Darkness at the Edge of Camelot
Emma gasped, coming to, to find herself standing on some sort of rising platform, a swirl of black magic around her, to see she was in a forest, the Enchanted Forest most likely, dressed in an old fashioned pale dress with a quite thick, sleeved fur cloak over it, her hair down, "Where am I?" she breathed.
If she was startled to find herself there alone, she was even more so when a voice, a familiar voice, spoke behind her.
"The Dark One's Vault," Piper's voice came floating over to her.
Emma spun around, nearly sagging when she saw Piper was there, in her own Enchanted Forest attire, a white tunic, a dark green vest, black pants tucked into boots, with her pipe sticking out of one, and a black cloak around her shoulders.
"Aunt P!" she hurried over to her, nearly crashing into her as she hugged the woman tightly, "What happened?"
"That is a bit tricky to explain," Piper sighed as she stepped back, her hands on Emma's shoulders as her eyes searched Emma's face, ensuring she truly was alright, "You used the Dagger to pull the Darkness of the Dark One into yourself."
"So I'm the Dark One now?" Emma asked, sounding more confused because...well, she didn't feel like she imagined the Dark One would feel, powerful, vengeful, ready to burn the world to the ground, she just felt like herself, scared and alarmed but herself.
"Not quite," Piper eyed her, trying to recall everything she knew of the Dark One, how the darkness and Dagger worked, to reason out why Emma looked herself and not changed, "You have the essence of it, but I do not believe it has fully assimilated. Rummy is still alive," she began to explain, "He was the host, he has not been killed and so...perhaps the transfer to you is not as instant as it should be. You were not meant to be the host so the magic is slow to latch on, because it is looking for its original host."
"So it's a parasite then?" Emma followed along, "It's latched onto me, but it could let go if we get it back to Gold in time?"
"I would assume so."
"You don't know?" Emma blanched at that part.
"As surprising as this may be for you to hear, Emma," Piper deadpanned, "This has never happened before, not to me or to Rummy, to my knowledge at least. He never intended to ever part with the power of the Dark One, even less so now that…" her hand came to rest on her stomach, "Now that he feels a need to protect us more than ever."
Emma wanted to say that there was nothing to protect her from, to reassure her, but she stopped herself. That knee jerk reaction to defend her parents, to agree with heroes, about to spill out of her. But she caught herself. Her heroic parents had done enough villainous things in their lives, and her villainous aunt had done enough heroic feats, for her to know it wasn't that black and white. Piper had already expressed a true fear of what the townspeople would do if word of her pregnancy spread.
A child that was quarter Siren, a dark creature, and half Dark One would be enough to have those who mindlessly followed the heroes and 'the greater good' to try and kill it before it was born. For all Regina's claims that good and evil were made and not born, that would all go out the window when it came to Piper, who had proven through her own biology that sometimes...yes, sometimes dark and light were born that way. Her own mother had fallen to the belief that evil could be born, or she wouldn't have ripped all the potential darkness out of her child to curse another. She could almost picture Grumpy suggesting they take an axe to Piper now than let the kid get stronger.
She shook herself out of those thoughts, they were darker than anything she would have imagined before her world had been turned on its head by so many revelations.
"I have no more experience in this than you do," Piper continued, "The only one who may be of help in this is the Dark One."
"Which I'm becoming," Emma nodded.
"No," Piper shook her head, "The Dark One, it is a being all of its own, it binds to the person who takes on its power, becomes part of them, though they remain the main persona. But each Dark One learns more than the one before, experiences things the others have not. All that knowledge does not just disappear when one life ends. It remains there, for the next one to use, like a collective knowledge."
"So I've got, like, a dark magic encyclopedia in my head?" Emma asked, trying to keep up.
"In a way," Piper said, amused at the analogy, it made more sense like that than how Gold had explained it to her so many years ago, "From what Rummy told me, it tends to manifest, at first, as though the previous Dark One is there with you, to guide you until the knowledge and power absorbs. It can be a bit hard for any mortal to take in the power of the Dark One and instantly know all about how to be the Dark One. It is a transition period, the only difference is that the others had all the power and characteristics bind to them along with the magic," she eyed Emma a moment, "Do you see Rummy anywhere?"
Emma frowned a moment, for a single second thinking about how the man was in a coma in Storybrooke and couldn't be there, before she realized that Piper meant it more as an apparition of him than him physically being there. She took a breath and looked around, nearly jumping out of her skin when she turned behind her and saw that Rumpelstiltskin, in all his Enchanted Forest glory, had been standing there silently, likely the whole time.
"Found him, I take it?" Piper's voice spoke, reminding her that this was just a figment of her imagination, so to speak, or more a manifestation of the Dark One's magic.
"Yeah," she took a breath, a hand over her heart, taking comfort in Piper stepping beside her and taking her other hand in her own.
"He is meant to help you, Emma, if you have need of him."
"He's supposed to help me become the Dark One," Emma countered, "Not sure I want that. I'd rather just give him his magic back and be done with it."
"As much as I appreciate that," Piper chuckled, "We first must find a way back to him in order to do so. You recall what we discussed of just coming into your magic, yes?" Emma nodded, "You have just been given a new form of magic, it has not settled yet, you are not used to it…"
"I might lose control of it, is what you're saying," Emma cut in, huffing at the thought of having to get a handle on that all over again.
"This time it is not YOUR magic reacting, Emma," Piper reminded her, knowing how much it pained her to think she'd been a danger to her family before, "It is another entity entirely."
"Great," Emma sighed, rubbing her head, eyeing the apparition of Rumpelstiltskin oddly, for being some sort of guide to help her control the magic and knowledge trying to seep into her...he wasn't saying much.
"Because Pip has said it so eloquently," Rumpelstiltskin finally spoke, reading her mind.
Emma snorted.
"What?" Piper eyed her.
"He says you put it really well," Emma translated, before something came to her and she frowned at her aunt, "You shouldn't stand so close," she began, "If the Dark One's power is even stronger than mine and I'm not used to it, I don't want to hurt you."
"We would never hurt Pip," Rumpelstiltskin said, at the same time Piper scoffed, "You would never hurt me, Emma."
Emma rubbed her head again, she was going to get a migraine from this, wasn't she?
"Even if I was not intimately familiar and comfortable with the Dark One's magic," Piper began, "For the moment, I carry a part of that magic within me," she reminded Emma, "When the Darkness was loose in Storybrooke, it did not harm me then. I do not believe it will harm me now, no matter who controls it."
Emma eyed her a long time, trying to see if she was lying in any way, not that she didn't trust her aunt, Piper was one of the few who never truly lied to her, but this was too important to trust Piper's 'gut' and not a fact or to believe her when she was just trying to make her feel better. She did not ever want to be responsible for Piper losing her child the way she almost had. But the more she thought about it, about what happened in Storybrooke, the more she felt like Piper was telling the truth. She remembered the Darkness swirling around Piper, but not doing anything to her, like it was called to her but wouldn't harm her.
"You're sure?"
"She's telling the truth," Rumpelstiltskin agreed, "Darkness calls to darkness. Until the child is born, our magic cannot harm her."
"I am," Piper nodded, "Emma," she reached out to take Emma's other hand, "It is as we discussed, it reacts to instinct. If you do not wish me harm, you shall not harm me," she searched Emma's eyes, "I came to trust Rumpelstiltskin before I trusted his magic. It is the PERSON who controls it."
Emma nodded, "And that's why you never used the Dagger against him, because you trusted him as a person before trusting him as the Dark One."
"And I trust you, too," she reminded her, "All Dark Ones became Dark Ones for different reasons. They did not suddenly disappear just because they gained this power. In truth, I think some grew even stronger as they now had more ways to do as they wished. Intent, Emma, and trust. As I told you before, I have resigned myself to the fact that you were destined to be a hero, with parents such as yours," she reached out to brush a strand of hair behind Emma's ear, "And knowing you, I doubt even being the Dark One would change that spirit."
Emma smiled, needing that reassurance, "Thanks Aunt P."
Because it also brought back the thought of how dark did not equate evil, a sentiment Piper herself had taken pains to get past her thick skull. She herself had told Piper she didn't think she or Gold were evil or monsters for being who and what they were. They used their magic more freely, they did more things with it, they did bad things with it, but they loved other people, they CARED, and they sacrificed to make others happy even if those others were reserved to just their family. That wasn't a monster, that wasn't true evil. And being the Dark One didn't have to mean she would become the next great villain, it just meant she had a different magic to contend with and perhaps some less than light traits that would inevitably be pushed to the surface. But it wouldn't make her a bad person.
"So are you ready to begin?" Rumpelstiltskin spoke, pulling her attention away from Piper to where he had been standing.
"Begin what?" Emma asked.
Piper kept silent, observing her niece as she spoke to the apparition she was seeing, for who else could it be when she hadn't spoken to Emma.
"Well, willing to be the Dark One of course!" the apparition giggled, "It's just like Pip said, I'm your guide until you've learned to embrace your powers."
"I will never embrace the darkness," Emma said, more a statement than a fierce declaration. There was nothing wrong with it, she had come to understand that, but she preferred to be herself than to have this other influence pushing her. And, if Piper's theory of it being a parasite in this instance was right, the more she gave into it, the more it would burrow in, and the harder it would be to separate that power to return to Gold later.
"I'm inside your head, Emma," the apparition tsked, smirking as though he saw something she didn't, "And even if I wasn't, they all say that! Everyone who sips from this well enjoys the taste too much. The only way to stop is to be stopped. This is the fate of all Dark Ones."
"Emma?" Piper called, seeing Emma getting a little more upset the longer she stared at the spot.
"I just…" Emma looked at her, "He said…"
"What?"
"The only way to stop being the Dark One is to be stopped," she repeated, "He means be killed, doesn't he? That's the fate of all Dark Ones."
Piper gave her an understanding look, "It is, unfortunately. A very sad fact of the life of the Dark One. When the only thing that can kill you is the Dagger," Piper took a breath, "Some encounter those who desire the power for themselves, others orchestrate a means to pass it on, to choose someone desperate enough to use the Dagger and end their existence, Rummy has been lucky," her smile grew sad, "It was why he gave me the Dagger. I would only kill him if he betrayed me or my family and he would never do that because he loves me."
In a way, it was the perfect failsafe for the Dark One but also the ultimate proof of love and trust to the Siren who was his mate. Humans, they had softer hearts than she did. If the Dark One hurt them, excuses could be made, guilt used, emotions manipulated, to earn forgiveness. For HER? If Gold harmed her or her family, she would not hesitate to kill him, the instinct would override anything. He HAD to keep her protected and help her family to keep himself safe, but he didn't do it for his own well-being or self-preservation, or he would have never given her the Dagger when he could have kept it safe himself. It was a show of love and trust and devotion to give her the Dagger, because he was giving her the means to enact her vengeance if he broke her heart. And that told her he would want her to end him if he ever harmed her that badly, and so he wouldn't, because he knew she'd never want to use it in the first place. She would never want to harm him or kill him or think him about to harm her or her family, the Dagger was proof he wouldn't.
"But it makes you a target," Emma said, as though just realizing how true that was. Zelena had managed to take the dagger from Piper in the forest, she had purposefully targeted Piper to get it, only leaving the woman alive to force her to watch Gold under her power. But she might not always be so lucky.
"No more than normal," Piper countered, "He would be a target to get to me, just as you and Henry would. It is the risk everyone takes when you love someone else. And I am quite capable of defending myself," she smirked.
Emma nodded, she'd seen that first hand, "I guess…even knowing that's how the magic changed hands I never really thought about it that much," she admitted, "That Gold lives every day of his life knowing that the only way it ends is with his death."
"That is the way all life ends," Piper pointed out gently, "The only difference is that the Dark One knows that end will be at the hands of someone else. And all you can do is give the weapon to someone you trust, so that the life lasts as long as possible."
"It's gonna last a long time," Emma promised her, reaching out to lightly touch Piper's stomach, "I swear it, Gold is going to be with you forever, I'll make damn sure of it."
"It will not be the same for me, though," Piper had to remind her, "Sirens of the Sea…they live as long as the sea. I am but half, and I have aged. I will leave Rummy long before he leaves me."
"You aged slow though," Emma argued, "In a world without magic. I know you said it was Gold's magic trying to protect you or whatever, making you age slower than normal, but…what if it wasn't? What if it was the magic in your DNA, being in a world without magic when you ARE a creature of magic, even being half. Maybe…maybe being in a world with magic means you'd be immortal, too? I mean, you said it yourself, you still had your magic in your song all that time, weak as it was it was still there."
"I would need to live in a world with magic for quite some time to know for sure," Piper remarked, though...she really hadn't ever thought of it that way before.
Her mother had never gone over Siren lifespans except in very short lessons. Her mother had given up her immortality when she cut herself off from the sea, or so they had thought, because it was magic, wasn't it? MAGIC was what kept them living so long. But what if Emma was right and it was more the magic in their very being, their DNA than their song? Her mother had always looked the same to her, in her memories, but her mother had only been on land not even two decades before her life had ended. Would that have been enough time to grow old in a noticeable way?
SHE had grown older, but her mother had said that Sirens grew much the same rate as humans did until they reached majority and then they remained that way in the sea.
It was an interesting theory to consider.
"Ok," Emma nodded, "First, we get the Darkness back into Gold, then…then we work on a way to get everyone back to the Forest for good."
"Henry will wish to live here, too," Piper pointed out, touched that Emma would add that to her plans just to see if she might prolong her life in a world with magic, to spend more time with the man she loved.
"Maybe I do too," Emma offered with a shrug, "Maybe it's time I…I don't know, embrace my legacy, have one to give my kid when he's old enough."
"Henry would love that," Piper remarked.
"Right," Emma took a breath, "We're in the Enchanted Forest now, which means Merlin can't be far from here and the Apprentice said he can destroy the darkness, so I'm betting he can transfer it too, probably better than his Apprentice did," she looked at Piper, "Think we can find him?"
Piper nodded, looking around and up at the sky, gauging the right direction to head from the Vault from maps she had looked at a handful of times when she'd lived in the Dark Castle. She didn't know the exact path or road to take, but she could at least get them in the right direction, "Camelot is this way," she nodded to the side.
Emma moved to walk beside her, deftly ignoring Rumpelstiltskin calling, "You'll give in before you find him!"
She was not going to keep this power, it wasn't hers and she didn't want it, because somewhere in Storybrooke, the person who did was lying in a coma, waiting for it and his true love to come back.
~8~
Emma and Piper walked in silence down a pathway of the forest, aiming to find a road of some sort for a better direction to Camelot. They might make it there by going straight through the forest, but Piper hadn't been there before, had only heard tell of it and seen it on a map. A road would give them a better idea of a more direct and clear path to the kingdom. Unfortunately the main roads were eluding them, it wasn't meant to be easy to reach the Dark One's Vault and Piper often travelled there via Rumpelstiltskin's magic and not by foot. Still, they were together and Emma felt better having someone at least familiar with the Enchanted Forest to help them off.
"Look!" Emma called, noticing a peddler ambling down the path, dragging a cart behind him, "Hey!" she hurried over to the man, Piper following at a more sedate pace, eyeing the man critically, "Excuse me! We need help!" she approached the man, her hands up to show she meant not harm as he turned to face them, "Can you give me directions to Camelot? Do you know the way?"
"Of course!" the man smirked, "It'll only cost you two pieces of silver!"
"I don't have any silver," Emma stated, glancing at Piper as she came up beside her, not sure if the woman might magically have money on her, too, but Piper was eyeing the man instead.
"Three pieces now," the peddler upped.
"I'm in a hurry."
"Four."
"Just…" Emma began, her voice pitching with her annoyance, when a high pitched whistle rang out, making her wince and cover her ears, though the man appeared more startled and stumbled back.
Piper approached him, leaning in to speak to him, "Have you ever heard of the Pied Piper?" she asked the man, whose eyes widened with fear, "I see you have. And if you would like to live to tell the tale of meeting me, I suggest you point us in the direction of Camelot. Understood?"
The man frantically nodded his head and pointed a shaking hand in one direction, before taking off with the wares he could carry through the woods in the opposite direction.
"I had it handled," Emma huffed, crossing her arms.
"Perhaps," Piper shrugged, smirking as she watched the man getting smaller in the distance, "But he was irritating me."
Emma shook her head, but she couldn't argue that the man hadn't irritated her too.
"Now come. Before he wet himself, he pointed this way."
Emma tried very hard to keep the snort in, she'd noticed the wet spot on the man's pants as well.
~8~
"What the hell was that?" Emma stumbled back when something whitish-blue flew past her face, like an energy or a ball of flames, but there was no heat from it, it just flickered off into the brush they were walking past.
"I believe that is a Will-o-the-Wisp," Piper stated with a frown, sounding unsure, "I have never actually seen one before not in a book."
"Aren't they those things that lure you into the woods and to your death?"
"Not in the Enchanted Forest," Piper chuckled, "Wisps, here, lead you to your fate. If you capture one and return it home, you ask it a question and it will lead you where you need to go."
"So it could lead us to Camelot!" Emma realized. While she was sure they'd make their way there eventually, she wanted to get this over and done with as soon as she could. She remembered the stories Piper told her about being separated from Gold, how it hadn't gone well for her the longer they were apart. She hoped, because Gold was alive, it would be easier on Piper, but she didn't want to risk anything happening with the baby.
"We must catch it first," Piper pointed out.
Emma grinned and the two women took off after it, Piper choosing to forego using her pipe to catch it, uncertain how her magic would affect it and not wanting to upset Emma if it worsened the situation. It was close, with the wisp twisting a few times to throw them off, but they found it eventually, Emma rushing forward to grab it, when someone else snatched it away from the other side of a bush.
"Hey!" Emma shouted, "Hey, I need that! Stop!" she reached for the woman in a cloak that was rushing off, magic reacting to her desire and pulling the woman back to the ground.
"Back off, lassie!" a voice heavy with accent shouted, pushing herself to her feet and yanking her hood down, a stock of red hair revealed as a bow and arrow was aimed at Emma, "My aim is true, don't test me."
"May I?" Piper turned to Emma as she walked up, her pipe in hand.
Emma gave her a firm look and turned back to the woman, "I wasn't trying to hurt you."
"Oh, so that was just a wee magical love tap," the woman sneered, "I've met my share of witches, I know one when I see one, witch."
"No," Emma shook her head, "I'm not a witch. Just cursed with dark magic."
"And the difference is?"
"I want to get rid of it. The will-o-the-wisps is the only way."
The woman eyed her a moment, hesitating, "You want to get rid of it?"
"Desperately," Emma nodded. Really she did, not just for herself but for Gold and Piper.
"Aye," the woman sighed, lowering her weapons, nodding, "I know what's that like. It's a terrible fate to be cursed, just be thankful you aren't a bear."
"I would almost prefer a bear right now," Piper muttered beside Emma, bears were quiet and not as irritating as this woman was, far easier to control as well.
"Never mind," the woman brushed it aside, "Look, I wish I could help ye', but I need the wisp to, for my kingdom, for my family. So, I'm afraid you'll have to fight me for it," she proceeded to pull out a sword too.
"Oh, put that down," Piper rolled her eyes, "You shall be on the ground before you can take a step."
"Is that so?" the woman challenged.
Piper smirked, "Try ME."
"I like her spunk," Rumpelstiltskin spoke, appearing beside the red-haired woman though he spoke to Emma, "Break her neck."
"Neither of us are gonna fight you," Emma told the woman, ignoring the apparition, "It's giving in to the darkness, and I won't do it."
"I will," Piper offered.
"No," Emma sighed, gesturing the woman to the bag that contained the wisp lying on the ground before her, "Go on, take it and get out of the way, it's yours."
"Don't try to sucker punch me…" the woman hesitated, unsure if she was about to be attacked. The one blonde seemed sincere, but the other had been too pleased to fight.
"I'm not going to, just go."
"Thank you," the redhead nodded, hurrying to grab the sack, "I'm Merida."
"Emma," she introduced, "And this is my Aunt, Piper."
Piper gave a nod of the head as she watched the redhead carefully. She could very easily subdue Merida and take the wisp, but Emma likely wouldn't agree with her methods. And she knew Emma had only taken the detour to try and grab the wisp as a means to shorten their journey to Camelot, not because they needed it desperately.
Merida eyed them a moment, "You know what, maybe I can help you with your curse," she offered, "The wisps, they're born in a magical place. The Hill of Stones. They answer your question when you bring them back home. it's about a day's trek from here. If we go together, I could get my help from the wisp, and maybe I can give it to you, and you could get yours."
Emma glanced at Piper, "Could that work?"
Piper sighed, "I honestly could not say," she replied, "I do not have much experiences with Wisps, Emma. Rummy tried to use one to find Bae once, all I know is it did not work."
She didn't need to add in that it did not end well for the Wisp either.
"You could ask him," Piper pointed out.
Emma sighed and turned to do that, only to see the apparition nowhere to be found, "Of course," she muttered, "He chooses NOW to leave me alone."
~8~
It had taken some doing, getting Merida to stop her endless trek through the woods to get to the Hill of Stones. The woman had been hacking away at branches and brush to clear a path as though she were being chased by rabid dogs. Emma understood her urgency, once Merida told them why she needed the wisp, to find her brothers who had been stolen by men who opposed her reign as queen, she would have been in a state herself to find Henry if it had been him as she had been when Pan was involved. But she knew enough about how Merida was doing, how heavily she was breathing, how clumsy she'd gotten, to know that the woman was exhausted and it would only put her brothers in more danger if she keeled over from her exhaustion before she could even help them. She'd convinced Merida to rest, even if just for the night, but it had a little more to do with Piper too.
She was starting to think her theory about her aunt was right, in some way. Where there was magic in the land, Piper seemed stronger. It happened when they had fallen through the portal with Mary Margaret the first time, Piper walked away with stronger magic as a result of practicing her own while it had been weak in a world with no magic. Now though, she seemed to have a little more energy, a little more comfort in the surroundings of the Forest. Still, she wouldn't risk her aunt's health for Merida's quest. Piper had nearly lost her baby, that sort of stress wouldn't just go away, nor would that fear of it happening again. She wouldn't risk having her aunt trek through forest after forest to get to wherever the hell they were going and wear herself out.
So they set up camp for the night, settled down. Merida was off to the side, sleeping, while Piper rested near Emma. She had volunteered to keep first watch for the others, which was surprising that Piper agreed, though it told Emma she'd been right to guess the woman was struggling more than she wanted to admit with keeping up in her condition. Normally Piper, as the adult, would be insisting she keep first watch, so Emma could rest. Merida seemed to trust her enough not to kill her in her sleep, though she had the wisp bag clutched to her chest even as she rested. She expected to feel that drooping sensation when you started to nod off, but it never came, which was odd…
"Dark Ones don't need sleep," the voice of Rumpelstiltskin answered her unspoken question, startling her.
She looked over to see him sitting on a rock nearby, though his gaze was on Piper more than her, "You do that a lot?" she asked the image.
"At times," he answered, unable to lie to her as they were connected now, he could see into her mind as easily as she could his, "It was this or spin straw, passes the time. This was…" he couldn't find the word, but Emma nodded, understanding.
There was something comforting in being with the person you loved, even when they were sleeping, to have them near you, to have them close, to know they were safe under your watch and you were there for them. For some reason, Emma got the distinct impression that, even though Dark Ones don't need sleep, the one that came before her had found ways to rest, perhaps even to slumber, when he was with Piper, that he found that much peace being beside her that he could rest, that his magic could settle enough to just…be.
Rumpelstiltskin cleared his throat, as though sensing what she was gleaming from him, "You need a hobby," he offered, "Something to take your mind off all the terrible things you're going to do. Do you like knitting?"
Emma rolled her eyes, "I'm keeping watch, in case you hadn't noticed."
"You could slit her throat in her sleep," the apparition offered, "Quick, painless, you get the wisp…"
"I'm doing good here," Emma shot him a glare, "I'm helping Merida, and then when she's done with the wisp, it'll be my turn."
The apparition snorted, "The wisp isn't a toy you can share. She can't just give it to you. The person who whispers to it becomes its owner, forever."
Emma frowned at that, wanting to call him a liar, but whatever connection she had to the Dark One's magic now, it told her that the knowledge was true, "So if I let her use it I can never use it?"
"Not while her heart beats."
"Look, I know you want me to kill her, to take it for myself…"
"What I want," Rumpelstiltskin cut in, "Is for you to start behaving like a Dark One."
Emma opened her mouth to accuse him of trying to push her to be one despite how she'd said she didn't want to, when a thought struck her. She would have made a point to him that Piper clearly didn't want it either so why would he push for something that would upset her. But this wasn't actually Rumpelstiltskin, it was his image, but all the knowledge of the Dark Ones before her. It wouldn't really care whether Piper would be unhappy or not, not when it meant the Dark One being at full power again. But then an image formed in her mind that she knew was coming from the apparition, and not willingly. His gaze had turned to Piper and the image…there was no way to describe it, it was more like a fear than a true memory or dream.
The sensation that filled her? That she could explain at least.
Being the Dark One meant others didn't trust you, others saw you as a villain, others attacked and accused and hunted you down. It meant that others could use the ones you loved to hurt you. The only way to keep them safe, was to BE a Dark One, be that nightmare that sent them running, be that monster they dared not face, be the villain too powerful to defeat. Make them think twice about harming the ones you loved. Behave like a Dark One, inspire that fear, and you could keep the ones you loved safe.
Were the Dark Ones truly THAT bad, the monsters the heroes saw them as, or was part of it a show to put on, of power, to keep others from attacking them or those they cared for?
Emma swallowed hard and looked away, her gaze landing on her aunt once more, knowing it was a combination of the life she carried, that piece of the Darkness, and the faint memory of how the last Dark One loved her, and her own familial concern that had formed that thought. An uncomfortable realization settled in her stomach. Merida had been ready to fire a weapon at them, had pulled her sword at them, and she would have attacked, maybe both of them, and she could have hurt Piper and the baby…unless she knew Emma was the Dark One, unless she knew what Emma would do to her if she even tried, but she hadn't, because Emma refused to come across like that…
For a small, brief moment, she considered the Dark One's magic, not just the power of it but what could be done with it. She had seen Gold use it to heal, to help, to save, mostly Piper, but Gold, the DARK ONE, had used his magic to help and protect, he chose to do it.
It really was about intent wasn't it?
If…if she used the magic now, if she could get the wisp…
She shook her head firmly at the thought, Piper's words coming back to her, it wasn't just the power of the Dark One that kept people safe. It was other people, them keeping themselves safe, them having others to help them. And her, it was her good magic too that could keep people safe, it didn't have to be the Dark One's magic even if it was more powerful.
She wanted to glare at the apparition, for tempting her like that, for being so sly about it as to use her care for her Aunt against her, but one look at his expression as he watched Piper sleep…it wasn't a trick at all, it was how he genuinely felt, how he saw the power, or at least a remnant of how Rumpelstiltskin had felt about it all.
And it made sense, in a way, Rumpelstiltskin the man had no magic of his own, he only had the Dark One to fall back on while she had her own Savior magic.
Whatever the cause behind his words, she would not use the Dark One's magic, it would just strengthen its hold on her and make it harder to transfer back to Gold, she was sure of that. His words had her considering using the power to trick Merida, to get what she wanted easier, and she wouldn't do it, she would have to be better, more firmly stand in the light to avoid it.
"Betraying Merida means giving in," Emma murmured to herself, "I won't. I won't."
~8~
The next morning Piper had woken, quite displeased that Emma hadn't woken her to take second watch, but, understanding the sleeping habits of Dark Ones, didn't grumble as much as she would have. She hadn't expected that part of the magic to affect Emma so suddenly, but it had already begun, it appeared. She had volunteered to go gather some water from a stream nearby, really needing just a moment to herself to splash water on her face and just…breathe.
She had been so focused on Emma, on ensuring she did not panic about what happened, reassuring her, supporting her, perhaps even preventing her from accidently using her magic to strangle that peddler, to find the wisp and keep an eye on Merida, that she hadn't had time to just process everything. Her mate was in another world, in a coma, vulnerable to people who would want revenge and the only thing easing her alarm was convincing herself that August and Henry would never allow it. And while the town might not care what Pinocchio wanted, Henry was Snow White's grandson and it would keep the man safe for no one in town would do anything to upset Henry...right?
Her mate was apart from her, alone and vulnerable, she wasn't there to protect him, but others were, they had to be.
She was trapped back in the Forest, with a niece slowly becoming the Dark One and not even she knew what would happen or how difficult it might be to separate that darkness from Emma once it fully fused with her. She was pregnant, in the Forest, heading to Camelot, where they had no love of dark creatures, not that she'd told Emma that. Traveling with minimal food and sleep.
She could feel the edge of her bond with Gold prickling at her, that drive to return to him. It wasn't as strong and all consuming as when he might have been dead after defeating Peter Pan. But while she knew he was alive, it wasn't like when the Dark Curse was in effect, she didn't have his heart inside her chest to reassure her. She wanted to get back to him and if Merida continued to stand in their way, she would have no qualms with…
"No!" Emma's shout rose behind her. She was on her feet and running back to camp in an instant, "No! No, no, no."
"Emma!" Piper called, pushing past a branch to make it to the camp, only to see Merida was gone, and Emma standing there with a piece of wood that had some berries on the ground beside her feet, "Where is Merida?"
Emma had said she would remain at camp while she got water, apparently her niece had gone to gather some food and left Merida unattended. Heroes, always far too trusting of the desperate. She would have thought that Emma learned better than to trust those sorts, especially when Mulan betrayed them to rescue Aurora.
Instead of answering, Emma turned to the side where Piper guessed the image of Rumpelstiltskin was standing, "Where is she?"
Emma was fuming, and the fact that the apparition was smirking, smug, like he'd known this was going to happen, was annoying the hell out of her.
"Doing what you should be doing," the apparition shrugged, "Taking care of herself first. If she gets to the Hill of Stones and whispers into that wisp, it's all over for you, dearie...unless you kill her."
"I'm not killing anyone!" Emma shouted.
Piper's eyes narrowed slightly, following along with what the Darkness was suggesting, which wasn't that hard at all, her own darkness was itching to do the same to the woman preventing them from getting back to her mate.
"Ah, you don't really mean that," the apparition waved Emma off.
"What does the Hill of Stones look like?" Emma asked, though this time she had spun around to face Piper, seeming to wish to speak to her more than the apparition, "Have you ever seen it?"
"Pictures of it, yes," Piper nodded, from when she'd read up on the wisps after Rumpelstiltskin had told her of the ways he'd tried and failed to return to his son, "Rummy has been there if…"
"I'm not speaking to him right now," Emma walked over, reaching out to take Piper's hands, "What does it look like?"
"It is a bit like Stonehenge," she began, understanding Emma's intent. She had magicked them somewhere once before, teleported in a swirl of white magic after the Snow Queen had been dealt with, she had known where she was going then, imagining just outside the diner in Storybrooke, but here she had never seen the Hill and she was trying to conjure enough of a picture to get them there, "Stones, standing in the ground, no top connecting pillars, there is lush glass and greenery around it. The stones grow a bit smaller near the tops…"
A swirl of smoke enveloped them and they appeared just before the stones…Merida already there, the wisp released, and darting away.
Merida had already asked her question.
"No!" Emma shouted, storming forward, "Do you have any idea what you've done?"
"Aye," Merida spun around, her bow and arrow already raised, aimed at Emma, which made Piper's eyes narrow at the sight, "That I do. Stop," she lifted it more when Emma took another step, "I don't know what kind of witch you are or what strange voices are in your wee head, but I heard everything."
"What's she saying?" the apparition of Rumpelstiltskin asked, appearing in a swirl of black next to Merida, "Accent's a bit much, no?"
"You don't know what you heard," Emma defended, realizing Merida must have heard her half of the conversation last night, "I can explain."
"I don't need your lies," Merida spat, "I need this wisp and I need my brothers, so turn around and go."
"If I were you," Piper spoke up, her voice low and dangerous, "I would put. The bow. Down. Now."
Emma looked over at her aunt, seeing the woman's own darkness rising in how she tensed, in how she gripped the pipe in her hand, in how her gaze remained locked on Merida…and a small voice in her head that sounded far too much like Rumpelstiltskin thrilled at the idea of watching the Siren in action.
"She's daring you," the apparition spoke to Emma though.
"Get out of here!" Merida snapped, glaring at Piper, "Don't test me!"
"Look at that," the apparition remarked, "She's threatening your family. What are you waiting for, Dark One? You know what you have to do to keep her safe, to keep her baby safe. Now go ahead...and rip her heart out."
"I'm not going to kill her," Emma murmured to herself, though her eyes were on Piper, who was looking back at her, as though she could sense the Dark One whispering to her. It was a promise to Piper…and perhaps even a permission. Emma would not kill her, but Piper…
Merida, however, missed the exchange in her anger, shouting out, "You got that right!" and firing her arrow at Emma, who caught it instantly.
Merida had only just turned to dive behind one of the stones for cover from what she expected would be a magical retaliation, a fireball, a blast, something…the high pitched note that followed was not something she prepared for.
Emma, almost instinctively, as though that same small whisper in her head that was Rumpelstiltskin knew what was coming, covered her ears and stood there as Piper used her own magic to subdue Merida.
The redhead fell from behind the stones, gasping, her eyes wide as the note grew more powerful, more painful to endure. Piper slowly approached the woman, the volume and tone of her pipe dropping with each step, deepening so Merida would be the only one affected as she played on.
Emma slowly lowered her hands, testing if it was safe to do so, but Piper, here in this land with magic, had more control over her music than anywhere else, she was safe to approach behind the Siren, staring almost in horror and a dark curiosity as Merida twisted and turned o the ground, convulsing and seizing, blood dripping from her nose as her eyes rolled into her head.
"Aunt P…" Emma finally managed to speak after pushing that power of the Dark One that wanted to lash out at Merida for firing the arrow down enough to control it.
Piper stopped playing, releasing Merida who collapsed to the ground from where she'd been arching, panting and shaking, and leaned over her, "You threaten my family," she warned the woman, reaching out to forcibly turn Merida's head to face her, "I will kill yours," she promised, every bit the Siren as she stared into Merida's eyes, "You have control of the wisp," she said…
And then reached into Merida's chest and ripped out her heart as the woman cried out in pain.
"Now I have control of you."
Emma opened her mouth to say something, she truly wasn't sure what, when she felt an almost...tingling sensation up her spine. She looked over her shoulder, feeling like someone was behind her, but no one was there, and then another thought dropped into her head, an innate knowledge, an instinct that came with part of the Dark One's power…it was a warning.
Others were coming, someone was approaching…her magic was trying to warn her.
But it wasn't a danger, it wasn't a threat, it was…familiar…familial…
"Aunt P, give me her heart," Emma turned to Piper quickly.
"Emma?" Piper frowned at her.
"Trust me," was all Emma said, holding out her hand for it.
Piper hesitated a moment, before she turned her head slightly, likely hearing the songs of the people Emma had sensed coming, and eyed her niece once more. Emma gave her a small nod, reaching out more, and Piper returned it, bestowing the heart upon her, as requested, trusting her niece in whatever plan had just occurred to her, taking a few steps back as well to offer her space.
Emma looked to the side, to where the apparition was watching her curiously, "What would the Dark One say?"
"What?" the apparition chuckled.
"You're in my head," she snapped at it, not having the time for this, not with the tingling getting stronger, it would be any second now, "What would the Dark One say!?"
The apparition seemed to gleam her plan and smirked.
Not a moment later, Hook's voice rang out, "Swan, don't!"
Emma managed to look shocked and surprised when he, her parents, Regina, Henry, and a few others from Storybrooke appeared through the bushes. She had sensed them coming, but not how many of them there would be, so her surprise might have been somewhat genuine, "What? How?"
Piper eyed Emma a moment, hearing the slight force in her voice, and crossed her arms, watching the scene play out. Emma had a plan, that much was obvious, she had taken the heart from her for a reason, she had known the others were coming and done this on purpose. Of course, SHE had heard them approaching, their songs had grown louder the nearer they came, and she had been fully prepared to be caught tormenting Merida by them, but then Emma had asked her to trust her and so she would.
"It doesn't matter how," Hook strode over to Emma, "Has anything ever stopped me before?"
Piper snorted, "I could try my hand at it now."
"You," Hook sneered at her, "I should have expected you'd lead her to this."
"Hey!" Henry shoved Hook a little in defense of his aunt, "Lay off."
"Henry," Emma cut in, giving Henry a meaningful look, "It's ok," she told him, and then looked at the others, "It is. You don't know what's happening."
Oh, how true that was.
"This is the only way to find Merlin," Emma continued, "He's the only one who can stop the darkness spreading in me. This is the only way to protect all of you."
"But to stop the darkness, you're going to let it consume you," Regina called out.
"You don't know that," Emma shook her head, doing her best to keep from revealing anything to them. They really didn't know that, because they didn't know how this was the first time the darkness had 'consumed her' or whatever they thought it was doing.
They had no idea she was in full control, not a hint of the Dark One's influence in her, that she had chosen to do this and not for a 'dark' purpose.
"We're not going to take the chance," Mary Margaret declared...and pulled out the Dark One's Dagger, ready to use it.
Emma looked down at it, knowing the others would likely think her entranced by the sight, but it was more…how quick they were to use it, how ready, against their own daughter, how little they trusted her. And Piper's words came back to her, how bestowing the dagger on someone was a show of trust, the greatest trust there was. For the person given it, should be one who would never use it against them, but who would protect it and cherish it…and how few people there were who would do so.
Her own parents…
Piper slowly clapped, mockingly, at Snow White, "You truly do go to the greatest extremes against darkness, do you not, Snow White?"
"It's Emma," Mary Margaret defended, "I would have thought you'd be protecting her from darkening her heart!" she accused, "If you won't, I will…"
"No, wait," Hook held up a hand to stop her using the Dagger, "You can't do that. This has to be her choice."
"You want to know what a Dark One would say?" the apparition spoke, drawing Emma's attention back to the matter at hand, the image of Rumpelstiltskin now beside her, "They don't understand what's at stake."
"You don't understand what's at stake," Emma repeated, looking at her family, repeating what the apparition told her, "If I don't find Merlin, the darkness will destroy all of you."
"Emma, please, no," Hook begged.
Henry, unlike the others, who were all watching Emma intently, turned his attention to Piper, who was studying Emma, more curious than wary. It gave him pause, because he'd seen that exact look on her face only once before, he was the ONLY one to have seen that look on her face, because it was only him, Emma, and Piper who had been there when it happened.
When Piper had stopped Cruella, and Emma chose to let the others think it had been HER that did it.
Piper had studied her then too, as though unsure why Emma was doing something that would put her at fault when there was no fault to have.
"The Dark One destroys everyone near it," Emma continued to address her family, "Look at Gold and Neal. I can't do that to my family. And to you."
"She has to die," the apparition told her.
"She has to die."
Hook shook his head, "Listen to your words. It's not you speaking, Emma. We can find another way together. Look at us," he gestured around at the people who came with him, "Heroes and villains, together, for YOU, because of you. And if we can overcome it, if we can overcome our demons, then so can you."
Piper rolled her eyes at that. The only 'villain' she could see that came with them was Zelena, and she doubted the woman had done so willingly. All others, Hook, Regina, considered themselves reformed and heroes-in-training or what have you. She doubted Hook had meant to include HER in his little speech.
Emma, though, looked at him a long while, noticing the same thing Piper had, that when Hook said 'us' he gestured to the others, and not to Piper. Piper, the woman who had never looked at her differently, not even when her magic had been on the fritz, the woman who talked her down from her fears, the woman who never lied to her, who was honest about her demons while the people before her denied theirs or never said them or covered them up. They came because it was HER...but...what if it had been someone else, Piper even? Henry would come, and the others would come for Henry but not Piper.
Heroes, true heroes, should have come because it was the right thing to do.
She had seen enough of what she'd wanted to see though, how they'd react, how they'd treat her if they thought SHE had been the one to do this to Merida, so she turned, looking down at the heart and silently adding a command to it to keep the redhead silent, before she shoved the woman's heart back into her chest. She let out a breath and looked down at the woman, "You ok?"
"Oh, for someone who just now had their heart outside their chest, grand," Merida rolled her eyes.
"Go," Emma ordered lightly, "Find your brothers."
Merida didn't need to be told twice, casting a dark look at Piper, who smirked and wiggled her fingers in a wave goodbye, before she grabbed her bow and took off after the wisp.
Emma sighed and laughed when Henry ran to hug her, nearly toppling her back, "Hey kid."
"I'm glad you're ok, mom," he smiled up at her, squeezing her once more, before hurrying over to Piper to hug her too.
Emma watched him go, before she turned to look over at her parents. She was still angry with them for what happened to Piper, for lying to her about what they did to Lily, she really didn't want them here, she got the feeling they would be at odds with Piper and her methods to keep her off the dark path and right now she preferred Piper to them, "Mom, dad, this is too dangerous. You shouldn't have come."
"We had to," David shook his head.
"You're our daughter," Mary Margaret agreed.
"Didn't stop you from banishing the last Dark One," Emma pointed out, making her mother flinch, "Him being your cousin's true love wasn't good enough."
"Swan," Hook cut in, shaking his head slightly to try and tell her to ease off them, adding, "Well, you don't look like a crocodile," to try and lighten the mood.
"I guess I lucked out," Emma replied, though there wasn't much banter about it.
"Here," Mary Margaret stepped forward, offering Emma the Dagger as an apology, "We think you should have this."
"Take it," David added when Emma just stared at it, "You'll be able to control yourself."
Emma looked at them, her eyes sliding past her father's shoulder to where Rumpelstiltskin's apparition was now standing and her lips pursed at the reminder. It should be a show of trust, but her parents were only doing it as an apology for things.
And it was worse, now, that they were giving her the Dagger, trusting her when they hadn't extended the same courtesy to Gold, or even Piper. They hadn't trusted Piper to hold Gold's Dagger, they never would have trusted Gold to hold his own. They had proven it over and over in their words and actions and why should they trust HER and not him? Because of their kingdom? Because they trusted that SHE wouldn't destroy it? When Gold had never given any indication that he would have destroyed it either? Because, in some way, it had been important to Piper at that time, to protect not just her cousin but her cousin's people? And even when that care vanished from Piper and minimized to only Emma, Henry, and Neal of Snow White's family, Gold STILL tried to keep the others safe, for the day when Piper worked past the betrayal?
She felt herself growing angry at the hypocrisy.
Just because she was their daughter…when Gold had been a Siren's mate, Snow White's cousin's true love…they gave it to her and not him.
It wasn't fair.
"No," she said, looking at her parents once more.
"Emma, think about it," Hook spoke, "If it falls into the wrong hands, what it could do...what you could do..."
It was impossible not to notice how Hook's eyes slid to Piper as she stood to the side with Henry.
And wasn't that even more hypocritical. The woman who had never forced the Dark One to do anything via the Dagger, was being thought of as the worst person to hold HER dagger? How did that make sense? She knew Hook had no love for Piper, but that was ridiculous!
It put her in a bind now, though, because she would have to choose someone to hold the Dagger if she wasn't going to take it. And if she gave it to Piper it would only create more animosity for her aunt, and she didn't need that right now. It would probably send a signal to the others that she wanted to be the Dark One, to give it to someone who wouldn't use the Dagger to stop her.
"The fight to control my darkness has just begun," Emma said carefully, "It's too much power. Someone needs to watch me," so she took the Dagger and handed it to Regina.
"Mom," Henry frowned, looking between Emma and Piper, clearly not seeing a reason why Piper shouldn't also carry Emma's Dagger the way she had Gold's, "Aunt P…"
"It is fine, Henry," Piper reassured him, a hand on his shoulder, "It should always be the choice of the one bound to the Dagger."
It was a dig at the others, of course, a reminder that none of them had any care or consideration to who held the Dagger so long as they could control the Dark One. They would never care that Gold CHOSE her to hold it, they would never care that Gold should have had that choice instead of the Dagger being taken from him and used against him.
"Are you serious?" Regina asked Emma quietly, for she thought Emma would have given it to her parents or Henry over her.
"I saved you, now you save me," Emma stated, though there was far more to her choosing Regina than she felt she could reveal right now, "And if you can't save me, do what no one else will willingly do. You're the only one who will get past their feelings and do what is necessary...destroy me."
"It won't come to that," Henry declared.
Emma looked over at Henry, though when she spoke her eyes were on Piper, a promise in them, "I know," she nodded minutely at the woman, swearing to her that she would not need to be destroyed, Piper would not fail to protect her family, and the power would be given back to Gold if she had anything to say about it. She took a breath and looked at the others, hoping to distract them from noticing, "So, are you guys gonna tell me how you all got here?"
Hook smirked, "Well, it might be easier to show you."
~8~
Seeing Granny's Diner standing in the middle of the forest was not something Emma or Piper expected when they followed the group back to 'base' as Henry called it. Somehow they'd managed to transport themselves there in a vessel…and the vessel was the entire diner, ripped out of Storybrooke and plopped down in the middle of the woods.
"You brought Granny's..." Emma stated as they walked in, looking at the minor destruction the building had sustained.
"Backup generator's working," Granny herself called as she stepped through the back door "But the fryers are shot."
"And Granny."
"Terrible news!" Grumpy the Dwarf called as he followed the woman in, having been helping her with the generator, "No onion rings!"
"And Leroy."
"Is anyone else hiding back there?" Piper asked dryly, moving to sit on a stool, Henry hopping up to sit on the counter near her, a show of solidarity for his aunt and a clear message to the others not to dare say a word about her being there with them.
Mary Margaret shifted awkwardly as she spoke, "There's no shortage of people who want to help you, Emma," she chose to speak more to her daughter than her cousin.
"Milady, you ought to see this," Robin Hood called from where he and a few men were keeping watch by the windows.
"What now?" Grumpy huffed when the sound of multiple horses trotting and whinnying sounded.
They moved to the windows to see a line of men on horseback, dressed as knights, approaching.
Piper smirked, "I could…"
"No," Emma cut in, sending her a small smile, "No…together," she looked around, hoping their numbers and the fact that there was more than one of them would be enough to deter whoever it was from attacking. They made for the doors and slowly assembled outside, "Who are you, and what do you want?" Emma called out to them.
One of the men smiled, pulling his helmet off to reveal a man with black hair and a beard, "I'm King Arthur of Camelot. We've come to find you."
"Find us?" Hook asked hesitantly.
"You dropped a modern diner in the middle of a medieval forest," Piper pointed out, "You think no one noticed?"
Hook shot her a glare.
"We expected you long before you arrived," Arthur spoke, "It was Merlin. He prophesied your coming here a long time ago, just as he prophesied many things."
"Merlin," Emma perked up at that, "Where is he? We were told that he's been missing."
"For years, yes," Arthur nodded sadly, before smiling, "But not for much longer because, according to his prophecy, you're destined to reunite him with us. Now, then, if you'll all follow me..."
"Where?" Emma asked, cautious.
"Why, Camelot, of course!" Arthur laughed, turning his horse to lead the way.
It was a surprisingly short distance from where the diner landed, truly just on the edge of Camelot. They reached it within the hour, surprised to see knights and other peasants lined up and cheering as they approached, fanfare playing over trumpets, flags waving in the wind, the gates wide open for them to enter…
A/N: Going to end this chapter here because of how the first chapter ended with 6 weeks later and them just entering Camelot ;)
We're going to have a very complex time with Emma, the Dark Ones, and the Darkness in general in this story. The Dark Swan and Emma are complicated to me, so many levels to explore, so many plots within plots within plots to navigate, reasons behind doing certain things, twists and turns. There's going to be a lot of different villainous tactics used, not all of them the darkest of dark, some of them quite twisted, but a lot of feelings and anger are going to come out along the way, a lot of buried feelings. The heroes have many, many lessons to learn as far as the remaining 'villains' are concerned ;)
I feel a little bad for Piper here. She's pregnant, away from her mate, who is vulnerable, without his heart in her, with her niece at risk of being consumed by a darkness she didn't want, and now surrounded by more heroes and entering a kingdom Rumpelstiltskin didn't make many friends in :/ On top of that, what's happening to Emma is really nothing like she's ever seen or heard of before so she really has no answers for her niece about what's happening and can only guess as they go :( It's sort of bittersweet, in a sense, that Emma can see the apparition of Rumpelstiltskin but Piper can't, and he was her mate :(
On that note, going to just clear up one little thing, no Piper is NOT an emerging Dark One here. While the darkness did transport Piper to the Forest with Emma, EMMA was the name on the Dagger and so she is the only 'Dark One' right now. For those who have seen the show, there's always the possibility that certain things occurring/revealed later won't be different, but for right now Piper is not a Dark One with Emma. She sort of just got taken along for the ride lol. The Darkness recognized a piece of itself in her so it just took everything it connected with with it ;)
For this chapter, I was tempted to have more of the dark influence we saw in the episode with Emma, how she lost control of her magic and lashed out, how the Dark One's image manipulated her more. But in the show, she was alone. Here, she isn't. With Piper there and aware of how the Darkness affects the Dark One, and knowing how Emma can get when her magic reacts (and now it's not even HER magic but a 'parasitic' one), I couldn't really see Emma listening or affected by Rumpelstiltskin the same way. She would trust and listen more to Piper than that image. And having Piper there, perfectly fine with using her own dark magic, and with a shorter patience than Emma with people outside her family, SHE would be the one more likely to knowingly and purposefully threaten the Peddler and attack Merida. As far as Piper is aware, given how Emma has spoke and acted through the time she's known her, she has a pretty strong guess that Emma doesn't want to become the Dark One or fall victim to its magic and so she would do what she had to to keep Emma calm and to prevent her utilizing that Dark Magic.
Psychologically too, Emma having her aunt there, someone not looking at her like she's already evil or going to snap, someone not looking at her like she's crazy, someone who trusts her...Emma's temptation and reasons to use the Dark One's magic have gone down significantly. She's not afraid, she's not alone with the dark influence, she has someone to talk to and work things out with. She has someone looking out for her who is more familiar with what's happening than she is. It helps to keep her calm and not feeling threatened. I felt that Piper being there would sort of lower Emma's anxiety, make her feel more safe and secure, not having to go it alone. And Piper would do anything to help make Emma feel better, be patient, attack first, explain anything she can, and try to help Emma sort out what's going on along the way ;)
But this chapter is going to be very important in the long run. Because it is the tipping point, it is the first hard lesson Emma is going to learn in a long series of ones to come. Emma has gotten to know Piper as her aunt and seen how others treat her because of what she is and her status as a villain. This is the first time Emma has the chance to really observe how it might feel to be on the receiving end of it.
There is a reason why she took Merida's heart from Piper. I can say it wasn't just to prevent them from thinking even worse of Piper when they reached them. We'll see more about her reasons why soon though Henry was on the right track ;)
Their reactions to what they saw, and the offering of the Dagger after the fact, were things I don't think Emma appreciated. But, then again, either way it went down probably wouldn't have been a good situation. It was a lose-lose, sort of thing. If they treated her like she was already the Dark one and an enemy, then they've assumed things and haven't given her a chance. But if they trusted her and made excuses for her, then why do that for her and no other villains, why give HER the benefit of the doubt? And then to trust her with the Dagger and not Gold or Piper? :/ This story has a habit of pointing out some hypocritical behavior among the heroes and it won't stop now lol. Yes, Villains are hypocrites too, but as Piper has thought before, they don't hide that or make excuses for it the way heroes seem to do.
As I was editing that end part, it reminded me of a moment from Descendants 3. For anyone unfamiliar, the heroes bring in a villain to save a hero's child, after said child tried to destroy the kingdom and became a villain. The villain brought in brings up the double standard of how, if a villain or villain kid had tried the same thing they'd be locked up and throw away the key, but because it was a hero/hero's kid it was just 'an error in judgement' :/ Snow White is willing to offer Emma the dagger, because it's her daughter, a hero's daughter, but didn't want Piper or Gold to have control of the dagger before, because they were villains. It just sort of made me think of that :/
This is going to be something Emma will be considering a lot as the story goes. She had a taste of that sort of double standard and 'heroes can do no wrong' mentality near the end of the last story, but in some ways she could kind of make excuses for her family up until she learned the truth of what Snow White did to Maleficent and what her actions did to Piper. Even then, while she'd been directly affected too, it was before she was born so she can't really remember it, NOW though she's going to get the full force of things changing around her. It will be eye-opening for many people I hope ;)
Some notes on reviews...
Have to start by saying wow! You guys! I am blown away by your reviews, I'm SO happy you're excited for the story :') I'll do my very best to deliver and hopefully it'll be jam packed with darkness, revenge, and some sweet moments for our dear Dark Rose ;)
Lyssa probably won't ever go full hero support, in the sense that they've been too quick to judge and too fast to accept things as truth without question. But that's not to say she'll just support any villain no matter what. If they are truly a terrible person, like Cruella or Pan, she will very much be against them ;) For her, it's more that she knows 95 percent of what the 'Evil Queen' has done never actually happened (in her story-universe). All the villages she burned, the people she killed, the destruction she caused only had to look like it happened. So she understands that the heroes see it one way because Regina did it on purpose and that was how she wanted it to be viewed, but part of her wanted them to at least question things. She does tend to get frustrated because she's sort of boxed herself into a corner and it's her own fault :( She physically cannot reveal what she knows of Regina's secrets, she's sworn a magical oath not to, and Regina has resigned herself to the fact that 'no one would believe them' even if they did tell the truth :( She knows her excuse of 'I know something but I can't say what' won't actually help anything, but she sort of hopes if she says it enough times someone might get curious enough to actually dig into it more, so far it hasn't happened :( So she's going to be very pro-Regina, and more empathetic to villains because she knows this entire history that the heroes don't, and it makes her question if the things people believe of certain villains is really true or if there's more to it. Some villains are just awful people who don't deserve the benefit of the doubt, I agree, and Lyssa will see that too, but others she may be more patient with, like Ursula or Maleficent and so on. She may be the one wondering and digging into the WHY part of their history where others just see the WHAT did they do part. She'd probably be the first one willing to defend Elsa or maybe consider possibly giving Zelena a chance to change (at first). When it's a villain she has personally been affected by, like Gold or Cora, she feels she has more ground to judge them on because she knows them and their history more. Lol, Lyssa was sort of my middle-ground OC of the 3 I have planned, one is a villain, one sort of walks the line between villain and hero, and one will be full on hero ;) But I fully understand how she's not everyone's cup of tea, no worries ;) Hopefully as her story goes her perspective and why she looks at things the way she does will become clearer and clearer :)
I'm so glad you're only sick! Wow, never thought I'd utter the hopes of someone being sick before but 2020 has certainly done a number on all of us lol. I mean I am very glad it's not Covid. My uncle and aunt tested positive for it, my Aunt spent a while in the hospital on oxygen (thankfully not a ventilator) and we just heard over the weekend that she was released and allowed to go back home, a little worse for the wear but out of danger, so I'm very happy that it was nothing more serious for you. I hope you get better soon though! :)
I am going to aim to update Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays, but a chapter or two may be late here or there. I'll definitely be aiming for 3 times a week though ;)
I'm so glad you're enjoying Piper so much! I really am so terribly sorry that it took so long to get back to her :( Hopefully this series will bring happy tears :) It's very weird for me not to see Piper when I rewatch episodes, because I'm so set in what she's done in some of them that I'm like 'But...that's not what happened to Cora...' and then I have to go 'Ooohhhh...wait a minute...' :) But thank you so much for saying that, you have no idea how much it means to me to know that my stories had an impact on your life :') I think I'm the one crying now lol ;) I hope the story will live up and deliver some good twists ;)
I plan to work on the AU for Piper, where she 'what if' finds Emma as a baby and raises her once I finish this series ;) So there's 1 more story left (for season 6) and then after that I'll be working on Piper's AU yup ;)