Black Roses

by LizzeXX

Gold/OC - Darkness calls to darkness, and so the Pied Piper, a Siren, a dark creature, true love of the Dark One, finds herself working to balance the newly emerged Dark Swan and fending off traps and tricks by Hades. But while Mr. Gold works to gain more power, Piper must work on keeping others from discovering their new weakness: their unborn child. Fifth in the Bedtime Stories.

3. The Price

The Price

Emma snorted as she stood in the back room of Gold's shop, watching a rather interesting scene play out at the town line through a mirror she'd enchanted. Apparently the dwarves were trying to escape, unwilling to live in a town where SHE was the Dark One. She couldn't tell if it was out of fear that there was no one to protect them, no Savior, or a fear that they'd have to fight a former ally if they remained that was driving them, but it didn't matter much. She smirked when Dopey stepped over the line and, after a brief moment, just enough to give the heroes hope, turned into a tree. That was two dwarves down, two fervent allies of Snow White picked off.

"I could think of half a dozen things to happen to them than that," August remarked as he came to stand beside her, watching the dwarves fretting in the image.

He had kept his word to Henry and the promise he'd silently made to his mother, practically moved into the shop, not willing to ask his papa to carry Gold to the home they'd shared, unwilling to make him into a target for the town especially when the others returned as he knew they would. It could only go one of two ways, knowing his mother. The possibility of the heroes finding a way to truly destroy the darkness was out of the question, Piper would never allow it, nor would Emma or Henry agree to help doing so when it meant destroying a part of Gold that Piper wanted to give him back. That wasn't to say the heroes might not have found a way to do it behind their backs, but if Snow White and Charming didn't want to lose Emma and Henry forever, they wouldn't go that far. He hoped. Whatever happened, he knew that THIS, Gold, would be the first place the heroes would go.

Because either they'd come back with a way to make Gold the Dark One again, in which case the heroes would want to get rid of the host first, or they'd return with Emma as the Dark One, and still try to get to Gold to use him against her, for his knowledge of how the power worked and how to stop it.

And that wasn't even taking into account the people who were still in Storybrooke who might have a grudge against him and want to attack while he was vulnerable.

So he set up at the shop, used the magic he recognized to keep out anyone he didn't want. The only one he allowed near the door to the shop was his father, who religiously brought him food every day and checked in on him. Bless his papa, he was probably the only person in town who trusted him and agreed he should protect Gold, even if it was only because of Piper's care for him as a child, protecting him, raising him. Whatever the reason, he had his papa on his side and it was enough.

He'd been very relieved when it wasn't the heroes who appeared in the shop but a swirl of black smoke that could only be one person's magic, the Dark One. He had been prepared to magic him and Gold out, in the off chance that the Dark One who returned wasn't Emma, but it had been her and his mother. It only occurred to him after the fact that the magical protections he'd put on would only allow Emma, Henry, or Piper into the building but one never knew when it came to the Dark One's magic. When the two appeared, it only took one look at Emma for him to realize she had become the Dark One now. But he wasn't afraid, she came with Piper, they both came to Gold and the man would now have many more protections than the one he managed to scrounge up.

His mother had rushed to him, hugging her son tightly, relieved he was well and safe, and so proud of him for standing against the heroes and protecting her true love. He loved hugs like that, when she was proud of him and relieved he was ok, there was always something more in how they felt compared to the hugs he would normally get. It made him feel…grown up. Granted he was a grown man, but she had taken care of him for so much of his life that those hugs just reminded him of when he'd been a boy and wanted to be big and strong to help his mother the way she did him. He loved those hugs because it made him feel like he hadn't failed her, like he'd done good and that was a whole feeling all on its own. He'd given her a quick run down of Gold after, that he'd slept, still preserved, no one came in and no one left the shop. He may have dabbled into a bit of magic meant to help him clean himself up, not having access to a shower in the shop, but that was all he'd touched and used besides protection spells. Not that his mother would really care about him using magic, it was more that she would worry he had used magic he didn't know and could have harmed himself.

Seeing her again, seeing her stomach expanding more since she'd left Storybrooke? It was a relief to see SHE was ok too. From what he knew, she'd been a couple weeks pregnant when Gold was banished and found out very soon after. That was six weeks in New York, then another 3, almost 4, weeks in Storybrooke trying to find the Author, and now another six weeks in Camelot…she was a little more than four months along now and he couldn't begin to say the way his heart unclenched to see her pregnant belly grown bigger, she still had the baby so no matter what happened in Camelot, she and her child were ok.

He'd stepped aside to let her sit with Gold and check him over herself, giving the two some privacy as he made his way over to Emma, eyeing the woman's new look for a moment before the mirror she'd been watching caught his attention.

Emma snorted at his remark, "I can imagine," she murmured, "Piper had…quite a few ideas of her own."

August actually laughed at that remark, "And the Savior turned them down, I assume?" he nudged her in the side for that.

"They're trees," she shrugged, though he could see a small quirk to her lips, "Which means they're still alive," she looked at him, "What do you think?"

He eyed her with a small smile, "That you're the nicest Dark One there ever was."

Emma had to look away at that, shaking her head.

"Hey," August reached out to touch her arm, turning her to face him, "Look, I'm not going to pry, I'm not going to ask what the plan is…" Emma's eyes widened slightly at his words, before he laughed again, "She's my mother," he nodded over at Piper, "And you're her niece. She protects her family, this…" he looked Emma up and down, "She'd sooner have Merlin transfer the darkness into her than to let it consume you. So something pretty significant had to have happened for this to happen and for her to not be going off the deep-end trying to reverse it."

Emma let out a breath at that, "I went dark, August," she said simply, "It was...it was really important that I go dark," her gaze flickered over to Piper a moment, before looking away at the intimate moment her aunt was sharing with her true love, pressing his hand to her stomach to let him feel their child still there.

"So there is a plan then," he remarked, drawing Emma's attention back, "Look, you don't have to tell me if I don't have a part in the plan," he reassured her, "Do I want a part? Hell yeah. But if you both think I shouldn't know…for whatever noble reason," he rolled his eyes, knowing the only reason his mother might not tell him the plan would be if she thought he'd be harmed in it, "I won't pry…"

"No," Emma shook her head, "No, we're going to tell you…"

"Oh thank god, I was totally gonna pry."

That made Emma laugh, eyeing him a moment, "You really want to help?"

"She's my mom," August repeated, "The heroes hurt her, and you," he added, "And, you know, if things had happened differently, you'd sort of be my sister…"

He trailed off a moment, the two of them considering that, how true it was. If only things had happened differently, if only Piper had found both of them, they would have been raised with her as their mother, they would have been brother and sister. Looking at August now though, Emma had to admit she felt that bond more strongly with August than she did with Neal, though Neal was still a baby and incapable of really doing much to form a bond with. Not the way August had been there to help her believe in magic.

"I'd do anything to help you," August finished.

Emma smiled up at him, "Thank you."

"Any time," he winked at her, "So…what's step one?"

"Find Henry," Piper spoke up, standing and taking a deep breath, looking from Emma to August, "He deserves to hear this as well. No lies."

Emma nodded, "The curse I cast…it stole their memories of our time in Camelot, even Henry's. He didn't have the excuse of Siren magic protecting his mind like Aunt P would for why he could remember, he had to forget."

Piper nodded absently at that, Emma hadn't even tried to steal her memories of Camelot. She and Henry had been a large help to Emma, but it would make sense to the heroes why SHE remembered and Henry didn't, even if it hadn't been that Emma chose it that way. Her mind would be protected, Henry's wouldn't, so any Dark Curse cast would affect him and not her. The heroes would likely assume the Dark One's Dagger hadn't been utilized in the casting, like it had when Zelena cast her curse.

"He needs to remember, or at least," Emma looked at Piper, "We need to tell him what happ...ened," she trailed off a moment, as though hearing something they couldn't, before turning to Piper, "I think...I think Henry's calling me right now."

"Then go," Piper urged easily, "I should think he would wish to speak with his mother more than his aunt."

Emma nodded, understanding it was more than just her being able to show Henry that she was ok, to try and talk to him, it was also about...Gold. Piper, a Siren, had been away from her Mate for so long, she just wanted more time with him. She would give it to her Aunt, all the time she wanted, she could handle herself especially now that the Dagger was safe with her aunt.

"I'll be right back," she promised them, before disappearing in a swirl of black smoke.

"How long do you think he'll last?" August asked after a moment, glancing at Piper, "Hook," he clarified, "Before he tries a good old TLK on Emma?"

Because the man had not hidden how much he loathed the Dark One and for the woman he loved to become it, he'd probably do absolutely anything he could to break that curse. And one of the quickest ways to break most curses was with True Love's Kiss.

Piper snorted, moving to sit back down at the edge of the cot Gold was lying on, taking his hand in her own, "A curse cannot be broken if at least one party does not wish it to be," she remarked, "I would kiss Rummy and not wish to change him. But equally if he did not wish to change, a kiss would do nothing as well. Hook will be in for quite a rude awakening if he tries. And that is if Emma lets him."

For this was not only a punishment to the girl's parents, but a test to Hook as well.

August eyed her a moment, how pleased she appeared despite Emma being saturated with the Dark One's magic, "What's going on, mama?"

Piper smirked and said two words that explained everything to August, "Operation Bluebird."

~8~

As Emma thought, when the image of the docks and Henry appeared in her mind, Henry was there, calling out her name three times, just like in the fairytales said to do to summon Rumpelstiltskin.

"Henry," she breathed, appearing before him in a swirl of black, smiling at the sight of him.

"Mom?" Henry spun around, his eyes widening before he threw himself into her arms, hugging her tightly, "You're ok!"

Emma swallowed hard, returning the hug as her heart beat with relief at his reaction, at how he didn't even hesitate to reach out to her, didn't pause to consider what she'd become, "You're not scared of me?"

"You'd never hurt me, mom," Henry declared, his face pressed against her, sounding so much like Piper had in the forest that it made tears gather in Emma's eyes to know he had that faith in her, "You didn't when your magic was wonky, you won't even as the Dark One," he pulled back a little to look up at her, "What happened? Why are you like this now?"

Emma sighed, "It's complicated…" she cut herself off suddenly, looking around, feeling that familiar tingling down her spine that told her others were coming and cursing under her breath that she wouldn't be able to explain it to him now, not when they could be overheard, and she didn't doubt a single second of magic around Henry wouldn't result in the others attacking or thinking the worst.

"I'm sorry, Mom," Henry frowned up at her, not noticing, "Whatever happened in Camelot, I'm sorry we failed you."

Emma leaned in to touch his face with both her hands, "I know what I said last night, but, Henry, YOU didn't fail me," she looked meaningfully into his eyes, "Everyone else did."

She wished she could say more, wished she could explain to him his own role in all this but, just as she'd sensed, Regina ran up, shouting out, "Get away from my son!"

Emma, whose back was to Regina as she approached, winked at Henry before she turned to the Evil Queen, putting on her best sneer, "What's the matter, Regina? Are you afraid Henry will learn the truth about what happened in Camelot?"

Regina glared at her, doing her best to ignore how Henry remained at Emma's side even now, "If the truth is so important to you, why did you erase our memories?"

"It's a curse, Regina," Emma deadpanned, moving to rest a hand on Henry's shoulder, both needing that reassurance that he wasn't worried about her acting like this, but also part of her wanting to rub it into Regina's face that Henry had fought against his 'Evil Queen' mother and yet stood beside his 'Dark One' mother. If Camelot had taught her anything, it was ok to give into your darker urges sometimes.

"I know, but what I can't figure out is why."

"If I wanted you to know, I wouldn't have erased your memories."

"You know we won't stop until we get them back."

Emma smirked, "It's not going to happen, Regina, because I didn't just learn from you, but from Gold, from Aunt P. I built this curse without the one thing you need to break it...a savior."

"Hmm," Regina's eyes narrowed at her, "Well, we'll find a way. We always have."

Emma chuckled, shaking her head at that 'we' remark. Heroes yes, heroes did, but not Regina, not always, she lost, all the time, and with Regina on their side, with Hook helping them, perhaps that 'villain' karma would throw off the luck of heroes. She crossed her arms, unable to help but taunt, "Yes, with ME. Now? You're on your own," and moved her hand back to Henry's shoulder, "Just like Aunt P was," she remarked, the lightest of squeezes telling Henry she was trying to say something to HIM with those words.

He just wasn't fully sure what it was. If this was for Operation Bluebird like the note said, it could be one thing. But there were more parts to it than that, he felt, more ways the Operation could go and he didn't know which direction it would head in. Right now, his first thought was of how Snow White had had allies in the Enchanted Forest while Piper had been left to fend for herself, seeking out the Dark One for protection and only had him on her side for so long.

…maybe that's what she meant? That Piper STILL had the Dark One on her side, that she and Piper had teamed up on this, but that was pretty obvious in the Diner. So...what was it?

"This town is not on its own," Regina argued, "It has ME. I can protect this town."

Emma chuckled under her breath, "We'll see about that, because there's a problem headed to Storybrooke that only a savior can solve. It's too bad there isn't one," she glanced down at Henry for a moment, offering him a smile, before she stepped back, her hands in the air so Regina wouldn't attack, and disappeared in a swirl of black.

~8~

Emma let out a frustrated breath as she magically appeared in the middle of main street, hearing Hook summoning her now. She and Piper had just finished getting Gold settled at the house she had conjured with the Curse, a space of her own, a…home base, in more ways than one really. With the power of the Dark One at her disposal, it would be the most fortified and protected area of town, even without someone there to watch it. Gold would be safest there in the guest room until they could accomplish their plans. She'd teleported the two of them there with Gold, August making a trip to see his father and shower first before he would join them…part of him also wanted to throw the heroes for a loop seeing him around town when he'd been cooped up and hidden for so long, a subtle way to warn them that the Dark One and the Pied Piper had Gold in their possession because there would be no other reason for him to leave the man's side.

She'd gotten reassurance from Piper that they would be fine for now, before she went to see what Hook wanted.

She…truly didn't know what this would be, what would happen. There was a reason why she'd erased his memories as well, after a discussion with Piper about whether anyone but her should remember. Everyone had to forget, even Henry, to protect him. If anyone found out he remembered she didn't doubt the heroes would put the full brunt of their guilting on the boy to make him talk. She would do anything to spare the boy from feeling like he had to pick sides, because this was harder than picking hero or villain, or between family, it was also about her and her own light and darkness.

She'd had one of her magic mirrors spying on her parents and Regina while she and Piper set up. She knew that they'd discovered King Arthur and some of his people had arrived along with them. She knew that her parents had informed him of the curse, how she was the Dark One, and how someone she trusted, someone equally as dangerous, was in possession of the Dagger. And she knew that they were all aware Excalibur was missing from Arthur's possession. It wasn't anything worrisome for her, it was expected, those were things that would come up when Arthur was found in Storybrooke.

One thing she hadn't expected was to observe some sort of black shadow creature attacking Robin Hood. She had never seen a Fury before, though Piper had read of them, had warned her of this possibility when certain things had happened in Camelot. She'd found out later it had been one of the main reasons Piper had been so angry when 'Marian' was saved via the time portal. Given how long it had been since the event, she'd truly thought she'd gotten away with that use of magic.

Apparently not.

Part of her felt she should be out there helping the heroes to save the man.

Another, much larger, part of her reveled in the fact that they would have to work out a way to save him instead of always relying on her.

She had truly never realized, before, how much of her magic and her status as Savior meant she was used by everyone. It hadn't mattered to her before, because she had just felt it was the right thing to do and, if it protected her family, then she'd do it, whatever it took, whatever magic was needed, to save them and be the hero. But after what happened in Camelot, when she didn't want to do something, when she'd learned from her mistakes in the past was trying to be better…and the others had still pushed her and pushed her to do something she didn't want to do? THAT was when she began to look at it more closely.

All that time in Camelot, it had been nothing but 'don't use the dark magic, don't do this, don't do that, we can't risk it!' But the second the heroes wanted something, it was 'Emma, help! Emma, use the dark magic! Emma risk it!' When it was something they wanted, they didn't care so long as they got it.

They were selfish, Piper had WARNED them about this, warned them it would happen, they didn't care then and now…now it felt good to stand aside and let them feel the consequences of their actions.

God, how much of her being the Savior and doing the things she'd done had been preventing them from feeling the brunt of things they had done wrong? How much of her efforts had kept the consequences from reaching them?

She was done. She was done being the shield when blow after blow wasn't hers to bear.

She warned them, Piper warned them, just because they didn't remember ignoring the two of them, didn't mean they shouldn't face the results of it now. This was on them, THEY asked for this.

She shook her head out of her thoughts, needing to focus as she appeared on the street, facing Hook as he muttered to himself about not wanting to have to summon her, "You just did," she spoke, reaching out when he spun to face her to magically transport them back to her house.

If they were going to have this conversation, it would be in privacy, somewhere she trusted and knew would really be private and safe.

"I was looking for you, too," Emma remarked, releasing his arm and stepping back, "The new look comes with some other perks."

Hook spun around, looking in confusion at the modern, classic styled living room they appeared in, "Where the bloody hell are we?"

"My place," Emma turned, leading him further into the room, sending a quick glance over at the back guest bedroom, knowing Piper had likely heard Hook speak if not heard his song appear in the house along with her own and would stay hidden, "Come on. What do you think?"

"I think I'm surprised you invited me in."

Emma scoffed, turning to face him, "Just because I'm the Dark One doesn't mean we can't still be together," her eyes narrowed when his own turned to a second door that led to the basement, "I still also know the fastest way to a pirate's heart is through his liver," Emma added, waving her hand and magically causing glasses of rum to appear in their hands.

It did the trick, pulling Hook's gaze back to her, "There's an even faster way," he remarked, leaning in to kiss her.

"Now, there's the pirate I remember," Emma smiled when she pulled back.

"It didn't bloody work," Hook let out a disappointed breath.

Emma tilted her head to observe him, "Aunt P was right," she mused, thinking about something Piper had remarked to her when they'd been moving Gold, something August had asked her and she'd felt prudent to make Emma aware of the possibility of, so she wouldn't be disappointed or startled should it occur, "You and Belle, both," she sighed, shaking her head, recalling the story, "True love's kiss?" she supplied, scoffing, "It didn't work for her, why would it work here?"

Hook frowned at her, "True love's kiss can break ANY curse," he repeated, "Why didn't it work?"

"It didn't work because there's nothing to fix," Emma stated, starting to feel anger rising in her.

She had been…so sure, when Piper first brought up this possibility, when she'd told her how the Siren had first met the Dark One, what Belle had done, the implication being Hook might do the same. She had believed he wouldn't. Said that she had accepted his darkness, he would do the same for hers. Even when Piper reminded her that Hook had spent 300 years hating the Dark One and she WAS the Dark One now, she'd argued he hated Rumpelstiltskin, not HER, not the Dark One, just Gold.

Well, he'd failed the first test, that was for damn sure.

Acceptance, none.

Right now it felt like he only liked her when she was being the Savior, the paragon of good, without a shred of darkness in her. That he liked the version of her her parents had created, not what she might have truly been. And if that didn't make her heart clench painfully…

"This is who I am now," she continued, her voice growing hard at the knowledge that he saw her as being 'wrong' and in need of 'fixing' when she had never forced him to change for her but just given him opportunities when he seemed to want them, "Why can't you accept that? Why can't anyone accept that?!"

"Because this isn't you!" Hook insisted, "What the hell happened in Camelot?"

Emma let a sharp breath out through her nose in irritation, "That seems to be the question of the day."

"Then bloody answer me!"

"I wish I could," Emma sighed, wondering how he would handle this. HER not telling HIM about something from her past. He kept keeping things from her and expecting her to be fine with it, how would he handle this?

"You can tell me anything."

"But that would be no fun," Emma looked at him, feeling that little bit of her that had learned from Piper coming out. Because...it was true. Maybe it was the Darkness in her, maybe it was the freedom of not having to tell people the truth because that 'good,' but it was turning out to be quite fun to keep secrets like this, to toy with people, to know she could spin them any which way and they'd be none the wiser. It was liberating to choose to keep something to herself and not feel guilty for it, "I'm tired of talking. Now, do you want to stay or not?"

"Sorry, Swan," Hook gave her a rueful smile, "This may be who you think you are, but this isn't who I am."

Emma could only watch as he walked away, leaving her alone…for all of ten seconds before the door to the guestroom opened and a hand appeared on her shoulder, "You heard all of it."

Piper could only nod beside her, before turning her to face her, "There is nothing wrong with you Emma," she reminded the girl, "You know who you are, as do I. It is not easy," she repeated something she often said in Camelot, "But if you wish to test them…it will be hard."

Emma nodded, glancing at the door once more, "They either see me or they don't."

Piper nodded, "And you never know which is worse."

If they saw…then her entire plan went up in flames.

If they didn't…then it was a betrayal from the people she considered her family.

She wanted both to be true, in a way. And that's why it was so hard to do this, this was her first glimpse at what she'd be facing. Hook, for all his claims to love her and accept her in any form, was rejecting her for the very things he had done to her and expected her to accept. Was this how her family would be too? Would they act any differently NOW when their memories were gone and she was the Dark One, compared to the Forest where she hadn't been consumed just yet? Would they look at her and make excuses for her even while she rampaged through town? Or would they condemn her as the Dark One without trying to hear her out? Which was worse?

Henry was the only one who came close to seeing the truth.

"It will only get harder from here," Piper reminded her, reaching out to touch her face, "Emma, if it is too much…"

"No," Emma lifted her chin, her determination restored, "It's not," she insisted, "I can do this. I NEED to do this. I need to know."

Piper nodded, stepping closer to give Emma a tight hug for the sacrifice the girl was making.

~8~

It had been amusing, to Piper and Emma, watching on the magic mirrors a short while later, as Regina had stormed into Gold's shop, as though expecting him to be there, ranting about how it was his fault no one thought she could save the town, only to find the back room empty and the man gone. Apparently she had tried to stop the Fury that appeared for Robin Hood and failed and had to take her anger out on someone.

It had been less amusing when they observed Hook meeting with the heroes and telling them where Emma was, her new house. Piper had merely taken Emma's hand as the man gave them her location. Part of her, Piper knew, hoped Hook would keep it to himself, see her bringing him there as the show of trust she wanted it to be, and hold her confidence. The only exception would be to tell Henry where she was. But instead he had told her parents, Regina, and Henry too, it would only be a matter of time before they converged or tried to break in.

"I will handle this," Piper reassured Emma when they heard the front door slam open and Regina shouting from outside the bedroom upstairs that was Emma's.

"I can…" Emma tried to argue. She had felt Regina approaching the house, alone, and allowed the wards to let her in, not wanting to reveal all the charms she'd installed too soon, fully intent to confront her herself even if she wasn't looking forward to yet another confrontation so soon.

But Piper shook her head, "She caused this, she did not care for you," she reminded Emma, "I will not allow it to happen again," she touched Emma's cheek, "Unlike many other Dark Ones, you are not alone in this."

Emma smiled at her aunt for her protectiveness, and nodded.

Piper stood and moved to the door, stepping out of it and heading down the stairs, under no illusions that Emma would be watching in the mirror, ready to appear and protect her if Regina attacked in her anger. She was lucky she was wearing a more baggy black sweater, having changed out of her Enchanted Forest clothing, and into something more comfortable. Her stomach wasn't easily noticed in the dark of the house, the black cloth, and the stretch of the outfit. That and she assumed Regina was too angry to notice much else.

She smirked when she saw Regina striding about downstairs, demanding to know where Emma was, "Knocking is the polite method for entrance," she remarked dryly as she reached the last two stairs, causing Reinga to spin around and glare at her, "A hero would use manners."

"Where's Emma?" she demanded.

Piper smirked, "When have I ever helped you?"

Regina's eyes narrowed more, "I need to talk to her."

"No, you talk to me or no one," she leaned over slightly, resting her elbows on the banister.

Having little option but to comply, she nearly spat, "How the hell do I stop that thing you two set loose on the town!?"

Piper blinked, "I do not know what you mean by that, could you be more specific?"

Regina looked an inch away from launching a fireball at her, "That…demon!"

"Oh," Piper dragged out the sound, "The Fury, you mean."

"I don't care what it's called, how do I stop it!?"

"You should care," Piper mused, smirking, "You should care very much what it is. For it rather gives away why it is here."

"Then what is it?" Regina grit out.

"A Fury is a demon sent from the underworld to collect the unpaid price of magic."

Regina frowned, "Someone used magic in Camelot and didn't pay up."

"Oh much worse than that," Piper began to move down the last few steps, wanting to be right in front of Regina when she said this, "It only comes when the price magic demands…is a life," she tilted her head and looked Regina in the eye, "You know the laws of magic. To save a life…"

"A life must be taken," Regina breathed, so startled she stumbled back.

"And if a life is not?" Piper enjoyed dragging this out, "It comes for the original life."

Tears appeared in Regina's eyes at the implication, not only was the Fury after Robin Hood for an unpaid price…but the price had been HIS life. HE had died in Camelot, somehow, some way, and been saved, by someone who didn't pay the price.

Piper chuckled, "Yes," she pulled the word out slowly, "The Fury has come to drag your beloved soulmate to the underworld."

"No," Regina shook her head, "No, I won't let it!"

"So pay the price," Piper waved her off, "You know what it is."

Regina glared at her, "I won't sacrifice someone else to save Robin."

"Well, that IS a different tune than in Camelot, is it not?" Piper taunted, causing Regina to pale at the idea that she had done this, that SHE had been the one to use the magic, to be willing to pay that price in Camelot, "And so now you choose to be the hero? NOW life is precious to you?"

"Let me speak to Emma," Regina spoke, her voice shaking.

"Why?" Piper eyed her, sound genuinely curious, though she was nothing of the sort. She knew the answer, she wanted to hear it said, she wanted to see how little Regina had truly changed, how the events of Camelot were about to replay itself now, thus proving that the heroes deserved the fate coming for them.

"Because she'll help me. There's still good in her. She wouldn't let someone die if she could…"

Regina suddenly found herself shoved back, one of Piper's hands on her shoulder, the other arm pressed against her neck, "You listen to me, Your Majesty," she nearly spat, her eyes so narrowed they were nearly slits, "You do not go near my niece," she threated, "You and others have manipulated her enough for one lifetime," her eyes searched Regina's, "She will NOT be fixing your problems any longer. The price is not hers to pay. You wish to save your beloved soulmate, you wish to be the hero? Then do what a hero would and leave my niece out of your petty squabbles."

Piper pushed off of Regina, the woman gasping, her hand moving to her neck as she tried to gain her breath back.

"Get. Out."

Regina shot one last glare at Piper before she moved out of the house.

Piper didn't flinch as a flash of black appeared beside her, Emma standing there, taking her hand, knowing where Piper's mind had gone.

Piper's entire magic was in the ability to manipulate the minds and wills of others. If this was something Piper had wanted from someone, she wouldn't hesitate to use her magic to make the other person do what she wanted. But that was the difference between her and Regina…Regina was claiming to be the hero now, when Piper never had and never would. Heroes didn't manipulate other people, heroes did the right thing.

If Regina really wanted to be a hero, she would have to step up and BE one, and not out of guilt or regret, but because it was just the right thing to do.

Regina had a very long way to go before she would ever be considered a hero, for even now, her next steps would be out of her own guilt and not goodness. Just moments ago she had been willing to trick and guilt Emma into helping to clean up her mess, to put the responsibility on someone else, the blame on someone else.

~8~

It was truly no surprise to Piper or Emma as they stood across the street from Granny's diner, where the heroes had gathered to celebrate the defeat of the Fury and the rescue of Robin Hood. Regina had sacrificed herself for Robin, or tried to, but the other heroes joined with her, stopping the creature.

While they had not planned for the Fury to appear, nor had they summoned it, it did help them in their plans. The town would be looking to Regina to save them from Emma now that she had 'proven' she could be a hero and a user of light magic...pity that they both knew Regina would not be the one needed to do so. But let the town focus in the wrong area.

For Villains, assumption was a great weapon.

"It is never easy," Piper remarked, her arm linked with Emma as she observed her niece frowning at the sight of the heroes celebrating, realizing this was the first time she was not a part of it, that this was the first time she was the thing they were celebrating defeating, as far as they knew the Fury had been summoned by them to go after the unpaid price of magic, "The path of the villain is a lonely one."

Emma nodded absently, thinking about the times when they celebrated and Regina would appear, how no one reacted well…and knew she couldn't go in there either or it would be the same thing. Maybe even worse, because she wasn't giving off the impression of 'changing' the way Regina had been trying to do. She could see Hook drinking at the counter, her parents fawning over Neal, her son speaking to a young girl by the jukebox.

"There is still time, Emma."

Despite the pain in her heart to be so excluded, Emma couldn't help the small smile on her face. Piper kept offering her a way out, a way to be returned to that, to being a hero. While they might not have a way to put the Darkness back into Gold yet, there WERE ways to change the heroes thoughts on everything, if she just said the word but she was keeping silent. Any other villain would be threatening her into continuing, hell if she wasn't Piper's family that's exactly what the woman would do. But she was family, and Piper did care for her, and she knew how hard this was for her.

Probably for the first time in her life, she understood, even a small taste, of what Piper had felt all her life, even with Snow White as part of it. To be on the outside, to be looking in, to see so many people happy and smiling and know that the second you joined them it would be anything but. To have a darkness in you that made others look at you like they were waiting for you to snap. To be cast off as one thing, when you were so much more, when you had potential to be more.

If the heroes had their way, and they'd saved her from the Darkness, or if they found a way to save her now, she could have all that back.

Piper would never have that.

Other people could change, she knew, Hook and Regina and other villains could change and work hard to be better people. Creatures, where it was in their DNA, in their blood, in their biology, they couldn't, not as much, not as far, with not as much care. Piper wouldn't feel the need to change, to fit in, she would be who she was no matter what.

And so would the Dark One, so would Gold, because the Darkness did begin as a parasite, Emma understood that, but after 300 years it fused to you.

Even now, Gold lived and she could feel the Darkness under her skin reaching to be returned to him.

Those two would probably be the only villains ever to not be ABLE to change the way others did, and the heroes would keep treating them like they should be able to.

When this was over, she was going to do everything she could to change how other people saw Piper and Gold, she swore it. This…this was giving her a new perspective to so many things she was sure heroes never considered, because so few heroes chose to become villains, so few could see it from the other side. Not all villains deserved to be treated the way they were by heroes.

"Thanks, Aunt P," she looked at her, "But I got this," she promised, before throwing her hand up and magicking them back to her house, to her basement, where a large stone was sitting on one end, a sword stuck into it.

"Consider yourself lucky, dearie," the voice of Rumpelstiltskin spoke, standing beside the rock, his hands behind his back, the same apparition Emma had been seeing since this began.

"What are you doing here?" Emma spoke, her gaze fixed on the space beside the rock, not feeling self-conscious to be speaking to him with Piper there and understanding why she was talking to 'no one,' "I already embraced the Darkness."

"I told you, Emma," Piper spoke, "The image appears to help with problems, to offer solutions and information. Which is sorely needed now," she eyed the rock.

The apparition nodded, "There's more work to be done, something bigger than both of us," he gestured at the sword, "As long as the Dark Ones existed, one thing has always held us back. The Light. Oh so many things make us stronger, the pull of the family we were so desperate to protect. The friendships that make it impossible to forget who we used to be. The magic that threatens to undo our most evil deeds, forcing us to be stronger than them. And," his gaze travelled to Piper, "The love that gives us freedom," he smiled, and turned to Emma, "You see, no matter how hard we try, we can't escape the reach of the light. But, Emma Swan, you can change that. That's why you brought that sword here. You can do what no Dark One before you has ever done. You can make that weapon whole again and use it to snuff out the light...forever."

Emma looked down at the sword in the stone, trying to keep her focus on that and not on what the apparition said. Because she'd spent so long with that image whispering to her, that she knew when it was the essence of Rumpelstiltskin speaking, and when another essence was using his image to manipulate her. It was in her mind though, she had to be careful not to reveal that she could tell the difference between them.

So she focused on the part she knew the apparition wanted her to be lured in by. That she could, she could make the weapon whole again and do that, it was what the apparition wanted…but she couldn't let on that it wasn't HER plan, not completely. Piper had said, so long ago, that light and dark cannot exist without each other. Snuff out the light and the dark would be lost as well. People looked at it and might see ending the Dark One as something minor, because there were still other evils out there. But it was the fact that destroying one made the majority weaker, made the light more confident it could go after other dark things, cut them down more and more till nothing was left. The same was true for the dark trying to destroy the light, chipping away at things. Doing this would be the first step down an unstoppable path.

The heroes hadn't listened to Piper back then, when she tried to tell them this, too furious about what was happening to her mate to be as clear as she needed to be. They cast off her words as those of a villain trying to keep the dark strong. That was what would keep the heroes on edge as well. Because it was only a matter of time before they somehow worked out 'what she was up to' because she wouldn't contradict them.

Let them think it, let them think that was her plan, let them fear, truly fear, that she was going to destroy all of them, all the light. They deserved that fear, they deserved to think their time had come, they had to learn their lesson and if this was the only way to do it, so be it.

She reached out and put her hand on the sword's hilt, pulling in an attempt to remove it from the stone, only to go blasting back onto the floor.

Piper sighed, moving over to her side and holding out a hand to help her up, "It is never that simple, Emma."

The apparition behind her giggled as Emma moved to her feet, "If you want that sword, you're gonna have to pay the price."

A/N: I hope this chapter made a little sense, lol. There are certain things that happen in Camelot I don't want to give away in the main chapters until they are revealed. I tried to allude to some things, maybe make you go 'hmm, I wonder...' without being too obvious. We WILL find out very, VERY soon what happened in Camelot and then I can go more in detail during the main chapters ;)

There's definitely more going on than the heroes or even the villains are giving Emma and Piper credit for }:) I wanted to set up in this chapter, a look into Emma's thoughts on how Hook reacts to her, along with her own thoughts about her role as Savior. How much of how she feels is the Darkness and how much is her just sort of 'eye-opening' for her about certain events we'll have to wait and see. I like to think it's a bit of both though. The Darkness sort of puts a new perspective on things, but it wouldn't come up if Emma wasn't thinking about it herself.

There are many different ways to interpret Emma and her being a hero, this is just one :) Here Emma's sort of considering just how much of the problems other people created end up coming to her for resolution. How much of what she did and actions she took were her 'doing the right thing' or helping because of that and not even pausing to consider WHY it had to be HER who did it, why other people couldn't take responsibility or do it themselves? The Darkness might make it seem like there were more things than there were, or putting a spin on how she sees it now though ;)

Here Emma's going to sort of get a taste of not having that responsibility put on HER, she's going to step back and watch the heroes sort their own messes out, watch as they realize THEY can do it themselves and not need to run to her each time. But it's also going to be hard, because here is where she really starts to feel the brunt of that distrust and that 'outside looking in' thing the villains often end up with :(

Some notes on reviews...

Lyssa will definitely experience a learning curve as the story goes ;) I think, for her, she's sort of stubborn, so she won't be open to the heroes way of looking at things if they aren't willing to take a moment to entertain if something more is going on with the 'villains' sort of thing :) They'll both learn from each other and start to hear each other out, but she'll probably always be more likely to try and learn about a villain first and maybe ask the heroes questions about their assumptions in the hopes they might realize they are assumptions sometimes. But, equally, she'll learn from the heroes that they really do just want to help people and keep them safe and sometimes that means having to be distrustful of villains for a time ;) I'm glad you're excited for the pregnancy though :) I try to not make them the main focus of a story or series where I can, like they're there but it's not ALL that's going on ;) The baby will be a main concern when danger comes about or actions have to be taken, it'll be a thought for reasons to do or not do things, but won't be the only thing anyone focuses on ;)

Lol, I like that about Emma and Piper too. Emma can sort of get around the whole 'I did something bad' by just sort of going 'SHE did it!' It sort of reminds me of a funny Harry Potter thing, where it's basically a Slytherin and a Hufflepuff having the best relationship because the Hufflepuff is super loyal but kind and the Slytherin is just like 'hurt my friend and I'll dismember you' :)

Henry is a clever, clever boy ;) This story is going to show not just Piper's relationship with Emma but also the one she's built with Henry too, so we may see him more involved in quite a lot of things ;)

This is definitely going to give Emma a new perspective. You can only experience so much when you're just standing beside someone and supporting them compared to when it's actually YOU going through it :( Whatever may come of her stint as the Dark One, whatever effects it may have after the fact in terms of magic or other things, it can't erase things like this chapter where she's standing there and looking in from the outside. And the distrust and suspicion she's going to face is also going to show her how some villains and the way they are treated by heroes aren't really helped in keeping them from doing dark things when they are treated like villains when they haven't DONE anything yet. So far the heroes have no memory of Camelot, but Emma hasn't DONE anything in Storybrooke, but they assume the Fury was her doing, they assume she's the enemy now, they assume she can't be trusted with Henry. It's eye-opening for her ;)

For the AU, that one will firmly be Swanfire, so no Hook romance ;) That's not to say Hook won't feel something for Emma or maybe try to steal her away, since he's had luck stealing women from their partners before };) We'll have to see if someone else might become the Dark One instead of Emma though ;) I can say, for that AU, there will be at least...4 other people who would be more than willing to step up and take in the Darkness if it means Emma is safe so we may have something other than a Dark Swan ;) I'm not sure I'd do a Gotham story, only because I wasn't really able to get into Gotham. I saw a few episodes, but it just didn't pull me in :/ That's not to say I'll never do a Gotham story, I could always watch the show again at a later date and like it more or be hit with an OC, but for now I don't have plans for a Gotham story ;) Lol, no worries, I read through things too fast too sometimes and then I end up going back and being like 'ooohhhh, there it is' :) For the stories I plan to post this year, I'm going to aim for posting Monday/Wednesday/Friday, but there may be things that come up during the week that may make posting a day or so late, but I will be aiming for putting up an update three times a week ;) For a list of the stories I plan to post this year (and the tentative dates for them), I have a list up on my tumblr's Upcoming Stories page for them ;)