AN: See chapter 1 for story notes and summaries.
Ships: Snowing, Rumbelle, Swan Believer, eventual Swanfire, and a delightful Golden Mad Charming BroT3. :)
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Please consider leaving a review if you're reading. It is very much appreciated!
I was asked to give a rough estimate of exactly what month/year it is, like I do with Finding You Always. So since it's estimated that the curse was broken in late February 2012 and it's been a few weeks since, it is now early April 2012
Special note:
Here are the main face claims I have chosen for the Gods/original characters. See previous chapters for more face claims with the Gods:
Gal Gadot as Persephone
Robert Downey Jr as Hades
George Clooney as Zeus
Ernie Hudson as Poseidon
Vincent Irizarry as Deimos
Maggie Smith as Hecate
Ben Affleck as Prince Eli
Thanks for awesome the reviews. Again, please consider leaving feedback. It is very much appreciated and reviews have dropped a bit lately. I love writing this story, but a lot of hard work in my free time goes into getting weekly chapters up, so reviews are really gratifying. :)
Here are individual responses:
Baratta Jennifer: So glad you enjoyed it! Yes, Circe better watch out.
Saberius Prime: Oh yes, this next chapter is explosive in more than one way so buckle up. Glad you are enjoying it! I may bring Elsa and Anna in later, but we're a ways off from that if I do. No decisions on that yet really. Yeah, Elsa could probably be a lot of help if I did.
Grace5231973: Yep, Eli is about to create quite a pickle. I know, I didn't want to kill any innocents, but I needed to up the stakes a bit. And it was a chance to show Hades helping people at his own risk. Which is important for his growth. Yep, Persephone is realizing where her real feelings are. I think so too. I think it would have been so much more interesting to have them working together rather than pitting them against each other. Stuff definitely would have gotten done!
Naomi Blue: Yes, the Swans are extremely evil. Cronus could definitely go two ways. He could use Circe or see her as a threat. It depends on how Circe decides to play her cards so that should be interesting. Yep, Eli is about to do something really stupid. Glad you liked seeing Hades help. His character is growing, while Eli's is regressing. Yep, Persephone's reaction was pretty telling. :)
Theinferno1536: You would think they would. But how they did it might matter later. It might be important later.
Number Ten: Yeah, I knew the explosion might hit a few sensitive emotions, but I needed a real feel and echoing reality is a really good way to invoke those emotions. We very much have a war between reality and fantasy going on in Storybrooke and I find it very interesting to write, especially with the cult stuff since we know how real that can be too. Yep, the reporter was right. People never want to see the good in others. Just the bad. It's sad, but very real. :)
MondlerGellarBing: I disagree about Snow being too quick to call Persephone mom. She found it natural after she learned everything Persephone had done for them. Snow is struggling with what to call Eva. Eva is still Mom, but she is slowly making that transition as she would have really been Aunt Eva. I'm sure James would have been the mischievous of the two and probably will be the hothead here. Though I always see David as the younger of the two.
Beth1980: Glad you liked Persephone's thoughts and feelings. You might get your wish. There might eventually be a confrontation between James and George. Yeah, I know the fandom is largely split on Leopold. Some people don't see it, but there are signs there. The diary for instance is outright abuse. It doesn't seem like it, but it's a huge violation of privacy and he shouldn't have done that to Regina. And as for Snow, his doting upon her was a bit on the creepy order and some saw it as grooming. It was more than him adoring her, because David adores Emma. But he never put her above Snow. Leopold did. He put her above Regina. So he wasn't just this kindly old King that some people see. I just expanded on things we didn't see that could have been possibilities. I'm not sure what Leopold planned to do with Regina if Snow's origins had come to light, but that's definitely something I might explore too. There may be a confrontation for them too. I adored Neal in that chapter too. I loved him stepping into protect a woman that he wants to be his mother-in-law someday. Glad you liked the confrontation between Leopold and Snow. Jefferson never fails to entertain for sure. Yep, there isn't many that Persephone can't handle. Leopold better watch out and you're right, if he had lived and done anything to Snow, Persephone would have stepped in. Glad you liked the Swanfire scene and the Snowing scene. Leave it Leroy to spoil the moment though. As for who Persephone will be with, kicking them both the curb would probably be a deserving thing for them both, but chapter 83 might sway you to one side a bit more and if it doesn't chapter 84 probably will. Yep, the Swans are the worst. Yep, George and Greg are free, which is trouble. Persephone and Hades do act like an old married couple. Very much , I enjoyed Hades tormenting the reporter too. Come to think of it, I don't think I wrote her finding out about it. David probably would tell her, but I will have to work that in. Good catch. :)
Izzypirelli: Yeah, I'm not a Whale fan, but figured not even he wouldn't try to help in a crisis like that. I know, the Swans' presence at this point is rage inducing. Yep, George is free and there probably will be a confrontation. Yeah, being pregnant, Snow knew that she couldn't go help as much as she wanted to. Yep, that was a nice save by Hades. He really is changing and not even I'm sure I foresaw the story going this direction. Honestly, the flirting is so at ease between them and the banter is natural. I'm actually not sure how it even happened. I never planned to redeem Hades and then he just became interesting and I saw more potential in him than Eli. Yep, on top of everything else, Snow and David have a crazy cult that think they're bringing evil into the world. Yep, the reporter is right. People always see the worst. I love cute, flirty Snowing too. Hmm...I could see Snow listing things that Charming is good at, definitely. Yes, Eli is struggling right now and he will eventually build something with Snow, but he is essentially regressing right now whereas Hades is growing. I know, the flirting comes so natural between them. I think that's why I chose to redeem Hades. He's so complex and it kind of just happened, plus his chemistry with Persephone was more interesting to write. Yep, Lethe is key. Glad you like seeing Emma, Neal, and August work together. Hopefully that can heal August a bit too. So glad you love my work! :)
Dreaming Out Loud
Chapter 84: Drown Me With Rain
Eli entered the Inn side at Granny's, which didn't seem suspicious, as he was staying there at the moment. But when he found no one behind the front desk, he cautiously peeked at the scheduling book that was open on the desk. It was lucky for him that Granny still did her bookings like this and not on a computer, for he wouldn't have been able to find what he needed if that were the case. Besides him, Leopold, and Neal Cassidy, there were only two other rooms occupied, one by the Swans, and then another by a man named Derek Jeffries. By process of elimination, he knew this hand to be the man he was looking for. He saw that he was upstairs in room thirteen and with Granny and Ruby both occupied with the start of the dinner rush, he crept up to the room and knocked on the door.
"Open up!" he demanded. Obviously, the reporter didn't feel threatened, even by his demanding tone and answered or perhaps that was more his curious nature as a reporter. He couldn't know that he would regret this action and pay for it dearly.
"Who the hell are you?" Derek questioned, as Eli brushed past him into the room.
"My name is Prince Eli...and we need to talk," he responded. Derek scoffed.
"Prince Eli? Seriously?" he inquired sarcastically.
"I am Snow's father," he stated. The man snorted.
"Of course you are," he deadpanned.
"I don't pretend to know much about this world, but I know I cannot allow you to do anything that will hurt my daughter and son-in-law," he stated.
"I'm a reporter...it's my job to report the truth and that's what I'm going to do when I can find the smoking gun I need that will be undeniable proof that all of this is true. Even then...some won't believe it. Others will flock here to see it for themselves, probably including government officials. But that's not my problem," he said nonchalantly.
"The hell it's not!" Eli snapped hotly.
"You're not going to do this...you're going to give me all the information you have on my family and then you're going to leave this town!" the Prince growled. Derek rolled his eyes.
"Or what?" he challenged. He almost missed the sudden darkening behind Eli's eyes, before he roughly grabbed Derek by the collar of his shirt.
"Or I'm going to make you pay...and if that doesn't scare you, keep in mind that I am the reason that Hades no longer rules the world of the dead. I helped dethrone him and I made him pay for his evil," Eli hissed.
"I endured almost six decades in the river of lost souls and sheer, constant torture. So I paid him back by giving him a taste of his own medicine," he boasted, as he wrapped his hand around the man's neck and began to squeeze.
"I warn you not to test me, Mr. Jeffries…" he added.
"You're...crazy…" he uttered, as he gasped for air.
"Not if you do as I ask," he ordered.
"Fine...just let me go…" the reporter pleaded. Eli finally released him and he gasped for air.
"I'll show you the files on my hard drive and my files online. You can watch me delete them," Derek offered, as he held his hands up in surrender.
"Not good enough...just give me this device or computer or whatever it is and I'll take it to my granddaughter. She'll know what to do with it," he insisted.
"Okay…" the reporter agreed, as he side-eyed the other man, before grabbing his laptop and rushing toward door. But Eli grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back. Derek struggled against the Prince, who was stronger and tried to pull away, as he tried to pry the laptop away from him. His grip on the computer slipped and he stumbled back, before he went crashing to the floor. But not before his head hit the dresser on the way down. Eli breathed heavily, as he stared at the device in his hand and then at the man on the floor, as blood slowly pooled around his head. He backed away and swallowed thickly, as realized what he had done and how it was going to look to his family. A family that he was still on very shaky ground with.
But no one knew he was there and no one had seen him. If he got back before they came out of the courthouse...then maybe this wouldn't be linked to him. After all, this man was threatening to expose the entire town to the outside world. The amount of enemies that could have created for him was insurmountable. Eli put the laptop back on the desk and quietly exited the room, before hurrying down the stairs and away from the Inn. He hoped he could make it back, before they came out of the courthouse.
Mitchell smiled, as he gladly signed the warrant and handed it to David.
"Thank you. We really think this man is a danger to the entire town," Snow stated.
"Oh, I don't disagree. A reporter exposing our town to this world? It's a nightmare on many levels. Though I am a little surprised you bothered with the warrant," he mentioned, shooting a look to David. He shrugged.
"I think Emma is wary and she's already thinking ahead to the worst case scenario. I think she wants to cross all the t's and dot the i's legally in case we suddenly find ourselves...invaded," David explained.
"Then you think it's a serious possibility?" he asked with concern.
"We're hoping not. That's why we need his computer...to stop his story from getting out there," Snow said.
"Yeah...or we might have tour buses driving down Main Street and possibly even the Feds in here," David added and she sighed.
"Charming...we have discussed your lack of tact," she chided and he shrugged.
"Hey...don't I get a little credit for not just breaking into that guy's room without a warrant. That's tact," he argued. She smirked and tried to hold back a giggle.
"No...that's breaking and entering," she argued back. He rolled his eyes.
"Says my bandit wife," he teased.
"Oh, I'll show you bandit later," she promised, as they grinned indulgently at each other.
"You two often forget that you're not alone, don't you?" James questioned in an annoyed tone.
"We should go," Snow winced and Mitchell shook his head in amusement.
"Good luck," he offered, as they left his office.
When they exited the building, they found Eli running back, a little out of breath.
"What's going on?" Snow asked in concern.
"There were a few of those people loitering around here, but I chased them off," Eli replied. Snow gave him a long gaze and then nodded.
"Did you obtain what we need?" he inquired.
"Yes, we have the warrant. Emma just texted me and said they just got there so we'll meet them there," David replied, as he took Snow's hand and they started walking.
"You're going with them?" he asked his daughter.
"Of course," she replied, looking at him strangely.
"I just...I didn't know that was allowed. From what I've read about police work in this land, they usually don't allow that," he mentioned. Robert eyed him suspiciously. He was definitely hiding something, but he kept silent and continued to watch the other man.
"Snow is Mayor and this man threatens our entire town. Of course she's coming with us," David said, like it was obvious. Eli swallowed thickly and followed them. He didn't at all like the idea of his daughter seeing what they would find. He knew she wasn't some fragile little Princess, but she was still his daughter; a daughter he thought should be protected from such things. He didn't want to think about her reaction if she found out he did those things. It had been an accident. He hadn't intended to kill the man. He had hoped to take the device from him and scare him enough to leave town. But things had gone horribly awry in a manner of seconds. And now he was faced with a dilemma. If he came clean now, Snow may believe him about it being an accident. But he knew how she would still look at him. So he really had no choice. He had to hope it was not discovered that he was the one to cause this man's accident and that no one ever found out he was responsible.
Hades and Persephone arrived back at his mansion and found Demeter having tea with Hecate.
"Good...you're here," Persephone said, as she rushed into the sitting room.
"No luck with the potion?" Demeter asked. Persephone shook her head.
"No...but I think I know what ingredient we are missing," she replied, as she looked at Hecate.
"You are aware that you were pulled from river Lethe in the Underworld?" she asked. Hecate nodded.
"That is what they tell me. It's why I cannot remember anything other than what I've been told," she replied.
"I have a theory that water from Lethe is the missing ingredient in the memory potion and since we can't get to the Underworld to get any...I was hoping you could help," Persephone explained. Demeter gasped.
"Of course...oh why didn't I think of this sooner?" she exclaimed.
"I'm not sure I understand…" Hecate stated.
"My daughter needs a strand of your hair and maybe even a small vial of blood. Then we'd be able to extract the residual water from it and add it to the memory potion," Demeter explained.
"If you're willing to help," Persephone added. Hecate smiled kindly and plucked a hair from her head.
"Of course...if this will help your lovely little family, then I'd be happy to," she said, as she gave Persephone the hair. The younger Goddess was about to draw her blood when Zeus came into the room.
"This whole plan is foolish, Persephone. The only way to deal with these mortals that threaten us is to destroy them!" Zeus insisted.
"I am not you...I will not murder and destroy these lost people. Nor will I sink to that level. That may be the way of your tyrannical rule, but it is not mine," she refuted hotly.
"Then you leave me no choice but to take matters into my own hands," Zeus answered.
"What does that mean?" Demeter demanded to know.
"Gather your family and the people of this town aboard Poseidon's ship. We are leaving this realm. We do not belong here and once I am done, there will be nothing left of his town but ash, including Cronus, Circe, and her silly lackeys," he decided.
"You can't do that! This town is my family's home!" Persephone cried.
"I can and I will! I am Zeus and they shall know my wrath. And if your precious family refuses to leave...then they will be among the ash," he growled.
"Don't do this…" Hades pleaded. Zeus scoffed.
"You're one to talk, brother," he goaded.
"Don't stand there and tell me that you don't relish destruction and crave the subjugation of these insipid mortals," Zeus ranted.
"We are Gods! And they have so foolishly been allowed to run a muck. It's time they are humbled," he said.
"I once thought as you, but I was fortunate enough to see the error of my ways and live to tell about it. Becoming a tyrant only brought me death and misery all around me. It also cost me possibly any chance I had at love. Making people fear you yields no happiness. Only suffering," he reasoned. Zeus chuckled.
"My big brother, the philosopher...thank you for the lecture. But there is a reason that I am your supreme ruler. We will do things my way," he insisted.
"Sic semper tyrannis," Hades reminded. Zeus chortled.
"Save your lectures and philosophical Latin," he spat.
"He's right! You are a monster...a tyrant! And Tyrants must be destroyed!" Hecate cried. Zeus turned to her, intending to tell her off, but his eyes widened, as he saw the Olympian crystal in her hand.
"Where...did you get that? I broke that crystal...how do you have it?!" he asked in a panicked tone.
"I repaired it in the Underworld. Lord Cronus told me how evil you were. He said I must repair this crystal to save everyone...from you! And he was right!" she cried. Zeus barely had time to scream, as she used the crystal and blasted him with it. Persephone gasped and Hades instinctively put a hand on her arm and guarded her in preparation in case Hecate turned on them too. They watched in disbelief, as Zeus' body fell to the floor with a thud and his ghostly apparition hovered before them, before he slowly disintegrated into nothing.
"Hecate...what have you done?" Demeter cried.
"It had to be done, my friend. He was evil and Lord Cronus told me the same about him," she said, looking at Hades.
"No...please! He was wrong...Hades has changed. He's saved my family on more than one occasion," she pleaded. Hecate lowered the crystal and relaxed.
"I suppose the real evil is gone now...and Lord Cronus can take his rightful Throne," she stated.
"Hecate...I think Cronus has brainwashed you. He is no better than Zeus!" Demeter cried.
"No...you're wrong. He told me everything. He will rule now and fix everything," she said, as she headed for the door.
"Where are you going?" Hades asked.
"Back to Lord Cronus to tell him that it is done," she replied.
"With the Olympian crystal?" Persephone questioned.
"Of course...it belongs to our Lord," she replied, as she left.
"This is bad…" Demeter said, as she went to the crystal globe to summon the other Gods.
"I think bad is an understatement," Hades quipped.
"What's going on?" Poseidon asked, as he and the others appeared.
"It's Hecate...she used the Olympian crystal. Zeus is dead," Demeter said, still in shock. Gasps or horror rippled through them, as they spied his body.
"Where is she now?" Poseidon questioned.
"She returned to Cronus, with the crystal. He has brainwashed her into believing he should rule and I didn't see it," Demeter lamented.
"Mother...you couldn't have known," Persephone soothed.
"Then we have no choice...we must prepare for war," Poseidon stated gravely. Persephone's eyes widened.
"War?" she questioned.
"Yes...we must destroy Cronus and his supporters, before they destroy us!" he insisted.
"No...we would be walking into a slaughter! He has the Olympian crystal!" Persephone reminded.
"Which is why we cannot allow him to rule. We must take him down and with Zeus gone...it falls to me to lead us," Poseidon stated.
"Your place is ruling the seas and you know it," Demeter argued.
"She's right...but there is one that is fit to rule us," Athena said, as she looked at Persephone.
"Me?" she asked.
"Her?" Poseidon questioned.
"Yes...for too long Zeus ruled with either tyranny or disinterest. We need a strong leader again and there is no one better than Persephone," Athena proposed.
"I agree," Hades stated.
"I'm not sure about ruling. My place is where my family is...not on Olympus," she reminded.
"But while we are here...we do need a leader, especially if we are going to stop Cronus without getting annihilated. And none of us know this world better than you do, except Athena, perhaps," Hades stated.
"He's right...right now, the fight is here. If you choose not to return to Olympus when it is over, then we will cross that bridge when it comes. But for now...you are our leader," Athena stated. Persephone looked around to find mostly solidarity and agreement.
"Then I'll try to live up to your expectations," she said humbly.
"We need to finish that potion," Hades reminded.
"We didn't get the blood we needed," she said.
"Then we'll have to hope the hair is enough," he replied.
"Let's get to the shop then," she said, as they left for Gold's pawn shop.
Emma and Neal arrived at the Inn with August. They found Granny on the diner side and she told them to help themselves to the keys. They did so and her parents soon arrived with the warrant.
"Okay...let's go. We'll toss the whole place, just to be sure he doesn't have a flash drive or something, but hopefully the laptop is all we'll need," she said, as they filed upstairs. Eli followed them last and they didn't notice how profusely he was sweating. Emma used the key and opened the door.
"Damn…" she uttered, as she saw the reporter on the floor.
"Oh Gods…" Snow cried, as she saw the blood covered her mouth. David pulled her back and blocked her vision.
"Looks like someone got to this guy and decided to silence him," James commented.
"Okay...no one touch anything. Dad...can you call Bashful and have him come dust for prints?" Emma asked.
"On it," David said, as he put his arm around Snow and led her out, as he dialed.
"Dust for prints?" Eli asked, attempting to keep the quiver from his voice.
Uh yeah...he'll come dust for fingerprints and any other forensic evidence found. If any hair or fingerprints besides the cleaning person, Granny, and the reporter show up...then we've likely got our killer," Emma said, as she pulled some gloves out of her pocket and put them on.
"Can you work on this with gloves on?" Emma asked. August nodded.
"Sure," he replied, as she tossed him a pair. He put them on and took it downstairs. The lobby would be a quiet place for him to work.
"I better go tell Granny and ask who her cleaning person is so we can rule them out when the prints come back," Neal said, as he hurried downstairs.
"There will probably be quite a suspect pool, don't you think? I mean...this man was going to expose us to the world," Eli mentioned.
"Yeah...except not a lot of people knew that. Basically, it was just the people in this room, plus my parents, Belle, Gold, Hades and Persephone," Emma reminded.
"Of course...Hades. It has to be him," Eli insisted. Emma looked at him with scrutiny.
"Look...I get there is a lot of bad blood between you two, but I honestly don't think he did this," she replied.
"Why? He's evil…" Eli insisted.
"And he has magic. He wouldn't leave a body behind," Emma countered.
"I...I should see if Snow is okay," Eli stammered.
"She's with my Dad so she's fine," Emma countered, as she shared a long gaze with him and he made his way out, passing Bashful as he arrived with his equipment.
"Was he with you the entire time at the courthouse?" Emma asked her grandfather.
"No...he wasn't. He waited outside, claiming he was going to keep watch," Robert offered.
"And he was running back to the courthouse when we came out. He claimed he was chasing off a couple of those crazies," James added. Emma closed her eyes.
"So...you gonna arrest him?" Robert asked.
"We'll wait for the prints to come back. I'm sure they would match his. The problem is that he's not in the system. And I doubt he's going to offer to let me fingerprint him,"
"But you can still arrest him, right? He has no alibi and motive," James stated. She nodded.
"Yeah...and then we interrogate him, which just brings my Mom more pain since the man that fathered her might now be a murderer and the man that raised her is a lecher that wanted to have an intimate relationship with his own adopted daughter," Emma spat bitterly. Robert sighed.
"Then maybe you don't pursue this? I mean...it's not like this reporter's death is completely unwelcome. Let's be honest...maybe you rule this accidental. For all we know...it could be. His blood is on the corner of that dresser. For all we know, he fell," Robert reasoned. Emma saw that and Bashful was taking photos of it.
"That'd be nice...but my gut is telling me that there's more to it and as much as I want to protect my Mom from this...I can't. If Eli did this...even accidentally, we need the truth," Emma reasoned.
"All right...we'll follow your lead. But this straight laced hero thing is exhausting," James commented, which made Emma chortle.
"Trust me...I know, but it's worth it. You'll see," she promised.
"I think we have found the missing ingredient," Persephone said, as they burst into the shop.
"Good...because we are no where," Rumple said in frustration.
"And we have potentially another problem," Hades added.
"What's happened?" Belle asked.
"Zeus is dead," Persephone announced, shocking them both.
"How did that happen? Killing an immortal isn't easy," Gold said.
"The Olympian crystal...Hecate has it and she was clearly brainwashed by Cronus to believe that Zeus was evil and a threat," Persephone replied.
"Which actually isn't that far off really," Hades mentioned.
"And you are saying that because?" Belle asked.
"He was frustrated with our attempt to deal with these outsiders. He ordered us to gather our families and the citizens of Storybrooke and get them aboard Poseidon's ship," Persephone said.
"And then he was going to literally turn the town to ash, including Circe, her followers, and Cronus," Hades added.
"That's...drastic," Belle mentioned.
"It would have technically solved the problem," Gold offered.
"Rumple…" Belle scolded.
"That thought crossed my mind too," Hades admitted.
"Hades…" Persephone snapped.
"But this world is also a fresh start...for all of us. None of us were going to let Zeus take that away," Hades added and she relaxed.
"But Cronus has the Olympian crystal, which means that none of that matters," Gold hissed.
"He can easily rule supremely," he added.
"Yes...which means it's time to gather everyone and discuss what we're facing. And our options," Hades mentioned, as he looked at Persephone. She nodded in agreement.
"Let's see if we can finish this potion and then we'll call a meeting at the loft," she decided, as she added Hecate's hair to the potion. There was a puff of smoke and the potion turned from yellow to a pure blue. Persephone smiled and hugged Hades, who hugged her back, as they stared at each other awkwardly.
"Your idea worked," he offered. She smiled and pulled back.
"Now we just need a replication spell," she said. Rumple waved his hand and the potion was multiplied into several vials, all secured onto a vial holder.
"That should be enough," he said.
"Snow and the others are probably still at the Inn. Let's go," she said, as the four of them left the shop.
David led his wife outside to get some air and she breathed deeply.
"Are you okay?" he asked. She nodded.
"I thought I was going to lose my lunch for a minute, but it's passing," she replied, as he cuddled her close to his side.
"I still think we should get you and our little one checked out," he reminded. She smiled.
"I'm fine...I promise. You know that just about anything can make me sick in my condition," she reasoned and he nodded.
"Who do you think did this?" she asked.
"I'm not sure...not that many people knew about him yet," he replied, as he kissed her forehead.
"But we're going to figure this out and I'm sure August can get into his laptop," David assured, as Eli can rushing out and it was then that they noticed how nervous he was and that he was sweating profusely.
"What's going on?" Persephone asked, as she and Hades arrived.
"That reporter...we got the warrant, but we found him dead when we went into his room," David answered.
"Murdered?" Hades asked.
"We don't know for sure yet, but it looks like the cause of death is blunt force trauma. Judging by the blood on the corner of the dresser, he hit it on the way down. If I had to guess...I'd say he was pushed, but it's possible that it was accidental," Emma said, as she looked at Eli.
"You're the only one that was there at the confrontation with the reporter that doesn't have an alibi," Emma stated.
"Wait...I thought you were with our daughter," Persephone interjected, as she looked at Snow and David.
"He opted to stay outside in case any of those people showed up," Snow said and then looked at him.
"You said that you left to chase off some of those people that were loitering around," she continued.
"Persephone…" he started to say.
"Eli...what happened?" she demanded to know.
"I was trying to protect our daughter! That's what happened!" he snapped.
"Oh and I'm not?" she snapped back. He snorted.
"You're off with Hades trying to make some potion and I guess I was just trying to be a little more proactive!" he cried.
"Did...did you kill him?" Snow asked.
"It wasn't like that!" he said hotly, making her shrink away. One stern look from David warned him to check his temper.
"I went to talk to him and I tried to get him to agree to leave after he handed over all the information he has about this town, but he refused," Eli replied.
"Of course he did...he's a reporter. I put images of hell fire and damnation in his head and that still didn't deter him. Did you really think you could do better?" Hades spat, as the two got in each other's faces.
"Better than you? As a matter of fact...I did. I am better than you, yet my family looks at me like I am the villain here and it's because of you!" Eli growled. Hades smirked.
"Oh no...you're doing all of this to yourself," he goaded.
"Stop it now...both of you!" Persephone demanded, as Hades backed away first at her request.
"Look...he wasn't going to listen so I tried to grab the laptop from him. We struggled for it and it slipped from his hands," he explained, his eyes pleaded with Persephone.
"I didn't push him. He fell and hit his head on the way down. It was an accident," he told Emma and she detected that he was actually telling the truth.
"I believe you...but you shouldn't have been there in the first place," she said sternly.
"I know...I made a mistake. Snow please...please tell me that you believe me," he begged. She nodded.
"I do, but your temper scares me. If he hadn't fallen or given you the laptop...would you have hurt him?" she asked.
"Of course not...I was just hoping to scare him enough to give us the information and leave. But he won't be missed and there isn't anything that I wouldn't do for you and your mother," he replied.
"Besides...you have to admit that his death takes care of the problem," Eli added.
"Maybe not…" August interjected, as he came outside with the laptop.
"There's something you all need to see," he added, as they all followed him back into the diner.