you were such a goody-goody."
Hermione laughed as well. "Ah, the good old days."
"Now look at you, hiding giants and stealing dragons. How did it come to this?"
"I was sent far away from you and ended up trying to live my life by asking myself what you would do if you were there, which led to me making some stunningly poor decisions," she answered dryly.
"Hey now," Emma argued. "I was a wonderful, well-behaved child."
Hermione snorted. "No, you were not. You were just better at getting away with it."
"Not as good as you, obviously. How you managed to not get expelled from Hogwarts is a testament to how good a misdirection you are and how terrible a headmaster Dumbledore was."
"No arguments there." Hermione scooted closer to her sister and rested her head on her shoulder. "So, besides Regina, anything else happen today?"
"Nope," Emma answered, resting her cheek on top of Hermione's head. "Nothing to report so far."
This time I'ma take you for a ride
I'm invincible tonight
I'm alive, take a look into my eyes
This time I'ma take you for a ride
I'm invincible tonight
"Hey," Henry greeted, sitting down next to Hermione in his castle.
"Hello," Hermione smiled at him. "How was school?"
"Boring," he answered with a sigh, before shyly leaning over to hug her. He relaxed when she immediately returned the embrace, dropping a kiss on top of his head. "What have you been up to today?"
"Doing some investigating for Operation Cobra. I have nothing to report yet, but I do need to ask a favor from you."
Henry immediately perked up. "Of course!"
"I need you to keep an eye out for any strangers in town." He stared at her in confusion and more than a hint of disappointment. "This is very important, Henry," she warned. "It seems several people from my world know that I am here and may be paying me a visit. You know almost everyone in this town, even if it's just by sight. If you see anyone you don't know, you need to find either myself or Emma. Do not speak to them if you can help it and absolutely do not mention anything about the curse."
He frowned at her. "If they're also magical, couldn't they help us break the curse?"
"No. Things could become unstable should anyone else find out that the entire town is cursed and from a different world. Promise to let me know if you see anything or anyone out of the ordinary."
"Promise," Henry said, nodding firmly. He may not have totally understood why this was so important to Hermione, but she trusted him and he wouldn't do anything to break that.
Hermione relaxed and smiled at him. "Thank you, Henry."
He blushed and shrugged. "It's no big deal." Then, he changed the subject. "Where's Emma? Is she meeting you here?"
"My sister is currently in timeout at our hotel room."
He stared at her. "Timeout?"
"Yes. She lied to me earlier so now she has to stay in our room and think about what she's done."
"But she's a grownup," Henry protested. "Grownups don't get put in timeout."
"Well, they do now. Honestly, if more adults were put into timeout, they would be more responsible. They are certainly more than a few people who I know could benefit from being forced to actually sit in silence and contemplate their life," Hermione muttered.
"What exactly did she do to get put in timeout?"
"I told you, she lied. I asked her if anything interesting happened to her earlier and she said no. Then, I find out from Graham that he offered her a job as his deputy."
Henry waited for a moment to see if she was going to say anything else before demanding, "That's it?! She didn't tell you about a job offer and you locked her up in your room?"
"It's the principle of thing," Hermione justified. "She was offered the opportunity to become a part of the community here and she didn't tell me. If she didn't want to talk about it, then she could have just said so, but she just lied instead. We can have secrets that we don't tell each other but we don't lie to one another; we made that rule when we were younger."
"Maybe she didn't think it was important," Henry defended. "It was just a job offer." The hopeful look in his eyes though showed that he also understood how important the offer really was. It was a chance for Emma and Hermione to stay in Storybrooke, a reason other than Henry. "How long are is she going to be stuck in there?" he finally asked.
Hermione checked her watch. "The spell should be wearing off now. Shall we go find her?"
He jumped up. "Yep! Let's go!"
I'll break you a hundred different ways
Then I'll make you remember my face
Thought that I would let you leave
It's hard to stop
What you can't see
Fortunately for Hermione, Emma seemed to find Hermione locking her in her room more humorous than anything else. It wasn't until after they had walked Henry back to the Mayor's home and started back to the center of town that she brought up what had happened. "It was an accident, wasn't it?"
Hermione's shoulders hunched. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Don't be like that," Emma said, nudging her shoulder against her sisters. "I'm not criticizing you or anything, just verifying that I'm right."
Slowly untensing, Hermione finally nodded her head. "I didn't mean to lock you in," she almost whispered. "I wasn't even that angry or annoyed."
"That's what I thought," her older sister said, linking her arm with Hermione's. "Your magic always has a different feel when it's accidental."
Hermione blinked at her. "What?"
"Your magic. It feels different when you use it on purpose than it does when something happens by accident; the energy is different or something."
"You can feel my magic?" Hermione verified, wondering why Emma hadn't mentioned that to her sooner.
"Of course. I've certainly been around it for long enough," Emma told her with a smirk. "Your magic would flair up whenever you didn't get your way as a kid. It was lucky for us that you were a pretty easy-going child, otherwise I'm sure you would have beaten us to death with books on accident."
"If you all had just left me alone with my books instead of insisting on that 'socializing' nonsense then it wouldn't have been such an issue," she automatically responded, thoughts racing. Rumpelstiltskin's claim that her sister had magic seemed to be one of truth. Only someone with a large amount of magic would be able to feel when magic was being used at the small amounts Hermione had released as a child, let alone tell the difference between deliberate and accidental use.
"Hey, now," Emma protested. "I was right there with you; Mum and Dad used to have to force me out of the house alongside you."
Hermione couldn't help giggling at the memory of Emma as a sulking teen, being made to attend extracurricular activities by their parents in the hopes that she would make more friends. She sobered up quickly though and said, "I am sorry for locking you in the room; my magic is acting differently here."
"Because of the wards?"
"I don't know," she answered, beyond frustrated. "Maybe. They certainly aren't helping anything. I can feel what Regina was feeling when she cast them reverberating through me constantly- it wouldn't surprise me if she really did kill her own father in order to cast this curse. The magic in this town is so oppressing I feel like I'm going to collapse at any moment."
"Do you need to leave?" Emma instantly asked, willing to do whatever it took to keep her sister safe. She, of course, would have to stay in Storybrooke for Henry but Hermione didn't have to be here if it was just going to hurt her.
"No, but I will need to do something about the town wards," Hermione warned. "It shouldn't affect the townspeople, but it will cause Regina some pain. Well, some more pain."
Emma snorted. "And that makes you feel so worried, doesn't it?"
"You know me," Hermione smirked, looking exactly like Emma had moments ago despite not being blood-related. "I'm a firm believer in that you get what you give."
I'm rising up
I've had enough
I'm feeling invincible tonight
I'm alive take a look into my eyes
"Henry meeting us here or in the diner?" Emma asked the next morning as they were getting dressed.
"Here," Hermione answered, voice muffled as she went shoulder deep into her bag, searching for her elusive favorite sweater. "Apparently the Queen has a city council meeting today."
"On a Saturday?" Emma was obviously suspicious. "Why wouldn't she meet during the week? And don't those meetings usually happen in the evenings? That's how it's been in every other city I've ever lived in. And why would it last all day? This is Storybrooke- nothing ever seems to happen here."
"Maybe it's an emergency meeting to talk about the strangers who've arrived in town and begun wreaking havoc on the unsuspecting inhabitants."
"Ha ha, very funny." A knock at the door interrupted them. "Damn," Emma swore as Hermione finally managed to fish out the sweater her sister had given her two years previously. "Kid moves fast."
She swung the door open, mouth open to greet Henry before her eyes widened in shock. "Good morning, Miss Swan," he greeted. "My name is Mr. Gold, we met briefly on your arrival."
Emma crossed her arms. "I remember. You looking for Hermione?"
Walking over to the door, Hermione bumped her sister out of the way and gestured for the older gentleman to enter their room. "Good morning! What brings you by so early?"
He smiled slightly before walking in and sitting down in one of the chairs by the window. "I have a proposition for Miss Swan, though I have no doubt you would also be very helpful with this as well."
"Really?" Emma asked, slightly surprised. "What's up?"
Mr. Gold pulled a photo out of his coat pocket. "Her name is Ashley Boyd. She's taken something quite valuable from me and I was hoping you could find her for me."
"Why don't you just go to the police?" Emma asked, taking the photo.
"Because she's just a confused young woman. She's pregnant, alone, and scared. I don't want to ruin this young girl's life, I just want my property returned." Hermione knew that Gold was trying to remind Emma of when she was pregnant in order to get her to help him and she glared at him, silently warning him to stop using such underhanded tactics with her sister.
"What'd she take?" Hermione asked, suspicious. She and Gold may have had an understanding, but she had no doubts about what kind of man he truly was.
"Well, one of the advantages of you not being the police is discretion," he said calmly. "Let's just say it's a precious object and leave it at that."
"When'd you see her last?" Her sister asked, tone professional.
"Last night," he answered, pulling back his hair to show a cut on the side of his head. "That's how I got this.
"It's so unlike her," he continued. "She was quite wound up, rambling on and on about changing her life." Hermione saw her sister look guilty for a split second before her expression turned blank once more. "I have no idea what got into her. Miss Swan, please help me find her. My only other choice is the police and I don't think anyone wants to see that baby born in jail, now do they?"
"No, of course not," Hermione interjected, her thoughts racing as she mentally flipped through the stories from the book. Was this girl in one of them? A pregnant young woman stealing something back from Rumpelstiltskin in order to take back control of her life… Most likely a contract then. Just because he couldn't make any in this world didn't mean he wasn't hanging onto the ones he'd made before he came.
Cinderella.
It had to be. Cinderella was still trying to go back on their deal without facing any consequences. Hermione mentally rolled her eyes.
"So, you'll help me then?" Gold asked.
"I'll help her," Emma clarified, tucking the picture of Ashley into her pocket.
"Grand." Gold stood up then, clearly not planning on sticking around.
"Hey, guys," came Henry's voice from outside the door. "I was thinking we could-" he stopped speaking once he'd spotted their guest.
"Hey, Henry," Gold greeted. "How are you?"
"Okay?" Hermione couldn't help smiling at the confusion clear on the boy's face.
"Good. Give my regards to your mother." He walked back to the door, stopping in the hall to turn back say, "And, good luck." With one final nod to the sisters, he left.
"Do you know who that is?" Henry immediately asked once the door closed.
"Yeah," Emma answered. "Of course."
Henry perked up. "Who? Because I'm still trying to figure it out."
"Oh, I meant in reality." Emma turned to her younger sister. "You got any ideas?"
Hermione just shrugged "I have many, but not ones I'm willing to share yet."
Henry frowned at her but seemed to decide to wait to ask her more. "We're still hanging out today?"
"Actually Henry, something just came up," Emma told him, apologetically. "It'll just be you and Hermione today."
"Really? What? Did you take that job at with the Sheriff's office? Do you have to work today?" Henry was almost bouncing in excitement.
Emma explained what was going on as they headed out of the inn and towards where Emma had parked the day before. "Please let me help," Henry instantly begged once she was done.
"No!" Emma exclaimed. "It could be dangerous."
"The pregnant maid is dangerous?" Hermione grinned at his tone, just like his mother's whenever someone made a stupid argument with her.
"She assaulted Mr. Gold."
"Cool!" Henry cheered.
Emma gave her sister a pleading look but Hermione just ignored her, enjoying watching her big sister lose in a debate with a ten-year-old. "This isn't a game," Emma valiantly tried to convince him. "She's desperate."
"You're going to lose," Hermione muttered to her.
"You stay out of this, traitor."
"I'll just look for her myself," Henry threatened.
"Then I'll find you and I'll bring you back."
"Then you wouldn't be helping the maid."
"I'm just trying to be responsible here!" Emma said, almost throwing her hands up in frustration.
Henry pulled his trump card. "And I'm just trying to spend time with you," he told her as he climbed into the bug.
"Oh, that is really not fair," she complained. Turning to Hermione, she asked, "You coming?"
Hermione shook her head. "Figured I'd find a quiet place and take a closer look at the book," she told her, keeping her voice soft so as not to disturb Henry.
Emma frowned. "Be careful."
Instead of answering, Hermione just smiled and wandered off, deciding to head into the woods Charming had gotten lost in to ensure that she was neither disturbed while she worked nor would anyone be hurt by any unexpected magic that may occur.
She had determined that whatever was in the book wasn't a horcrux but that didn't change the fact that there was something, or someone, hiding in there and she wanted to know what. And if she couldn't figure out what it was, then she was just going to set the book on fire with Fiendfyre and be done with it. It may not have been a horcrux but there was still something wrong with the book, she could feel it, and she wasn't going to just sit around and wait for it to truly become a threat.
Hiking through the forest, Hermione finally stopped in a small hollow surrounded by ancient, moss covered trees. After casting a quick spell to make sure that there was no one nearby, she sat down on a tree root and pulled the original Once Upon a Time book out of her bag. Luckily for her, whatever magic there was hadn't been affecting Henry since he hadn't noticed the switch. She set it on her lap and rested her hands on top of the cover, closing her eyes and focusing on tuning into the magic surrounding the book. Once she had, she started to carefully press her own powers into it.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
Hermione was on her feet and ducking behind a tree, making sure her back was covered as she stared at the white-haired man. "Who are you?" she demanded.
He just stared at her, seeming puzzled. "I could ask the same of you. Where did you get that book?"
She didn't look away from him. "That's none of your business and who I am is of no concern to you."
"If you won't tell me your name then why should I tell you mine?"
Despite her best efforts, Hermione couldn't help feeling curious. No one else in this town could use magic, not even Rumpelstiltskin, and she could sense the power surrounding this man. He also seemed very unsettled by her presence and she wanted to know why that was. "My name is Hermione."
He hummed contemplatively. "Hermione. I don't believe I've heard that name before."
"It is an unusual name," was all she replied. It would seem that he had no idea who she was, despite the fact that she and her sister were the talk of the town. "So, now that I've told mine, care to show me yours?"
"I am known as the Apprentice."
"And who exactly is your master?" It was strange that someone so old would still be considered an apprentice. The Apprentice though. An important apprentice, a famous one, but she hadn't read about him in the book.
Considering her for a moment, he finally said, "It's not time for you to know. You were not expected."
"Expected by who?" Hermione glanced down at the book before looking back at him. "By whoever is hiding in this book?"
His eyes widened. "What do you know of that?"
"I know there's someone, or something, inside this book and whatever it is doesn't feel quite right. I know that it may not be dangerous right now, but that the potential is there. What I don't know is if it would be better to take care of it here and now or if there's a reason I should be hesitant."
The Apprentice leaned forward slightly. "You cannot destroy the book."
"On the contrary, I most certainly can. If you want me not to, then you'll have to convince me not to." Hermione released her hold on her magic and allowed it to charge the air around them, watched as the man's eyes went wide. "And I'd speak quickly, if I were you."
As if in response to her own demonstration, the Apprentice's magic also filled the space between them, though it was not as strong as her own. "Why have you come here?" he demanded.
"You ask a lot of questions yet refuse to offer any answers and I'm starting to get a little tired of this game." Her magic seemed to automatically respond to her emotions and more was let out into the world and surrounded the man, binding his arms and legs into something almost like a Jelly-Legs Jinx but not quite. "This book was given to my nephew, has been in his possession for months. My sister and I came into town only to find out that there's a curse and she's a savior," she spat the world like she would a curse. "I've already got Rumpelstiltskin speaking to me in riddles, I don't need it from you as well. So either speak or stand down- I don't care which it is you choose, at this point."
His eyes widened. "Your Emma's sister?"
"I am. But that's enough about me, let's talk about you."
There was a long stretch of silence as they stared at each other before he finally spoke. "Merlin. I am the Sorcerer Merlin's Apprentice."
Hermione blinked at him. God-fucking-damnit.
This time I'ma take you for a ride
I'm invincible tonight
I'm alive, take a look into my eyes
This time I'ma take you for a ride
I'm invincible tonight
On her way out of the forest, Hermione's phone started to ring. "Hello?"
"I need you to talk to Gold," Emma said.
"About what?"
"Apparently Ashley was forced to agree to give the baby to Gold." Hermione smiled faintly at the outrage in her sister's voice. "I'm going to find Ashley, I need you to stop Gold."
"No."
Emma was silent for a moment. "No?! What do you mean no?!"
"I mean, I'm not going to help you. While the situation is slightly more complex due to the magic involved, what Ashley agreed to was basically a surrogacy situation. Due to Regina's interference, her memories are probably all jumbled, but Ashley agreed to give Gold the baby before she was even pregnant. I suggest you read up on the Cinderella story in Henry's storybook before you make any rash decisions."
"You can break a surrogacy agreement," her sister growled. "It happens."
"Yes, it does," Hermione agreed. "But it usually involves the other person having to return the investment the prospective parents put into her having the child, at the very least. Very grey area, surrogacy contracts, made all the worse by the magic added to it."
"You can't honestly be siding with Gold right now!"
Hermione sighed. "No, because that would involve me siding against you. I am, however, staying out of this. You sympathize with Ashley and I understand that, but I also understand why Mr. Gold is acting the way he is. Ashley signed a contract, made a deal before she was even pregnant, and she cannot now decide to change the terms without there being consequences. I, more than anyone, know that all magic comes with a price. Gold gave her magic in return for her child and now that magic is demanded it be recompensed."
"This is barbaric!" Emma complained.
"Well, they are from a different world," Hermione muttered, climbing over a fallen tree.
"What?"
"Nothing," she groaned. "I'm sorry, Emma, but I can't help you. I mean for god's sake, the girl didn't even read the contract before she signed it. She wanted something and she didn't care what she had to sacrifice to get it and then, the moment the Gold fulfilled his end of the bargain, she wants to back out? Doesn't exactly speak well of her."
"You wouldn't be acting like this if you had a kid," Emma snapped.
"True," the brunette allowed, her tone going blank. "But as someone who will most likely have to use a surrogate in the future if I hope to have children and decide not to adopt, I can't find myself having much sympathy from a woman who sold away her firstborn before it had even been conceived so that she could have a better life for herself without actually having to work for it and then changes her mind after she's settled into said new life. And your situation is very different from Ashley's; you found out you were pregnant and made the decision you thought was best for the child. Ashley made selfish deal, foolishly signing something away without finding out what it was first, and then, like a child, decided she didn't want to pay once she had what she wanted."
Emma was silent for a long moment. "Bellatrix?" she finally whispered.
"Turns out being tortured for an undetermined amount of time wreaks havoc on your internal system. In addition to that nasty bit of spell work from Dolohov, of course."
Her sister groaned. "Fine, alright, you win. You stay out of this; I'll deal with Gold myself."
"I look forward to seeing how you manage that."
I will waste you
And you can't escape it now
When I will break you down
Hermione slid into the seat across from Gold in the diner. "You made a deal with my sister?"
Gold looked up at her with his trademark smirk. "Well, I figured since our deal was working out so well, I should try making one with your sister and see what happens."
"I can guess what's going to happen," Hermione snorted. "And it doesn't end well for you."
"We'll just see about that, dearie."
"It'd be much easier for you if you just took my word for it but it's your funeral."
He just continued to smile. "Since you asked your question, I believe it's my turn."
She groaned. "Fine. Take your best shot."
"Just who are you, Hermione Granger, in your world?"
Staring at him in silence for a moment, Hermione finally spoke. "I'm the girl who helped stop a dark lord. Who defied all the expectations and odds set against me and rose to the top. The one who then threw it all away because I refused to be placated by the shiny baubles thrown at me in leu of real change. I'm the brain of the Golden Trio, heroes of the Wizarding War. But that's not the question you should have been asking, Mr. Gold; instead of wondering who I am to others, you should be wondering just who I'm going to be to you."
I'm feeling invincible tonight
Take your time
Take a look into my eyes
This time I'ma take you for a ride
I'm invincible tonight
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