Chapter 27—"Something Truly Terrible Inside"
Truth be told, Fiona was enjoying this little confrontation. She didn't imagine that her son would let her hold the reins for long—Zelena was his pet little project—but facing off with the ridiculously petty witch was fun.
As was Sir Maurice's reaction to the whole debacle.
"Oh, do stop prancing about threateningly. You are aware of the fact that you couldn't intimidate me if you brought an entire chorus of munchkins along for the ride, aren't you?" Fiona thought on that one for a moment. "Although their singing would make me tremble just a little."
"I'm not here to deal with a dried up former fairy." Zelena made a show of sniffing as if Fiona were beneath her, which made Fiona giggle. "I am here to ensure that Avonlea's proper ruler is reinstated."
"Oh, you mean that muscly excuse for a man behind you? Please." Fiona rolled her eyes. "He couldn't rule his way out of a burlap sack. And he doesn't have a legal leg to stand on given that Sir Maurice is alive and breathing right here. Granted, he's not much to look upon, but Avonlea is his."
The offended noise Maurice made was somewhere between a whimper and a huff, but they both ignored him. Zelena rolled her eyes, but it was the overgrown idiot behind her who spoke up, puffing his chest out importantly.
"I gained Avonlea through right of conquest—"
"And then we took it back." Belle cut right over Gaston as she and Rumplestiltskin walked in with Tink on their heels, her eyes blazing with anger. Fiona couldn't help smirking; if her son was going to fall for anyone, she preferred it to be someone who could at least hold her own ground.
After all, what fun would a (potential) daughter-in-law be if she ran away every time Fiona said 'boo'?
Her son looked ready to murder Zelena on Belle's behalf, too, so Fiona settled in to watch the show, plopping down next to Maurice with a grin. This should be quite enjoyable.
"So, who exactly is it that put that curse of eternal youth on you?" Tiger Lily clearly wasn't giving up; now that Beans' leg was set and he was more comfortable, Bae wasn't surprised to see her return to that subject.
Beans shifted uncomfortably. "I think her name was Madam Faustina."
Bae couldn't help snorting. "What kind of silly name is that?"
"Dunno. It's what she called herself."
"I haven't heard of her, but my knowledge is a little dated." A thoughtful frown creased Tiger Lily's face. "Or more than a little."
"How dated?" Bae remembered Tiger Lily arriving on Neverland, but he knew that didn't mean much. Time was wrong there, and she might have arrived in the same year he had or a hundred years later. Learning how long had passed since he'd left the Enchanted Forest had been a shock. Maybe that was why he'd never asked Tiger Lily how long it had been for her.
Her scowl felt like one he might wear. "Almost three centuries."
Oh. Damn. That meant she was his contemporary, or near enough. Bae hoped she'd never talked to Blue about the Dark One, or—more specifically—the Dark One's son. Not that I know who the Dark One is, now. It's hard to ask his name without someone getting suspicious. Bae knew that his father had to be long dead, but even how everything had gone wrong didn't mean he didn't want to know what had happened.
"'S a long time." Beans' voice was still a little slurred, but he was coherent. Or at least he was until he sat bolt upright, his eyes rolling back and his voice going all vision-y. "The Savior becomes a battery. Time folds in on itself. The son of darkness meets the daughter of light after the Queen of Hearts returns."
Beans fell silent, leaving Bae and Tiger Lily to stare at him in confusion.
"What?"
"You were having visions again," Tiger Lily said gently, reaching out to pull the blanket tighter around Beans. It had almost fallen to the floor when Beans had sat up so quickly.
"Yeah, I noticed." Beans threw a glare at Bae. "Why are you staring at me so funny? 'S not like this is new."
Bae couldn't help frowning. "I get the rest—it's your normal vison-y gobbley gook. But what's a battery?"
"Let's cut to the chase, shall we, dearie?" Rumplestiltskin let Belle start the conversation, but he was determined to finish it. His voice lashed out like a whip. "We all know why you're here, so do stop pretending there's anything noble about you."
Zelena turned to glare at him before drawing herself up with as much dignity as she could muster. "Very well, then. I want this meaningless little duchy, and you're not prepared to fight me for it."
He giggled. "Am I not?" Rumplestiltskin drawled the words lazily, but he could see that Zelena didn't miss the hidden edge. "Are you so sure about that?"
"I know you'll never chain yourself to some pissant little knight's court, no matter how pretty his daughter is."
Damn. She was right about that; Rumplestiltskin had no intention of staying in Avonlea just to protect the place. His love for Belle didn't extend to staying and becoming some sort of court jester—or, worse yet, some sort of protector. The very idea was ludicrous. Next you know, that fat knight will have your dagger and you'll be dancing to his tune, Zoso jeered in his mind. Let's guess how likely you are to be romancing his daughter then, shall we?
A wind whipped up as Rumplestiltskin's temper rose, but it stilled almost the moment Belle put her hand on his arm. She knew him too well, his Belle, and Zoso fell silent. That let Rumplestiltskin smile toothily at Zelena.
"Then I suppose I'll simply have to make sure you aren't a threat." A snort. "That'll be a pity."
Zelena rolled her eyes, stepping in closer than anyone save Belle or his mother would have dared. "You won't. You need me."
"Do I?" Damn this witch. She's too smart and too powerful. I should have chosen someone more malleable!
"Your precious curse won't get cast without me." Zelena smirked even as Belle threw him a confused look.
"Curse?" she asked in an undertone, but Rumplestiltskin couldn't spare the attention to answer her.
"And your precious life won't continue without me feeling absurdly kind," he hissed back. "You'll stay away from Avonlea unless you want to make an enemy of me, dearie."
"Oh, I'm sure I could be convinced." Zelena stepped away, smiling contently, and Rumplestiltskin hated himself for dancing to her tune. But Belle wanted her people safe, and he really didn't want to have to work for that all the time.
I am not staying in this busy little castle. Mine is far larger, and far less noisy!
"If you're going to propose a deal, I recommend doing so before I run out of patience." But it was a bluff, and they both knew it.
Zelena's smile turned far too sweet. "I don't want much from you. Simply for you to spin a golden brain for me. Then I'll leave your precious little Avonlea"—a dismissive wave of her hand indicated what she thought of the place—"alone."
"You want it for your time travel spell." Rumplestiltskin felt his eyes narrow; to his right, Belle tensed. Even his mother sat up a little straighter, wariness replacing her smug amusement.
"The one you think won't work?" Zelena cocked her head. "If that's the case, what do you have to lose?"
Thrice damn the witch; she had him over a barrel. Still, Rumplestiltskin forced himself to smile and wiggle as if he was the one winning. They had an audience, after all, and he was a master showman. "You do know there's no returns?" he sang. "Buyers' remorse doesn't apply to deals with me."
"I wasn't born yesterday, thank you." She met his eyes brazenly. "Promise me the brain and I'll leave this silly little place alone."
"What about my claim?" Gaston suddenly seemed to realize that he was on the losing end of this deal, and he looked affronted.
"I could turn you into something small and stupid if you wanted," Rumplestiltskin offered, feeling helpful. "Ease the pain."
"Rumple!" Belle sounded torn between amusement and horror, and even Zelena snickered a little. His mother, of course, piped up to add:
"I'm thinking an adorable little ladies' lapdog. Something small, handsome, well-bred, and utterly brainless."
Rumplestiltskin giggled until Belle speared him with a glare. She turned to Gaston. "I'm sure that won't be necessary, will it, Gaston?"
"You have no authority over me!" Gaston started to loom forward until Rumplestiltskin cleared his throat gingerly. That made the hulking knight back off.
"You're not a citizen of Avonlea, but you're not welcome here, either." Finally, Sir Maurice found his voice, standing from where he'd been seated to watch this little fiasco play out. "Should you return, you'll be put to death."
"By you?" Gaston reared back, laughing. "What few forces you have could never defeat me."
Rumplestiltskin raised a finger. "I'd be happy to help."
Belle didn't even yell at him that time, and it wasn't long before Gaston was ushered out despite his protests. Zelena gleefully abandoned him; she wasn't the sort to care about her tools when they ceased to be useful, and Rumplestiltskin knew that she had what she wanted.
Damn her.
"He's gone." Pan's snarl was furious enough that even Felix backed up a step; he wasn't going to explain to even his most loyal follower why Baelfire's escape was so infuriating, but a blind man could have seen how angry he was.
Felix shifted warily. "You think Tiger Lily had some magic hiding or something?"
"Or something." Pan scowled, allowing himself to pout. There were definite advantages to having chosen to be an immortal teenager; no one would tell him to grow up and act like an adult. "He took my pet Seer, too."
"Well, then we're just going to have to get them back." Felix's drawl jerked Pan back to reality, and he felt a slow smile growing on his face.
"Yeah. Yeah, we'll do that. And we'll make all of them regret ever trying to leave Neverland."
He'd make his wayward grandson pay, Pan would. And maybe then he'd let Rumple know that his precious boy had been in Neverland all along, suffering and pining for the monster his father had become. That would be suitable revenge for the way Rumple had clung to him and made him miserable. Rumple had ruined his life, so Pan would ruin his in turn. I've had revenge on Fiona for choosing power over me. Now it's Rumple's turn.
Baelfire wouldn't be around to see his father's reaction, or of course. Or at least not for long.
The lovebirds were off being lovebirds, but Tink was keeping an eye on them. Supposedly, anyway. The young fairy knew why Rumplestiltskin had to be stopped from kissing Belle, and Fiona thought Tink actually believed her. Even if she didn't, Tink had promised to help, and Fiona had better things to do than interrupt them again.
She was going to make that bloody potion, come hell or high water. Then she'd have the answers she needed, and her boy would stop throwing her that irritated-and-mildly-suspicious look. Fiona sighed, slowly lowering the second hair into the vial with the first. Rumplestiltskin wasn't stupid—Fiona liked to think he'd gotten his brains from her—and he was certainly able to realize that his mother wasn't interrupting his budding romance for any silly reasons concerning morality. She would be delighted to see him snog the daylights out of the girl; he was long overdue and Belle was a good influence on him, even if part of her disliked sharing Rumplestiltskin. But if saving her son required surrounding him with love, that was a price she could pay.
She loved him enough to share him.
Suddenly, golden magic flared beneath her fingers, making Fiona jump. Rumplestiltskin's hair curled around Belle's, both glowing gold and then slowly transforming into a purplish-gold liquid. True Love.
She'd done it. She'd brewed True Love! Fiona squealed out loud.
What had been different from the last dozen failures? She'd brought the hairs together, but she'd been distracted, thinking of her love for—Oh.
Oh.
"You're at tricky little thing, aren't you?" Fiona asked the bottle with a smile. That was the missing ingredient. That was why no one had managed to bottle True Love before Rumplestiltskin had. The irony was incredible; her son, the Dark One, loved so strongly that he had done what no one else had. His love had been strong enough to act as the catalyst, to cause a reaction creating a potion born of two other peoples' love. And now Fiona's love for her son had done the same.
Now she had proof, too. Her beloved son had found real, genuine, True Love. The most powerful magic there was. And it could save him.
Fiona wasn't sure she'd ever felt so hopeful in her entire life.
"You're going to go to the Dark Castle for me." Zelena smiled that sickeningly sweet smile, and Mulan felt her heart drop.
Rather, she didn't feel her heart drop, which was the problem. Because her heart was in Zelena's hand, and Mulan could only scowl. "For what? So the Dark One can kill me for spying on him? Surely it would just be easier to kill me yourself."
"You really are a stupid girl, aren't you? All swords and no smarts." Zelena rolled her eyes, but her hand clamped down on Mulan's heart when Mulan tried to argue, making her squeak in pain. "No, you're going to ask to accompany your dear friend Belle to Rumple's castle. I'm sure he's taking her back with him."
"Why?" At least she managed to hiss the word without being hurt more.
"Because I want you to. And I need a spy. I want to know what they're up to, and to make sure Rumplestiltskin keeps his deal with me."
Could she be any whinier? Mulan would have asked that aloud, but she didn't want to find out. "And what excuse am I supposed to give for me asking to tag along? It's not like I'm friends with the Black Fairy." Which would be ridiculous.
"I'm sure you'll think of something." Another infuriatingly self-satisfied smirk. "And you won't, of course, tell anyone that I have your heart. Or hint at it in any way, including writing it down and drawing pictures. You won't indicate that anything is wrong, understood?"
"Yes," Mulan growled. She wanted to lie and say no, but the gloating witch held her heart.
This was really going to suck.
Things were finally settled in Avonlea, or at least mostly. Rumplestiltskin still had to spin that damned brain for Zelena, but at least she trusted his word to deliver it and had gone away. Rumplestiltskin devotedly wished that he didn't need her, but Zelena was the only one available to cast his curse…unless he took his mother up on her offer. Fiona would have to restore the curse to much of its original form, but would that be so bad? The fact that Reul Ghorm had changed it to require the sacrifice of the heart of the one you loved most was sickening even for the Dark One to contemplate. Not for most of us, Spinner, Zoso pointed out before Rumplestiltskin could shove his voice aside.
Even he had standards, and if he could see the curse cast by someone he trusted, well, that would mean much of his planning wasn't so important. His mother would even allow the curse to be broken when necessary, and that would certainly help the future Savior along. In truth, Rumplestiltskin was afraid to hope for such a simple solution. He needed to prepare for the worst—
"Rumple, are you all right?"
Blinking, he turned to face Belle. They'd retreated to the garden again, hoping for some actual peace and quiet now that Zelena was gone and Sir Maurice had been convinced that she was sufficiently afraid of Rumplestiltskin not to return. He'd been thinking about what Belle had told him before he'd willfully distracted himself with thoughts of the curse, about how she wanted forever…and how terrifying that was.
"I owe you a story." The words blurted out of him before Rumplestiltskin could stop himself, and even the other Dark Ones howling in laughter and protest couldn't take them back.
"A story?" Blue eyes met his eagerly. "What do you mean?"
"I…" Rumplestiltskin gulped back the urge to run away. Belle laid a hand on his arm, which at least quieted the voices, but that couldn't give him courage. The next sentence came out as a whisper: "About my son."
"You said you lost him." Her voice turned soft, too, and she squeezed his arm. Rumplestiltskin swallowed again.
"I…I lost him because I was a coward." Facing it was easier now than later; once Belle knew what he was, she would run away. Better to get it over with. Rumplestiltskin squared his shoulders, using his old pain as armor against future loss. "Because I chose my power over him, just like I almost did you."
"What happened?" Somehow, her voice was still gentle. He'd expected her to start mocking him by now.
"Bae got a magic bean," he whispered. "He wanted to go to the Land Without Magic and start again, but when the portal opened, I let him go." Rumplestiltskin closed his eyes on tears, remembering Bae shouting for him, remembering the horrified look in his son's eyes.
He would never forget that look of heartbroken betrayal, not if he lived another thousand years.
"Why? What happened?" Had her hand not reached up to touch his cheek, Rumplestiltskin might have pulled away. But Belle's touch was so soft, so loving—
The words tumbled out, stuttering at first and then a little more certain. He told her the truth, about how his father had abandoned him, about how he'd been the town coward until he had power, and about how he'd run from the war to be there for his son. For the first time in decades, Rumplestiltskin spoke about how all he'd ever wanted was to be the father he'd lacked, and to his surprise, Belle listened.
Then she embraced him, and she stayed.
Zelena's distraction meant that King George didn't get the forces promised to him, a fact that Snow and Charming were quick to take advantage of. Prince Henry's intercession with the 'Leviathan' let them find common ground with Sir Lancelot, and just like that, an enemy was turned into a friend. Slowly, their rag-tag army moved towards George's capital, and before long, they had him all but cornered. They still had a long way to go, at least in Snow's estimation, but the populace had responded surprisingly well to their invasion, and she was sure that things would work out for the best.
David, however, was a bit less confident. In fact, he was more than a little dejected. "They still think I'm my brother."
"But they follow you." Snow squeezed his arm, smiling. "It doesn't matter what name they think you have. Our army, our people, trust you."
"And they trust you." He smiled back at her, finally. "We're in this together."
"Of course we are. And together, we're not going to lose."
"Things will be different when your evil stepmother re-enters the fray," he warned her, looking thoughtful. "She'll only be distracted for so long."
"I know." Snow sighed; she wished there was a way to make peace with Zelena, but she knew that there wasn't. Zelena had killed her father, and she'd never been kind to Snow. As far as Zelena had been concerned, Snow had just been in the way.
Her childhood would have been miserable if not for her friendship with Regina.
"We've got to find a way to beat her at her own game." David gazed off to into the distance, away from their army's camp and into the forest beyond it. "I fear that means we'll need to make another deal with the Dark One."
"We'll face that bridge when we get to it." Snow squared her shoulders. She didn't want to think on that right now, not when things were going well. Perhaps if they were lucky, Zelena and Rumplestiltskin might destroy one another. If that happened, she was sure the world would be a better place afterwards.
"Mulan."
Tink smiled, immediately liking the warrior woman in front of her. "I'm Tinker Bell, but everyone calls me Tink. You helped Belle retake Avonlea, didn't you?"
"Yeah, but I think she would have done it without me. She's determined like that." Mulan's smile was faint. "How do you know her?"
"I, um, stayed at the Dark Castle for a little while. After I quit being a fairy." Tink's smile turned sheepish. "We met then."
Now probably wasn't the time to mention that she'd become Fiona's friend, first; most people were understandably creeped out by the Black Fairy. Tink thought that was mostly Blue's fault; she seemed to be the one who had spread the Black Fairy's horrendous legend far and wide. Tink wasn't blind, of course. She knew that Fiona could be perfectly awful, and had been in the past. But Fiona seemed to be trying to be nicer these days, and she'd given Tink shelter when no one else would. She also helped me help people I care about, and that goes a long way.
Mulan snorted. "That had to be weird. Staying in the Dark Castle."
"Not as much as you might think. The place is surprisingly…not creepy. I kind of liked it, particularly in comparison to the woods I live in most of the time now."
"You live in the woods? Why?" Mulan looked her up and down like she couldn't believe someone as dainty as Tink would do that, and Tink tried not to bristle.
"I fell in with some outlaws. I try to help them when I can." They were more than outlaws, now, of course; Tink's friends formed the core of a rebel army. Blue had even come to visit Snow, and had offered her help…which was one of the reasons Tink was happy that Fiona had asked her to come join them in Avonlea. She swallowed. "But I don't think I'm going back to the forest right now."
"Why not?"
"Professional differences. Fairy stuff."
At least Mulan seemed to take that at face value, smiling solemnly. "So, you're going back to the Dark Castle?"
"I think so, yeah." Blue would scream bloody murder if she found out, but that only made the idea more attractive. And Fiona would probably want help, anyway. "At least for awhile."
"Do you…do you think I might be able to come with you?" Mulan sounded hesitant, like she wasn't sure if she should be asking this at all. "I feel a bit responsible for Belle's safety after everything that happened…and I don't really have anywhere else to go."
"Well, I don't mind, but you'd have to ask Belle." Tink thought it might be fun to bring someone else along, but it wasn't her castle.
Mulan blinked, as if that idea hadn't really occurred to her. "Right. Of course I will."
Tink thought that was a little strange, but she barely knew Mulan, so she let it pass.
She had her brain—or would, anyway—but Zelena needed more than that. She knew what ingredients the spell would require, but finding the right providers of those ingredients was difficult. Rumplestiltskin had been the obvious choice for the brain; he was nearly as clever as she was, and no one else in the Enchanted Forest could match him. But who should she use for innocence? She had an idea of who she wanted to use for courage—just to spite her obnoxious little stepdaughter—but the resilient heart was going to be hard, too. Zelena hadn't imagined that finding the proper ingredients for her spell would be so hard, but she was going to do this.
Rumplestiltskin wanted her to concentrate on his curse, but she was going to save her mother, first. Then Zelena would cast that curse, proving to everyone that she was the most powerful magic user in the Enchanted Forest. She rather liked the idea of remaking a world in her own image, and having her mother there to see her succeed would just be the icing on the cake. In fact—
"Your Majesty, King George's messenger is still waiting." The guard flinched when Zelena wheeled around to glare at him.
"Let him wait!" she snarled, turning back to her work. "I'm busy."
"He says that their kingdom is in danger of falling—"
"Well, that sounds like it's his problem, doesn't it?" How had she let the silly pirate convince her to help George out? George had made a mess of his entire war, from hiring some outside general to having that same general betray him and join the other side. He was an idiot man, of course. Zelena would have crushed Snow and her sad little army by now.
"Yes, Your Majesty." The guard retreated, leaving Zelena to her thoughts.
She needed a child for innocence. That would definitely work. A newborn would be better, and one born of love and devotion would be best. Surely she could take some peasant child without anyone noticing…unless there was one she'd rather take? She would have to think on that. I'm sure one of my enemies will be obliging enough to have a child soon, she decided. Zelena was content to wait for the perfect moment, provided the right child came along.
Unfortunately, that wasn't the only thing slowing her down. She also needed to find a way to get more power than she had. The spell would drain her dry if she didn't find another power source. Rumplestiltskin had refused to help her, so she needed to find someone else. Far away, she'd heard of some 'Snow Queen' who could freeze an entire kingdom with her magic. Perhaps she should reach out to this Ingrid. There had to be something in the past that Ingrid would want. Zelena didn't like the idea of sharing her marvelous spell, but if that was what it took to get power, she would do it.
She would show everyone.
"Of course you can come!" The look Rumplestiltskin gave her was priceless, but Belle hugged Mulan, anyway. He'd whine about having a castle full of giggling girls, but he'd get over it.
After quite a lot of pouting.
Mulan still looked nervous, so Belle gave her a smile. "Tink is coming, too, so we'll have a lovely time. And there are lots of weapons in the Dark Castle—you'll love it."
"Thank you." Mulan's answering smile was hesitant, but real.
Rumplestiltskin, on the other hand, looked quite alarmed, with wide eyes and a pleading look meant only for her. "Belle…"
"You can always invite Jefferson if you're feeling outnumbered." She walked over to him, giving him her sweetest smile as she took his arm.
"I am not inviting the Hatter to live in our castle." His words were a grumble, but they still made Belle's heart leap.
Our castle. I like the sound of that. "Don't say I didn't offer."
His glare might have scared anyone else, but Belle wasn't falling for it. Mulan, on the other hand, looked very uncomfortable as she spoke up. "I'll, uh, get to packing, then. And I'll leave you two to it."
"We're probably leaving tomorrow, assuming I can convince Papa not to try to send an army after me," Belle told her with another grin. She didn't honestly think her father would send a rescue party, but Maurice still wasn't happy with the fact that she'd fallen in love with Rumplestiltskin.
He would just have to get used to it.
"I'll be ready," Mulan promised.
Rumplestiltskin made a strangled little noise of protest, but Belle only laughed. This was going to be so much fun. And she was going home.
A/N: Stay tuned for Chapter 28—"Can So Much Hope and Love Endure?", in which Rumplestiltskin finally talks to Sir Maurice, Bae finds someone who knows things about the Dark One, Zelena hunts Regina down with a proposal, and Belle and Rumplestiltskin return to the Dark Castle with an unexpected entourage.
