(A/N): Hey guys! It's been a bit, hasn't it? Sorry about that, life has been a bit crazy lately. Also, I started working on and posting my latest fic which is a Hermione/Avengers crossover. My muse has been obsessing over that story lately so it's been the focus of most of my writing time.

Shoutouts to Kittyinaz, 28, FruminousBandersnatch10, Bronzelove, pendora59, Elle Ryder, Another Random Human, Fatalromance, Elizabeth, NicoleR85, AugustRush, ndavis77, fringeperson, RHatch89, and Guests for reviewing! I love hearing from each and every one of you and it's great knowing what you think of what's happened so far and your thoughts on what's coming next.

Special shout out to fringeperson for being the bright ray of sunshine that she is! Her help with this story has been amazing and I'm all sorts of grateful!

This chapter is set in episode 7 of OUAT and any familiar dialogue belongs to the shows creators. THAT'S RIGHT GUYS- THIS IS IT. THE ANSWER TO ONE OF THE MAIN QUESTIONS I HAVE RECEIVED AWAITS YOU.

Song lyrics for this chapter are the from the song "The Greatest Show" from the movie "The Greatest Show". Before you judge me, read the lyrics first and tell me that you don't think they fit freakishly well here!

This chapter was unbetaed (though I did read through and edit it myself) so I apologize for any mistakes.

Hope you all are having a great weekend! Enjoy!

Ladies and Gents

This is the moment

You've waited for

(Woah)

Hermione met Gold at his small cabin located deep in the woods. "No wonder you have such a fearsome reputation in town, considering you own a murder shack."

He laughed. "Nothing so terrifying, dearie. Just somewhere I go to get a spot of peace and quiet. My Storybrooke self also enjoyed gardening and found that things grew better here than at the house in town, for some reason."

"Or maybe he appreciated a safe haven from that pink monstrosity Regina deemed fit to be your home."

"Yes," Gold scowled. "The Queen does have an interesting sense of humor."

She wrinkled her nose. "Is interesting really the right word for it? I might have gone with 'revolting' myself."

Leaning forward and resting both hands on his cane, Gold sighed. "Seems we've gotten a bit off subject."

Hermione's gaze also turned serious. "You said Graham was here chasing a wolf?"

"Indeed he was. I believe he had been chasing it all night. The Sheriff was looking quite… frantic. Any idea as to what could have set him off?"

Glaring at him, Hermione answered, "As you very well know, Emma found out about his arrangement with the Mayor the night before last and there was a small confrontation between the two yesterday outside of Granny's."

"Confrontation." Gold echoed with a smirk. "Is that what the kids are calling it these days?"

"Yes, Grandpa, it is. You should work to get down with the times."

He laughed. "It physically pained you to say that, didn't it?"

"I may be dealing with a bout of self-loathing right now, yes. But the fact that you now owe me two questions makes the pain that much more manageable." It was her turn to laugh at his expression.

"A situation that will be quickly resolved if you hope to help Graham sooner rather than later."

Hermione sighed in frustration. "Fine then. What did Graham say to you when you ran into each other out here?"

Gold shifted to take a seat on a nearby bench and Hermione wondered if his leg was causing him any discomfort. "He said he was looking for a wolf, one he had seen in his dreams and then in real life a few hours ago."

Moving to sit next to him, Hermione buried her hands into her jacket pockets. "Since Graham has only been said to be acting strangely over the last few days, it stands to reason that something must have happened recently- which means that this wasn't caused by our arrival," she puzzled out loud. "No one else seems to be remembering their past lives though. No one except you." Turning to face Gold, Hermione asked, "What caused your memories to return to you? If you had remembered all this time, I imagine things would be at least a bit different from how they are now."

Smirking, he told her, "I remembered everything when I heard Emma's name. A little security clause I built into the curse before Regina cast it."

"Well, that's useless," Hermione sighed, thoughts racing. "I'll assume that Graham's curse broke differently but-" she inhaled sharply. "Oh. I'm so stupid! It's so obvious! There's only one absolute way to break a curse in your land."

"Yes, it's all quite convenient. Graham kissed Emma and then his curse started fragmenting."

"But Emma doesn't love him, not yet. For Snow and Charming, when he gave her a kiss after she had erased their love, it didn't break for him. It only broke…" Hermione buried her face in her hands. "Gods, I'm so slow today. Even Ronald would look intelligent compared to me right now."

"You can contemplate your own shortcomings later," Rumpelstiltskin ordered. "Right now, we have a Huntsman wandering through the woods with his previous life and his current one beginning to splinter together. The only way to truly help him is to fully break his curse. So, dearie, I suggest you maneuver your sister into giving dear Graham a kiss before he cracks beyond repair."

Been searching in the dark

Your sweat soaking

Through the floor

(Woah)

"What's going on?" Emma immediately asked once she'd answered the phone.

"I need you to look for Graham in town," Hermione ordered, racing through the woods as she used magic to follow Graham's trail.

She heard a car door slam. "Is he alright?"

"No. His curse is beginning to break."

Emma inhaled sharply. "Last night…"

"That's right; congratulations, you're magical. Exactly as I said." Despite the fact that Hermione had spent over 6 months living in the woods, she had little experience with actually running through them and this was turning into an experience she could have lived without.

"Hermione," Emma warned. "What do you need me to do?"

Rumpelstiltskin's words flashed through her mind. "I'm in the woods now but there's no guarantee he's still here. Search the town and see if you can't find him. And for the love of God, if you do find him, make sure you keep him away from Regina. If she finds out about what's going on, she will do whatever it takes to make sure the curse stays intact."

When Emma responded, her voice was hard. "He won't stay in the woods forever. If he's so close to Regina here, then it stands to reason that they knew each other before the curse was cast. I'll make sure I find him before he tries to find her, you find Regina and keep her distracted." She hesitated. "Just… don't kill her, alright?"

Hermione was silent for a moment. "If you get the chance, I suggest you read the Huntsman's story in Henry's book. Then tell me how set you actually are on keeping Regina alive."

And buried in your bones

There's an ache

You can't ignore

When Regina walked into her office, returning from her early lunch meeting with Sydney Glass, she found Hermione sitting in her chair, mud-caked boots resting on top of the shiny glass desk. "I've got a question for you," Hermione said, flipping through Regina's notebook.

Regina gaped at her. "What the hell are you doing in my office?!"

Hermione tossed the notebook aside, giving the other woman her full attention. "Asking you a question, obviously."

"I'm calling the police."

Sighing, Hermione flicked her fingers at the Mayor as she was reaching into her purse, freezing her in place. "No, you're not." Resting her elbow on the arm of her chair, Hermione leaned her head on her hand and contemplated Regina. "You really aren't bright, are you? Maybe you were before, but now… I don't know. Is it because you haven't actually had to think in almost thirty years? No need for an original thought when every day is the same, after all. Or was everyone just pathetically ignorant in the Enchanted Forest? I could see that. Even though I haven't had the misfortune to actually meet Snow and Charming, they're already grating on my nerves." She paused for a moment, watching Regina's eyes flicker over the room in panic. "I am going to release the spell on you and you are going to sit down and behave yourself while we chat. That is not a request, by the way, and I can guarantee you won't like what I do if you try anything."

With another twitch of her fingers, the spell lifted and Regina took in a deep, gasping breath. "You have magic?"

Hermione's jaw dropped. "No! Whatever gave it away?"

Walking slowly over to the chair in front of her desk that Hermione was pointedly looking at, Regina's teeth ground together as she sat. "So, who are you really?"

"Cagey doesn't suit you, Regina. You know exactly who I am."

Scoffing, Regina asked, "Do you really expect me to believe that you are the Savior?"

"No, Regina, you aren't, because I'm not here to save anyone."

"Then why are you here?"

"Well, if we're being honest, I'm here because I have a lot of repressed emotions that I need to work through and I plan on using you to do so. My long-term goal is to end your reign of tyranny. My short-term goal though is to make you cry." Hermione shrugged. "What can I say, I've seen how little good actually manages to get done in a timely manner in the grand scheme of things so I thought I might try a more… forceful approach." Smirking at the shock in Regina's eyes, she added, "You shouldn't box people into your ideas of how they should be. Being the daughter of two 'heroes', and I do use the term very loosely, does not a hero make. Or heroine, if we're being exact."

Pursing her lips, Regina demanded, "What exactly are you planning on doing here?"

Dropping her feet to the floor, Hermione stood. "Since I've just informed you of my overarching plans, I assume what you actually asking about is what I'm planning to do right now, yes? That's simple enough- I'm going to find what you've stolen from Graham and return it to its proper place. There's something I've been dying to ask you though: why exactly do they call it 'stealing a heart'? After all, you didn't steal his literal heart, just found a way to completely control him, so what about it is worthy of being dubbed 'stealing his heart'?"

Regina's eyes widened and then she laughed. "Bold of you to say that you're going to get something back when you don't have a clue what it is you're looking for."

Hermione calmly watched the Mayor, not letting her amusement bother her. "It only sounds bold to those who are unaware of just how impressive I can be."

"From what I've seen, you're not known for much. You and your sister, you're both like ghosts. No roots, no tangible ties, just drifting around making nuisances of yourself until someone finally gets around to dealing with the two of you."

"And you think you are the one capable of 'dealing' with us?" A strange pressure filled the room then, pressing down on Regina with so much force that she ended up slipping out of her chair and onto the floor. Hermione walked over to the kneeling Mayor. "Don't be so naïve, Regina; you have no real power here. Funny, isn't it? You cast this curse with the expectation that you would be all-powerful and find your elusive happiness but really, all you did was make yourself Ruler of the most inconsequential town I have ever had the misfortune to visit and gotten rid of the one thing that made you special: your magic."

"Every day here is monotonous, dull, and everything you initially loved about this place quickly lost its charm. You're in charge of a town that, essentially, does not need you since everything here is frozen- literally, you could disappear off the face of the earth and nothing would really change because the curse wouldn't allow it to. It's fascinating." She impassively watched as Regina's face turned redder and redder, unable to process the magic surrounding her.

"Threaten me all you like, your Majesty," Hermione sneered. "That's fine. But your actions are currently hurting my sister and I find that simply unacceptable." With a twitch of her hand, the magic around them dissipated and Regina gasped. "I've just been playing with you up till now but mark my words, you keep coming after my family and I'll come after you with a fury that would have your former evil self positively green with envy."

Stepping past Regina, Hermione walked to the door. "Watch your back, Regina. After all, it's not as though anyone else in this town is eager to do it for you."

Taking your breath

Stealing your mind

And all that was real

Is left behind

Hurrying towards the diner, Hermione toyed with her phone as she considered calling Emma. She knew that Emma would alert her as soon as she'd found Graham, but Hermione couldn't help the panic coursing through her. There was too much up in the air, too much she still didn't know. She'd been so tempted to just reach into Regina's mind when they were in her office and dig around until she could find the answers to all her questions. The only thing that stopped her was imagining how horrified Emma would have been if she had.

Head still down as she stepped inside, Hermione smiled slightly at the sound of Ruby's laughter echoing through the establishment as she slid into one of the booths.

"Hermione!" Ruby greeted from the counter, walking quickly over to the other girl. Dropping her voice, she whispered, "You've got good taste in friends- he is super hot!"

Finally looking up, Hermione frowned at Ruby in confusion. "Sorry?"

Ruby stepped to the side so Hermione had a clear view at the man leaning against the front counter looking supremely uncomfortable.

"You have got to be kidding me," she groaned.

"Hello, Granger," Malfoy smirked. "Long time no see."

"Not nearly long enough," Hermione spat, standing up. Jerking her head towards the door, she marched back outside, Draco a step behind her.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say you weren't happy to see me."

Hermione spun around to face him. "Let's get one thing straight here, Malfoy: I do not have time to be playing games with you. If you are even idly considering causing any sort of trouble while you're here then I highly suggest you run while you still can."

Malfoy's expression was cold. "Shouldn't you first hear why it is I'm here before you start threatening me?"

"No," she snorted. "Nothing good ever happens from you appearing."

"You know, Granger, after your moving defense of my actions during my trial, I expected our reunion to be much less tense."

"Do not mistake me doing the right thing as my feeling anything towards you other than complete disdain."

"Oh, I wouldn't dare," he drawled, following behind her again as she led them to a nearby park.

Once Hermione had deemed them far enough away from any potential eavesdroppers, she sat down at a bench and waited for the wizard to sit down next to her before asking, "What do you want?"

Pulling out a letter from his pocket, Malfoy handed it to her with a grimace. "I'm sure our illustrious Minister can do a better job explaining than I."

Hermione hesitated for a moment before reluctantly taking the envelope from him and breaking the seal.

Don't fight it

It's coming for you

Running at ya

It's only this moment

Don't care what comes after

Hermione,

Before you start hexing Draco, you should know that it was entirely my idea to send him there. I know you said you have everything handled in Storybrooke, but I still have my reservations. However, instead of trying to insist you pull out and let MACUSA handle things, I had another idea: Draco will be staying in Storybrooke and assisting you with the situation there as part of his community service.

You said Regina doesn't have any magical powers in Storybrooke but still, better safe than sorry. Once your whereabouts become known to the British Wizarding World, and we are both aware of how that will happen sooner rather than later, it would be best for all of us if it didn't appear that you've gone rogue. I know how little you care for politics, Hermione, but you of all people know just what the wizarding community here is like.

I've also heard how advanced your ability to use wandless magic is and I thought you might enjoy speaking with the current leader of the ICW, Babajide Akingbade, who graduated from Uagadou in Africa. As I'm sure you're aware, they are well known for only doing wandless magic and Akingbade has expressed an interest in speaking with you, if you'd like to, that is.

Regards,

Kingsley Shacklebolt

Minister of Magic

Her hands were shaking by the time she finished reading the letter.

While she understood where Kingsley was coming from, this was still an absolutely ridiculous response to the current situation. Hermione had more important things to do than babysit Draco sodding Malfoy!

"I don't like this either, Granger," Malfoy told her, having watched the rage unfold on her expression as she read the letter he'd been instructed to give her. "Doesn't really matter what we think though; the Minister has spoken."

"Well look at that," Hermione mocked. "The Devil must be strapping on his ice skates right now- Draco Malfoy, following orders. Never thought I'd see the day."

Malfoy stood up, glowering down at her. "Shacklebolt might have gotten rid of the Dementors, but that doesn't mean I fancy a stay in Azkaban. And, despite your overly inflated opinion of yourself, what you think of the situation doesn't really matter. I am here until further notice and there's nothing you can do to change that."

Hermione stood as well. "Well now, Malfoy, that sounds like a challenge and you know how much I love those."

"And I've heard failure is character-building. Good on you for continuing to work towards bettering yourself."

Resisting the urge to hex him, Hermione glanced back down at the letter. Damn Kingsley. The man wasn't even trying to be subtle in his manipulation of her, just dangling a treat in front of her and expected her to behave. The fact that it was working made things all the worse. "Do not speak to anyone," Hermione finally growled out. "Do not make contact with anyone in this town, do not start looking into anything yourself- basically, crawl back into whatever hole you're currently staying in and don't come out until I tell you to."

"That's fine by me." He took a step back, smirking at the surprise in her eyes. "Like I said, Granger, I have no real interest in playing the hero here. All I'm doing is trying to survive until I've finished my community service and can return to my privileged life." Turning and walking away, Malfoy couldn't seem to resist one last comment. "If you need any help, don't bother reaching out to me. The war may be over, but my prejudices still run deep, and I still believe to my very core that Gryffindor's are trash."

She considering retorting with a comment about bottom-feeding snakes but ended up just sighing and heading back into town. Thinking back on her housemates' actions over the years, Malfoy wasn't exactly wrong.

Your fever dream

Can't you see it getting closer

Just surrender 'cause

You feel the feeling taking over

"Hermione."

Flinching slightly, Hermione stared around her in confusion until she realized the voice was in her head; it was Henry, calling her from his mirror. Ducking behind a shop, she pulled her mirror out of her bag and quickly cast a Muffliato Charm and a Notice-Me-Not. "Henry," she called back, waiting for his face to appear in her mirror.

"Hey!" he cheered, once he was also able to see her clearly.

"Where are you?" Hermione asked. "Why aren't you in school?"

"School got out about an hour ago," Henry told her, giving her a strange look.

"It has?" She pushed up her sleeve and checked her watch, eyes widening when she realized how late it was. "My god, it's already four?! How is that possible?"

"That's not important!" He was almost vibrating in excitement. "I know who the Huntsman is!"

Hermione's eyes widened and she hoped that he took her expression to be one of excitement and not the guilt she was actually feeling. She'd hadn't even thought to tell Henry with all that was going on- Malfoy's appearance had thrown her quite a bit it seemed and it alarmed Hermione to realize that several hours had passed without her noticing. "Who?"

"Sheriff Graham!" Henry crowed. "He's the Huntsman! And he's remembering everything!"

Her stomach dropped. "How do you know that?"

"He came by the house to talk to me; he wanted to look at the book!"

"Is he still there?"

Henry shook his head. "No, he left a bit ago with Emma." Frowning at her, he asked, "Why aren't you more excited? You wanted to find the Huntsman too, right?"

"Of course," Hermione hastened to reassure him. "Absolutely. I'm just worried. If he is remembering, then he has two different versions of himself competing inside his head and that can't be good for him."

"Oh," Henry's brows furrowed in worry. "I didn't think of that. But, Emma's with him so she'll be able to help him till you get there."

Forcing a confident smile on her face, Hermione nodded in agreement. "You're right. I should probably go find them though. I'll make sure to call you afterwards, alright?"

"Cool. Good luck!" Henry beamed at her one last time before disappearing from the mirror.

Shoving it back into her bag, Hermione rubbed her hands over her face and groaned. Graham reaching a level of desperateness that led him to going to a ten-year-old for answers was not a good sign. Gold's words echoed in her mind again. I suggest you maneuver your sister into giving dear Graham a kiss before he cracks beyond repair. How much longer did they have before it was too late?

Best not find out.

Pulling her phone out of her pocket, Hermione saw that Emma had messaged her. Found Graham and wolf. Currently in cemetery.

Hermione had only seen the cemetery in passing, but it would have to do. Closing her eyes, Hermione focused on remembering what the gates leading to the graveyard looked like and disappeared with a crack.

It's fire, it's freedom

It's flooding open

It's a preacher in the pulpit

And you'll find devotion

Appearing outside the cemetery boundaries, Hermione quickly disillusioned herself before striding inside. As she walked, she pondered on why Graham's search for his heart had led him here. Was Regina hiding his heart somewhere inside a graveyard? That would be almost poetic cruelty- hiding the thing Graham needed in order to truly be alive amongst the many dead. Though, were these graves even filled? No one aged or died in Storybrooke, meaning that no one had been buried while living here, and she was unsure if Regina's magic would actually drag the dead from the resting spots just to deposit them in a new spot worlds away. Her nose wrinkled at the idea and she felt a wave of disgust. Just how low had Regina sunk?

Eyes scanning over the headstones, Hermione froze as she locked eyes with a white wolf with one blood-red eye and one black eye. Even though Hermione knew her disillusionment spell was flawless, she also instinctively knew that the wolf could see her. Howling softly, the wolf turned and raced back into the cemetery, Hermione automatically chasing after it.

The Huntsman's wolf was here. Was that a good thing, or a bad one?

A distant clanging reached her ears, up ahead towards where the wolf was leading her, and Hermione pushed herself to run faster. The wolf loped ahead, coming to an abrupt stop near a large crypt. Slowing to a stop, Hermione studied the stone building intently. It looked like a normal mausoleum, aside from the strange symbol at the top of it. It looked either like very inaccurate antlers or very pathetic thorny vines.

She could hear her sister's voice coming from within, along with Graham's. Glancing around, Hermione noted that the wolf had run off somewhere while she was distracted and she perched herself on a nearby tombstone. From the sounds of it, Emma and Graham were currently rummaging around the vault for his heart but weren't having any luck. Minutes passed, the sun finally setting completely and plunging the area into a shadow-cluttered darkness. Twisting around at the sounds of footsteps approaching, Hermione smirked at the sight of the approaching mayor. Oh, this was going to be fun.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Regina shouted, once she'd caught sight of the town law enforcement officers invading her family tomb.

Emerging from the crypt, Emma stared back at the Mayor with hard eyes. "What are you doing here?" she returned.

"Bringing flowers to my father's grave like I do every Wednesday," Regina shot back, holding up the bouquet as evidence.

"Don't blame her," Graham interjected, moving to stand protectively in front of Emma. "It's my fault. I wanted to look in there."

"Really?" Regina asked, and her tone set something off in Hermione. This was the falling domino that would start the cascade. She clenched her fists. "Why? What were you looking for?"

"Nothing," he answered hastily, shifting back and forth uncomfortably. "It was… it was nothing." Emma glanced at him, starting to move forward to stand at his side before she hesitated, rocking back on her heels. Hermione watched her sister take a few steps off to the side, expression torn. Flight or fight had kicked in, and she prayed her older sister stood her ground.

Studying him intently, Regina stepped towards him. "You don't look well, dear. Let's take you home." She grabbed his arm, tugging slightly to try and get him away from Emma, who immediately stepped forward to help Graham, but he shook Regina off on his own.

"Regina," he started, "I, I don't want to go home. Not with you."

Regina's expression turned ugly and Hermione's instincts began flaring. Wrong wrong wrong wrong WRONG. This was wrong.

"Oh?" the Mayor sneered. "But you'll go with her?"

"Hey," Emma interjected. "This is between you two- leave me out of it."

"She's right," Graham agreed, watching Regina warily as the Mayor glared at the blond. "It's between us. And things have to change."

"And I wonder why that is all of a sudden," the brunette snorted derisively.

"It has nothing to do with her," he repeated, a change coming over him. "You know, I've realized that I don't feel anything, Regina. And I know now it's not me- it's you."

"So, you're leaving me for her?" Another piece fell.

"I'm leaving you for me." The expression on Emma's face when she heard Graham say that hurt Hermione- it was the frailest of hopes that maybe everything would be okay.

"Graham," Regina reached out to him again. "You're not thinking straight."

"Actually, for the first time, I am. I'd rather have nothing than settle for less. Nothing is better than what we have. I need to feel something, Regina, and the only way to do that is to give myself a chance." Emma started to smile and when Regina tried to interject again, reached out a hand to brush against his chest, Graham brushed her off. "I'm sorry, it's over."

Regina inhaled audibly, expression pained, but Hermione just smiled as Graham turned to lock eyes with Emma, more emotions flying between them than Hermione could count.

"I don't know what I ever did to you, Miss Swan," Regina started, pulling her sisters attention away from Graham. "To deserve this, to have you keep coming after everything I hold dear."

"I told you," the Sheriff- or had he become the Huntsman again- interrupted, moving to shield Emma again, "it's not her."

"None of this happened until she got her!" Regina almost shouted. "Until they got here!"

"I'm sorry," Emma told her, tone even. "but have you ever stopped to think that maybe the problem isn't with me, but with you?"

Rage was almost rolling off the Mayor at this point and Hermione had to force herself to keep still, to keep quiet. This was Emma's fight, this was her sister finally digging in her heels and making her stand.

"Henry came and found me, found Hermione" her sister started, walking around Graham so that she could stand toe to toe with Regina. "Graham kissed me. Both were miserable. Maybe, Madam Mayor," Emma sneered, "you need to take a good, hard look in the mirror and ask yourself why that is. Why is everyone running away from you?"

Regina suddenly smirked before pulling her arm back and punching Emma in the face. "Regina!" Graham shouted, moving automatically to catch Emma and both fell to the ground. Hermione jumped to her feet, magically reaching out to power one of the stones near the town wards so that she could incapacitate the Mayor, but Emma was back on her feet in a flash and throwing a punch of her own.

Dropping the flowers she held, Regina spun around from the force of the hit and Emma charged forwards, grabbing her by the shoulders and pushing her around and backwards so that she could throw her into the wall of the mausoleum. Hermione stayed where she was, watching the fight play out.

"Stop!" Graham shouted, racing forwards to grab Emma, pulling her struggling form away from Regina. "Stop, stop!"

Touching her lip, Regina gave a short laugh as Emma pulled away from Graham, breathing heavily. As Regina stepped forward to reclaim her flowers, Emma walked towards her, only pausing to hiss one last thing to the Mayor before striding out of the cemetery. Her words seemed to echo behind her for a moment.

"Not worth it."

Graham watched her go and Hermione could see the struggle on his face: go after the girl, or continue to search for his missing heart? Regina turned towards him. "Graham," she started, stepping forward. His expression cleared and he started after Emma.

Hermione beamed, so hopeful that her sister might finally get the love she deserved, but that smile faded at the wrath rolling off of the Mayor as she watched her former lover walk away. Regina wasn't going to just let him walk away, Hermione was sure of that, and as the Mayor turned to walk into the crypt, Hermione hurried in ahead of her, wondering just what it was Regina was hiding away in its stone walls.

There's something breaking

At the brick of every wall

Holding all that you know

So tell me do you wanna go?

Watching from the far corner of the room as Regina pulled the doors closed behind her, Hermione held her breath as the older woman gently set the flowers, calla lilies, on top of the grave within, pausing for a moment to rest a hand softly on the nameplate. Hermione hadn't gotten the chance to see what was written on there but, with the care she was using, Hermione guessed that it was either her father or Daniel's- the only two people Regina had ever cared about.

Finally pulling away, Regina placed both hands on the side of the stone coffin and began to push. With a small grunt of effort, she finally managed to shove it all the way to the side, revealing a staircase leading directly underneath the crypt. Regina marched down the stairs, Hermione following close behind her.

It was dark underground, the only light a soft blue color coming from a wall directly in front of the stairs. Regina came to stop right in front of it, staring at the many squares mounted onto it. It wasn't until she reached out and seemingly pulled one out at random that Hermione realized that the squares were boxes built into the wall. Drawing it all the way out, Regina removed a small wooden chest.

Stepping back from the wall, she opened the chest and Hermione edged closer to see what was inside. Reaching a hand inside, Hermione watched as Regina pulled out-

Oh god.

It was a heart. An actual heart. Clutched in the Mayor's hand was a clear, deep red, pulsing heart. Regina brought it up, staring intently at it, before she began to squeeze.

"No!" Hermione shrieked and her magic responded automatically.

As Regina spun around in surprise, her grip loosening slightly on the heart in her hand, Hermione's magic slammed into her, knocking her back into the wall and she lunged forward, pulling the heart out of Regina's hands and cupping it in her own, holding it close to her chest. It pulsed in her hands and the feeling terrified her.

Staring around her blankly in stunned surprise, Regina searched for who attacked her. With a wave of her hand, Hermione knocked the woman unconscious.

Oh god, oh god, oh god, oh god, oh god.

What was she supposed to do now?

Where it's covered in

All the colored lights

Where the runaways are

Running the night

Levitating Regina back up the stairs and out of the vault, not bothering to make sure the ride was a smooth one for the Evil Queen, Hermione quickly erased her memories of last few minutes before leaving her lying under a nearby tree as she warded the vault tightly against intruders and apparated for the Sheriff's Station, praying that Graham would be there.

Hurrying into the station after making sure that her invisibility spell was still in place, Hermione paused by the door leading into the main room and watched at the Sheriff pulled away from her sister, beaming down at her. "You're incredible," he whispered to her and Emma blushed. Hermione, despite the seriousness of their current predicament, had to desperately smother her urge to squeal at their adorableness.

"You're probably still delirious from the fever."

"No, I'm not." Graham took a breath. "You are the best thing to ever happen to me. So, thank you, Emma Swan. Thank you for saving me."

"I didn't save you," her sister softly disagreed. "You saved yourself."

"We'll have to agree to disagree," he whispered to her, leaning down to kiss her again.

Hermione stared at the two of them in awe, still clutching Graham's heart in her hands. She could feel the love he felt emanating from it and even though it was dulled slightly since he was feeling it without his heart, it was still the most powerful thing Hermione had ever felt. Was this what True Love felt like?

The couple pulled slightly away from each other, breathing heavily as Graham pressed his forehead to Emma's. "Go out with me?"

Emma beamed up at him. "Now?"

Laughing softly, Graham wrapped his arms more tightly around her. "Tomorrow. Tonight, you're going to go home, recover from wiping the floor with Regina, and then tomorrow after work I am going to take you out and prove to you that you're not wrong to take a chance on me."

If it was at all possible, Emma's smile seemed to grow even brighter. "Sounds like a plan to me." She pulled away from him, clutching his hand in her own. "We'll have to back to Regina's house though- our cars are still parked there."

Graham groaned. "I say we go tomorrow. Nothing's going to happen if we wait a night to get them back."

"You sure about that? Regina might use the time to declare her street a no-parking zone and have them towed."

"I'm sure," he chuckled, bringing Emma's hand to his lips and gently kissing the back of it. Hermione prayed that he would send her sister away so that she could speak with him in private. "I just need to finish up some paperwork before I leave. Think you can get home by yourself? I'd rather not have your sister come after me before I get the chance to state my intentions towards you to her."

Emma raised an eyebrow, expression playful. "Shouldn't you be worrying about doing that with my parents, not my sister?"

"Normally yes, but in this instance, I think your sister will be the tougher nut to crack here. Can't say for sure though, since I haven't formally met your parents."

"You've got good instincts there because Hermione will definitely be worse than facing our parents."

"Something to look forward to then," he murmured, continuing to stare at Emma as if she was the only light left in the world.

Blushing again, Emma started pulling away. "I should head out…"

Even though it was Graham's suggestion for her to go, a flash of worry crossed his face at her words. "Promise me you won't change your mind tonight," he pleaded and a look of relief crossed Emma's face. Hermione realized that she was just as worried about Graham changing his mind as he was about her.

"I promise," she vowed, stepping forward to give him another quick kiss before grabbing her red leather jacket and heading out the door, pausing just long enough to give a Graham one last pleased, hopeful look before leaving.

Impossible comes true

It's taking over you

Oh, this is

The greatest show

As Graham stared longingly after her sister, Hermione stared down at his heart. He clearly wanted to go with Emma, to spend more time with her, but he'd sent her away. He'd sent her away, just as Hermione had hoped he would. Was simply holding his heart enough for her to be able to control his actions? That was a terrifying thought. To be able to exert her will over him without even thinking about it was an uncomfortable prospect. She needed to give him his heart back and she needed to do it now.

Dropping the spell around her, Hermione stepped forward and Graham's eyes snapped to her. "Hermione?" he asked, confused as to where she had come from.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I didn't mean to…"

He frowned at her before his eyes snapped to her hands and widened in shock. "Is that…" he whispered. "Is that my heart?"

"I wanted Emma to leave so that I could give this back to you, but I promise that I didn't mean to force you to do something you didn't want to do!" Hermione hastily started to explain, tripping over her words in her rush to reassure him that she wasn't trying to control him like Regina had.

Graham seemed to have not heard her. "You found my heart? How? Where?"

"The cemetery," she answered softly, stepping forward and holding it out to him. "I was hiding and followed Regina into her vault and took this from her. You were right, she had hidden her vault of hearts within the mausoleum, along with an assortment of other things."

He locked eyes with her again. "You have magic."

"I do. Not your kind of magic though; this world has its own."

"Does Emma know?"

"Of course, she's my sister. She's always known about magic. As I said though, my magic is different from that used in your world. For example, we can't steal someone's heart out their chest. I mean honestly, who came up with such a thing? Who thought, 'I wonder if I can create a way to literally hold someone's lives in the palm of my hand? And you know what else would also be neat? If that thing contained all of their emotions and free will so that I can make them my soulless puppet.' Really, this is just all so unnecessary."

Shifting uncomfortably, Graham asked, "What do you plan to do with my heart?"

Hermione blinked at him, lightly shaking the arm still extended out towards him. "I'm planning on giving it to you because it's honestly unsettling to carry."

"Happy to hear it." Graham relaxed, before giving her a considering look. "It would probably just be best if you put it back."

Gaping at him, Hermione began to splutter, "Put it back?! Why on earth would you want Regina to continue to have control of you?! When I took this from her, she was about it crush it!"

"No, no," he hastily corrected her. "I meant, put it back in my chest."

"Oh." Hermione relaxed slightly, before frowning again and pulling his heart back towards her so that she could study it. "How exactly does one go about returning a heart to its proper place?"

Graham shrugged. "I'm not sure. Regina was more about stealing hearts and less about returning them. I think you just… shove it back in?"

Her jaw dropped. "I just shove it back in?!" she almost shrieked. "Brilliant advice right there. 'Shove it back in, hope for the best'. Honestly, what is wrong with you people?! I'm holding a very fragile organ that could be crushed very easily, killing you in an instant if I'm understanding correctly, and you want me to just what, aim for the left side of your chest and hope for the best?"

"Calm down," he tried to sooth her.

"Calm down? Calm down?! I'M HOLDING YOUR HEART, GRAHAM. IT'S BEATING AND EVERYTHING. IT'S LIKE A HORROR MOVIE."

Both of their heads turned as a shuffling noise came from the doorway. "My, you both seem to be having a bit of trouble tonight," Rumpelstiltskin commented, glancing between the Sheriff and Hermione before pointedly looking at the heart clutched in her hands. "I could sense your desperation from a mile away."

"Oh, thank God," Hermione sighed. "I don't know what to do here, you have to help me. How do you return a heart to a chest?"

The look Hermione gave him then reminded Rumpelstiltskin of a small child, the child she once was, one who was scared and desperate for an adult to make it better. He wondered at what point it was that she lost that belief in the adults around her, when she came to the realization that the only one who would be able to help her was herself.

"Hermione," Graham started, staring at Gold in confusion. "Does he…?"

"Don't worry, Huntsman, I'm perfectly aware of the situation. And seeing as how you have had all your memories returned to you with your mind still intact, I suppose congratulations are in order."

"Congratulations?" the other man echoed, still bewildered.

"Yes, congratulations. After all, it's not every day one finds their True Love."

The witch rolled her eyes, unamused at the way the imp was batting the Huntsman around. "When you kissed Emma, your memories started coming back, right?" Graham nodded, eyes wide, and Hermione continued. "They didn't come back completely though because you kissed her- it wasn't a mutual kiss. It was only because she felt something for you at all that anything happened at all. Once she returned your kiss, your memories returned entirely. True Love's kiss broke your curse, sort of. Not everyone's curse, because you two still need to date and get to know one another, actually fall in love and all that, but it's a step in the right direction."

The expression on Graham's face… that look of awe was one Hermione would always remember and she wished she had a Pensive so that she could show Emma that look when she inevitably started to doubt whether or not the Sheriff could truly love her. "Emma loves me?"

Hermione smiled gently. "She will, one day soon. But you cannot truly love her unless this," she held up his heart, "is returned back to where it belongs."

"You've been without your heart for 30 years, Huntsman," Gold stated, stepping forward. "Now, how about we set out to change that?"

Don't fight it

It's coming for you

Running at ya

It's only this moment

Don't care what comes after

"No," Hermione stated.

"Yes," Rumpelstiltskin retorted.

"That doesn't make any sense!"

"It's magic, dearie, it doesn't have to make sense."

"You're trying to tell me that I just need to take this very fragile, almost glass-like, heart and just abruptly shove it into Graham's rock-hard chest?"

The Sheriff blushed. "It's alright, Hermione, I trust you."

"That is nice to know, but not really the issue here, Graham."

"Look," interrupted Rumpelstiltskin, "out of the two of us, who actually has the experience when it comes to dealing with removed hearts?"

Hermione snorted. "I'm well aware of your expertise when it comes to removing hearts, but how good are you when it comes to putting them back in?"

"I have enough."

"Then you should be doing this," she hissed. "I should be standing in the corner, being emotionally supportive."

"Only someone with magic is able to put it back," he sang. "And as you're well aware, you're the only one magical here."

Pausing, Hermione considered how that statement was technically inaccurate but that fact was irrelevant when considering that the other magical being was Malfoy. "Just pushing it in sounds wrong," she whined.

"Yet, that's how many things work in the world," Rumpelstiltskin quipped, grinning nastily as the Huntsman turned an even deeper shade of red. "I believe, as the woman, it's your job to just grin and bear it."

"No, sweetie, that's for your world, not mine." Hermione marched over to Graham, ignoring the former Dark One's laughter, and stopped a foot in front of him. "Alright," she sighed. "Let's get this over with." She pulled her hand back, preparing to try and return her sister's True Love's heart to his chest. Pausing one last time, Hermione locked eyes with Graham's and vowed, "If this kills you, I promise that Gold will be joining you in the afterlife shortly after."

Graham gave her a crooked grin. "You still haven't told me who he actually is."

"I haven't, have I? He's Rumpelstiltskin." And then she shoved his heart into his chest as he stared at them in horror.

Afterwards, they all stood frozen for a moment, waiting to see if Graham was going to spontaneously drop dead. When he continued to keep breathing, and staring at them in shock, Hermione gave a relieved, hysterical giggle. "It worked!"

"I told you so," Rumpelstiltskin smirked at her.

"You trusted my heart with the Dark One?!"

It's blinding outshining

Anything that you know

Just surrender 'cause you're calling

And you wanna go

Sending the Huntsman off with his newly returned heart and promising to visit the pawnshop the following day with Henry if schedules allowed, Hermione sent the two men off with a smile. As soon as they were out of sight though, she spun around and disappeared with a crack, reappearing in the upstairs hallway of Granny's Inn.

Moments later, one of the doors opened and Malfoy stepped out in the hall in a shirt and Slytherin green pajama pants, glaring at her. "Still don't know how to be subtle, do you, Granger?"

Staring at him stonily for a moment, Hermione suddenly gave him a smile that chilled him to the bones. Reaching out to grab a fistful of his shirt-front, she apparated them out of the inn without warning and into Regina's vault. Malfoy stumbled away from her as soon as they landed. "What the bloody hell was that for?" he cried.

Holding her arms out wide, Hermione loudly proclaimed, "Behold!"

Glancing at the stone room around them, Malfoy frowned. "What exactly am I supposed to be beholding?"

"Why don't you open one of those panels and find out?" Hermione leaned against the wall and watched as Malfoy first eyed her suspiciously before turning to give the paneled wall across from them a distrustful look.

"This is going to be something disgusting, isn't it?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out."

Slowly walking over, Malfoy pulled out his wand and started casting a multitude of detection spells, much to Hermione's annoyance. After all, if she was going to kill him, it wouldn't be through a cursed object- that was his cowardly style, not hers. Finally, once he had seemingly tried everything he could think of, Malfoy finally gave in and moved to stand directly in front of the wall, reaching out and tugging on one of the wooden squares. It opened easily for him, revealing another wooden chest, and Hermione raised an eyebrow in challenge at him when he turned back to look at her.

With a groan, Malfoy pulled open the lid and peered inside before rearing back slightly. "Merlin's sake, Granger, it's a heart! Ugh, and it's beating and everything. Who the bloody hell came up with this?!" Stepping away from the wall he spun around the room, staring at all the paneled walls. "Do all of these have hearts in them?" he inquired, voice horrified.

"I can't say for sure since I haven't checked, but most likely."

"Merlin, that's horrifying. The Dark Lord literally lived in my home with a giant snake that ate his victims after he was done torturing them and this is somehow worse than that." His fingers tightened on his wand. "Is this her doing? The Mayor that Shacklebolt is so concerned about?"

Hermione nodded, her amusement at Malfoy's horror fading quickly. "She did this before they arrived here but yes, Regina ripped these hearts out of people and used them to control their owners. It's similar to the Imperious curse, except it's far more powerful and you can't throw it off. And if the person holding your heart starts squeezing, you feel immense pain. If they fully crush it, you'll die. I followed her in here tonight and stole back the heart of the Sheriff before she could crush it and kill him."

Malfoy had gone pale. "How much more powerful?"

"I was holding Graham, the Sheriff's, heart thinking how I needed him to make my sister leave so I could return his heart to him, and then he did. I didn't need to think about controlling him, focus on his heart while reaching for his mind, any of the things we do while casting the Imperious curse- I thought about something and he did it."

"Are you sure it wasn't just a coincidence?" She stared him down. "Yeah, no, me neither."

"Graham still had some freedom- that's another difference from the Imperious curse, they're still self-aware and know their own thoughts and beliefs. They are still able to try and rebel against the person holding their heart, as long as they're not trying to go against direct orders and no one is physically holding their heart at that moment."

Leaning against a stone wall, Malfoy ran a hand through his hair. "That makes it so much worse. At least while you're under the Imperious Curse, you don't have to think about how what you're doing is wrong or loathe yourself for your actions. If you're right about how controlling someone with their… heart works, then that means they're basically a hostage in their own body. They have to see and hear everything, have to experience the horror of what they've done while they're acting without being able to do anything about it."

She wondered how much time Malfoy had spent under the Imperious Curse. "It does add a new level of cruelty to the situation."

Seeming to hesitate for a moment, Malfoy finally asked, "What was the Sheriff's relationship with Regina?"

"Why are you asking?" Her tone was sharp, demanding.

"Because you said your arrival here caused him to fight against the Mayor enough that she decided to crush his heart and kill him. If it was an emotionless arrangement, she would likely have killed him earlier. Altogether, doesn't seem like it was the most professional of relationships."

Hermione could see his point and reluctantly answered, "They were in a casual, physical relationship."

"I was afraid of that." He pinned her to the spot with hard, gray eyes. "You realize that he couldn't actually give his consent, right? From what you've said, he had to do whatever she wanted."

It was Hermione's turn to go pale, mind flashing back to a line from the book. Guards… take him to my bedchamber. Her stomach rolled and she wanted to vomit. "Oh god," she breathed. "It's been 30 years…"

Malfoy looked just as disgusted as she felt. "Why didn't you tell the Minister about this place?"

"I just found it tonight. Regina got into a bit of a row with my sister and the Sheriff and came down here afterwards. I followed her, expecting to find a cache of magical objects or something, but instead I found her holding the Sheriff's heart and preparing to crush it."

Rubbing his hands over his face, Malfoy blearily asked, "Gods, Granger, what have you gotten yourself into now?"

"It's another war, Draco," she told him softly. "And I intend it end it the only way I can."

He stared at her for a moment before closing his eyes and sighing. "You've changed, Granger. Whatever happened to being a bleeding-heart Gryffindor?"

"It was bled out of me on your drawing room floor."

Malfoy's eyes snapped open. "It's more than that. What happened to you?"

"You did," she spat, burning him with her gaze. "I am what you made me! What all of Wizarding Britain made me!"

"And there's no one around to stop you, right? No one around to keep you in line, to make sure you check yourself?"

Shifting her stance, Hermione slid her hands into her jacket pockets. "No. You see, it's taken me all this time to realize that I'm not just a survivor- I'm a winner."

"Well, look at you now. Bookworm Granger is all grown up and playing the tragic hero. We can't all be Potter though."

Hermione tensed at the sound of her first friend's name. "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, Hermione, that the rest of us don't have the luxury of being able to bounce between magics, between the Dark and the Light, without consequences and you better watch yourself because, once you make a choice, it's the only one you get. You make the wrong one, and there won't be a merciful Hermione Granger coming to save you."

We light it up

We won't come down

And the sun can't stop us now

Watching it come true

It's taking over you

Oh, this is the greatest show

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