AN: See chapter 1 for story notes and summaries.
Ships: Snowing, Rumbelle, Swan Believer, Swanfire, Daddy Charming, Mama Snow, HadesxPersephone, Mama Persephone, and a delightful Golden Mad Charming BroT3. :)
Please consider leaving a review. Feedback is much appreciated and vital. Reviews have dropped a bit, but any feedback you can give is much appreciated.
Also, feel free to follow me on Tumblr lilacmoon83.
Special note:
Here are the main face claims that we're dealing with right now. For other minor Gods/Goddesses/characters, see previous chapters:
Gal Gadot as Persephone
Robert Downey Jr. as Hades
Ben Affleck as Prince Eli
Rami Malek as Apollo
Drew Barrymore as former Queen Serafina
Note: Three years have now passed since the previous chapter's events.
Thanks for awesome the reviews. Again, please consider leaving feedback. 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. Unless you're a troll. Troll comments will be deleted.
Here are individual responses:
Saberius Prime: Yep, there will be a version of Rapunzel that's a bit closer to the Tangled version. I can promise she'll feature a lot, but there is definitely mentions.
Grace5231973: I know, there are so many villains lurking here. Emma and Neal do make a great team. Glad you're enjoying. :)
Guest: Yep, Mushu has gone dark. The Dragon was always a shifty character at best. Gothel is very dangerous and Ravenna will probably bring about her own demise. :)
Number Ten: Yeah, the tower would be a good place for Circe. Yes, they are. The sinister six is a good name. Mushu has gone dark and Ravenna is about ready to make a devastating strike. Yeah, the poison was a powerful thing and I'm not sure why she used it on Killian either. I think so too. Gothel probably would have been a better villain with the whole original cast.
Dylan lobos: I'm glad you're enjoying it. I'm not sure Violet Believer will be included. If it is, it will just be mentions and puppy love. I ship Glass Believer as endgame. Hope you continue to enjoy.
Beth1980: Oh, I'm so sorry for your loss. Losing a pet is the worst. I lost my cat Misty to cancer almost two years ago. I was a mess and I'd be a mess too if I lost my other fur babies. Yep, Regina and James got married, so she's the legitimate Queen of his Kingdom. Serafina attends meetings from time to time, but much prefers the company of grandbabies. Yep, James considers himself the older brother, glad I could give you a laugh. I love Cruella as comic relief too. Yeah, Greg and Landon are pretty dumb. Things are coming to a head with Ravenna. She's about to be dealt with in what I think will be a shocking way. The others will follow. Leopold is still around, but on the back burner for now. Yeah, Killian probably just got really lucky in tricking Gothel and knew Storybrooke would be safest. Yep, Gothel might not be able to be as secretive as she thinks. He is very annoyed and will soon be dealt with as well. I thought giving Killian and Alice the loft was appropriate. Yeah, Mushu's motivations are understandable so that's why I made the decision to have him waver back to the dark side. And you're right, I doubt it will lead to happiness. Rumple and Hades are aware of Arthur's deception. They have let him keep his Throne, because he hasn't made a grab for power. But now that he has, the status quo has changed, so they'll be exposing him. Yeah, Gothel is mostly using Ravenna and could care less what happens to her. Emma and Neal are still just engaged. Emma goes by Nolan and probably managed to change it. They just call her Emma Swan, because that was legally her name for a long time. Yes, the dreamscape still exists and they go there, even though we haven't seen it for a while. It will eventually appear again. Glad you're still enjoying. :)
Dreaming Out Loud
Chapter 118:Poison & Wine
"What is taking him so long?" Ravenna complained impatiently, as she paced the garden.
"Patience...finding a person to trap in the tower is actually harder than it sounds," Gothel admonished. The Queen huffed.
"Have you thought about how you're going to administer the poison to your step-daughter yet? Because that will not be easy either," Gothel warned.
"No...the little retch is always surrounded by family and she'd never agree to be alone with me. It will have to be by surprise and the only time we're ever in the same room together is the weekly meetings," she mused, as she bit her bottom lip.
"But if I can get close enough by doing something to make her irate...I can thrust the vial toward her heart, assuming she doesn't have to drink it?" Ravenna questioned.
"No...if you break the vial, it takes an ethereal form and will infect whatever you aim it at," Gothel told her. Ravenna smirked.
"Excellent...then I think I know exactly how I will do this and then the Chernabog will help me make a quick escape," she replied, as they saw the beast flying over head. He had returned and there was an unconscious girl in his talons.
"You went for a Princess, I see?" Gothel stated, as he dumped the blonde youth at their feet and transformed back into his human form.
"She wandered away from her palace and into the woods. She made herself an easy target," he responded.
"Do you know this Princess?" Ravenna asked.
"I know of her. This magical forest is divided into three territories. There is the southern marsh region, ruled by Queen Eudora and her daughter Tiana. Then there is the central plains region, which is ruled by King Wesley and his son Prince Gregor. Both are benevolent rulers, but will be easily overthrown when the time comes. Then there is the northern region, Corona, which is ruled by King Frederic and Queen Arianna," she explained, as she looked down at the girl.
"And this is their daughter, Princess Rapunzel. This seems like fate," Gothel mused.
"What do you mean?" Frollo questioned.
"Years ago...I almost stole this very newborn Princess to put in the tower so I could come and go as I pleased while I cultivated by potion and ultimate plan. But then I realized that the only way I would eventually have the power I need was to have a child of my own," she answered.
"You have a child?" Ravenna asked. Gothel smirked.
"I did...but don't worry, I lack the humanity to care about her like most parents. She will only be useful to me when she is grown," Gothel replied, as she poofed the unconscious Princess into the tower.
"We should be going now. I'm eager to leave this place for greener pastures," Gothel said, as they followed.
Flashback
New York
Nearly 32 Years Ago
Kenneth Grimm arrived at the library that afternoon. His family had owned this library since its inception, but it was no ordinary library. Housed within these walls was a room that was off limits to ordinary patrons. It was the room where he housed all the books of story that his family had been long guarded with protecting. His ancestors, two brothers of the same last name, had been the original authors to pen stories based upon the fantastical things they had witnessed; such stories that were thought only to be fairy tales and myths now. His ancestors had taken a lot of creative liberties in those stories and over the years, many other authors had created their own versions. But within the last century, Kenneth's grandfather, Alistair Grimm had decided that they needed a real account of all those stories as they had actually happened and were still happening. These stories would not be for mass production or consumer consumption. These accounts were to be historical with no author manipulation. It was an undertaking that he needed help with though, so he had traveled to one of the few supernatural meccas in this land without magic.
There were a few places where this world could converge with the realms of story and magic. Upon arriving, his grandfather met with the Sorcerer's Apprentice and presented his idea. The Apprentice agreed that the idea had a lot of merit and agreed to commissioning the books of historical story, but with the stipulation that he was allowed to appoint the authors and that they might not always be of the Grimm bloodline. Reluctantly, Alistair agreed to that and while his son went on to be an author, Kenneth's father's life was cut short due to cancer. Since Kenneth had not been ready at the time to take the enchanted pen, the Sorcerer's Apprentice appointed a man named Isaac Heller as the next author and he went on to record some of the Enchanted Forest's greatest stories, like the real account behind the story of Persephone and Hades, the real story of Snow White and Prince Charming, as well as the real story of many other well known fairy tale entities.
But as with any author, the temptation to leave his own mark and manipulate events proved too great for Isaac. He grew jealous of heroes like Prince Charming and Snow White for all the glory they received. He planned to sully their heroics by manipulating them into doing something terrible by using fear through their unborn child. But fortunately, before he could complete his deception by giving Snow White a very unpleasant vision about her unborn daughter, he had stepped in and stopped him by taking the pen. And since he had broken the rules of the author, Isaac was cast out of their order and Kenneth was awarded the authorship in time to save everything. As a result, Snow White and her husband remained on a path of good and did not commit an atrocity against Maleficent.
Unexpectedly though, as he sat down to record that day's events, something unprecedented was happening. Something that had never happened and something that would change everything.
"I don't believe it…" he uttered, as he watched the pen record events as they unfolded. There had been occasional crossovers between this world and those beyond, but they had always been minor occurrences. But this...this was something that had never happened.
"She did it…" he uttered.
"Did what daddy?" little Annie Grimm asked.
"The Evil Queen...she cast her curse and has brought everyone to this land," he told her. Though she was only eight, his daughter was forever enthralled by the stories and already had aspirations of becoming the author someday.
"Is that bad?" she asked.
"It definitely changes everything. There are people in this world that know about them like us. But they want to destroy the magic," he replied.
"You mean the Order of the Jackal?" she asked.
"That is their ancient name, though these days, they have been going by the Home Office, led by none other than the disgraced sorceress, Circe," he answered.
"What will you do, daddy?" Annie asked.
"I cannot interfere...I would be no better than Isaac if I did. I will record these cursed years until the Savior breaks the curse in the twenty-eight years. And by then, you'll be the author and pick up where I leave off. I daresay your tenure as author will be very interesting," he told her.
Present Day
New York
Annie sighed and closed the book. She didn't like this development at all. She was very fond of Snow White and her family. She had grown quite attached to these characters and Ravenna's plot weighed heavily on her. But she would never violate the Order of Grimm's rules and could only hope that once again, Snow White and her family could overcome evil as they had always managed to.
"Annie…" she heard a voice and looked up to see her brother Adrian there. He was younger than her and an aspiring author himself.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Circe's father...he's gathering a meeting of his daughter's order now. Something tells me this is big," he replied.
"It doesn't matter...you know we can't interfere," she reminded.
"Father said that in the most dire of circumstances that we could use the pen to access Storybrooke," he reminded.
"Adrian...I don't know…" she lamented.
"Don't you think this is dire circumstances? You know that the Dragon plans to do," he reminded. She sighed.
"Most people in this land wouldn't believe in magic even if it was being shown to them right in front of their faces," she admonished.
"But there is plenty that would and then the process of storytelling would be irrevocably ruined for all time. Storybrooke would become like a living zoo for people to parade through for their own amusement," he warned.
"That's only if the Dragon really succeeded in controlling all the magic," she countered.
"Can we really take the chance that he might? This is what our family does, Annie. We're Grimm's and we have to protect the secrets of the story realms beyond this one. We need to keep the Land Without Magic from meeting the United Realms of magic and story," implored. She sighed, knowing he was right.
"Let's pack and then get on the road. If we drive all night, we can be there by morning," she said. He nodded, as they hurried off to pack their things.
The day had started out routinely for them both, but they quickly received word of growing turmoil in the Southern Isles. It appeared that the resistance that had been building had finally reached a boiling point and they were threatening war on the palace. Ravenna was strangely no where to be found and neither was the Chernabog, which might have been the reason the resistance against her had chosen this time.
Her brothers had requested aide from neighboring Kingdoms and Midas had responded militarily. Snow and David didn't like that at all. They didn't want Midas' army to incite a war and create a bloodbath. So they had left the palace through one of Hades' insta-portals and were now approaching the castle of the Southern Isles. It was her, David, Lancelot, Grumpy, and a few other soldiers.
The people of this Kingdom were rioting outside the castle walls and the sound of it was like a whirring in their ears. Lancelot and his top soldiers were wearing traditional chain mail, ready to go to battle if needed. Snow and David donned traditional royal attire for matters of diplomacy. She wore a whitish gold gown and he wore his formal red coat and black leather pants with boots. As they arrived at the castle gates, Snow put her hands up and the riot quieted briefly.
"We're here in hopes to find a peaceful resolution to this situation," she declared.
"There is no peaceful resolution!" a man said, as he stepped forward.
"Either remove that corrupt woman from her Throne or we will do it and there will be nothing peaceful about it," he growled. David put his hand up.
"Ravenna will be removed. She has failed to serve her people adequately and Persephone has already declared that she is no longer fit for her Throne. But we ask that you allow us to handle this," David implored.
"If you don't...we will," the man promised, as they portaled inside the castle and were met with Hans and three of his elder brothers, Nikolai, Emil, and Johan.
"Where is Ravenna?" David demanded to know. The four brothers exchanged glances.
"She's not here," Hans spoke first.
"Then she's running?" Lancelot inquired.
"We don't think so. She's left the Kingdom, but for what purpose, we do not know," Nikolai reported.
"If she left the Kingdom, it would have been aboard a royal liner and the journey would have been recorded," Snow said.
"Yes...but we discovered after she was gone that she chose to board a commercial cruiser," Emil offered.
"So she can hide where she's going and what she might be doing," David deduced. Snow sighed.
"You're aware that your people are ready to overthrow your entire family, are you not?" Snow questioned. They nodded.
"None of us agree with what Ravenna is doing. She's obsessed…" Johan revealed.
"Obsessed with what?" David questioned. Nikolai shifted uncomfortably.
"With killing you, Your Majesty," he informed, looking at Snow. David clenched his fist.
"What about Dalben? He's the oldest after Arawn. He can ascend the Throne rightfully if he's freed," David said.
"If we could have done that, we would have already...but Dalben is dead. We found him hanging in his cell this morning," Emil said.
"Do you really believe he committed suicide?" Lancelot questioned.
"No...we do not," Johan responded.
"Who is next in line?" Snow inquired.
"That would be me, Your Majesty," Nikolai stated.
"You must understand that we haven't been impressed by your family's conduct. First Hans tried to Kill Queen Elsa and Princess Anna to overtake Arendelle. And then Arawn killed thousands in his conquest to rule all the Kingdoms," Snow reminded.
"We know that our track record is not good, but Hans will mind his place, Arawn is imprisoned and I assume that we can count on your help to place Ravenna under arrest as well?" Emil asked. David nodded.
"Yes...but you have to be ready to step up and lead. Your people are at their wits end. They won't tolerate another corrupt ruler," David warned.
"And I would very much like to follow the example that I have seen set by rulers such as yourselves," Nikolai claimed.
"We are united in this opinion," Johan added.
"We do not want to see our people suffer any longer," Emil continued.
"Then we'll be calling an emergency meeting of the Kingdoms immediately to install you as King and issue an official arrest warrant for Queen Ravenna and Claude Frollo. In the meantime, the rest of you must quell your people and assure them that justice is in the process of being one," Snow declared.
"To help them believe your words, we'll immediately dispatch relief aide. Your people will have food, water, and other comforts within hours," David added. The brothers looked relieved.
"Thank you, Your Majesties. We will not spit on this chance and strive to repair our sullied reputation," Nikolai stated, already sounding like a King.
"See that you don't...because this will be your final chance," Snow declared, as they used another insta-portal to return to their palace, with Nikolai following to claim his new Throne during the actions that were about to take place.
Emma looked at Percival through the glass, as he sat in the interrogation room.
"He looks nervous," Neal commented.
"Yeah...which seems odd for a Knight of the Roundtable. I mean, these guys are supposed to be legendary pillars of good," Emma observed.
"Yeah...but if you're doing something you're not supposed to be doing, even the coolest heads can sweat," he replied, as she looked at the vial of glittering red substance.
"Any luck with that annoying witch?" she asked.
"No...she just seems smug and keeps speaking in riddles. She definitely knows what's going on and if my gut is right, she could probably blow this guy out of the water on whatever he's hiding," he replied.
"But getting her talk will be damn near impossible," Emma said.
"Maybe for us...but I made a call," Neal replied. She smirked.
"You know my step-grandpa isn't all that scary anymore, right?" she teased.
"Emma...that hurts, you know," Hades quipped, as he appeared through one of his insta-portals. She smirked.
"Okay...so you can still be scary. Just not to us," she amended.
"Thank you. I may not be the God of the Underworld anymore, but I can still have your grandmother inform Prometheus when there is a particular soul that deserves harsh judgment," he reminded, as he looked through the window.
"You arrested Sir Percival?" he asked, his voice having an impressed note.
"Yep and the witch of Dunbroch," Emma replied.
"That's even more impressive, but she's irritating. I hope you don't want me to talk to her," Hades said. Emma winced.
"She's not talking so a threat from you might help loosen her tongue," she replied.
"But first...this is what he was trying to get from her. That and this," Emma said, as she showed him the vial and the helm.
"The helm of King Fergus…" Hades said knowingly and then he focused on the vial.
"Yeah...we got that out of them about the helm, but not why it's important. But neither of them will say a peep about this vial," Emma replied.
"The helm is enchanted. It ensures the wearer will be victorious in any battle," Hades told them.
"And if Percival wanted it…" Neal started to say.
"Then it means Arthur wants it," Hades finished.
"So...he wants to wear this to win a battle?" Neal questioned.
"I guess that makes sense in a way," Emma mentioned.
"Except it doesn't really," Neal replied, as he looked at Hades.
"Why does Arthur need this helm when he has Excalibur. It's an unbeatable weapon," he said.
"I'm afraid it's not what it seems," Rumple interjected, as he and Belle arrived.
"What do you mean?" Emma asked.
"It's something that best rather shown, but walking into Camelot to confront Arthur is risky, even for me," Hades replied.
"We won't have to. Snow has called an emergency council meeting," Rumple stated.
"Why?" Emma asked.
"Your parents just narrowly stopped a war in the Southern Isles. The people are ready to revolt there. They are sending relief aide to that Kingdom as we speak as a gesture of peace and goodwill. At the meeting, they are going to officially install Prince Nikolai as the new King and issue an official arrest warrant for Ravenna, who is M.I.A, currently," Rumple explained.
"Wow...we better lock these two up and go there," Emma said.
"And while we're at it...we'll confront Arthur. It's time to expose his deception," Hades replied.
"Deception?" Neal questioned in disbelief.
"I'm afraid so. We allowed him to remain on his Throne as long as the people were well taken care of and the status quo didn't change. As long as he didn't make any grab for power, we wouldn't move against him," Hades told them.
"The helm I get, but what kind of power is in this vial?" Emma questioned.
"That is the last of the sands of Avalon. We'll explain more once we confront him," Rumple said, as they locked up Percival and the witch, before using an insta-portal to travel to Snow and David's castle.
Ravenna stepped off the ship and onto the dock, as they returned to the Southern Isles.
"Where the hell have you been?!" Hans exclaimed, as he, Emil, and Johan were waiting for her.
"None of your business…" she refuted, as she and Frollo pushed past them. Gothel remained hidden, for it was far from time for her plan to come to fruition. But she would watch the current turmoil with great interest from the shadows.
"The people almost revolted! King David and Queen Snow had to come and appease them," Hans reported.
"You let them into our castle?" she growled.
"We had no choice. They came to keep the peace and there is more you must know," Emil stated. She huffed.
"I have more important things to do," she responded.
"You are being dethroned as we speak," Johan informed.
"What?!" she growled.
"Queen Snow has called an emergency council meeting. A warrant is being issued for your arrest and Nikolai is taking over," Hans said. She seethed. That was the last straw and she was now going to make her insipid step-daughter pay for all her treachery.
"Is that so? Well...we'll see about that," Ravenna growled, as she took out the Promethean flame.
"Take me to Misthaven now…" she ordered, as he took to his monster form and she rode upon his back to the Kingdom of Queen Snow and King David. She clutched the vial of deadly poison inside her dress pocket. By the time dusk fell that night, Snow White would take her final breath...if it was the last thing she did...
They had been driving for hours, all through the night and his sister had drifted off in the passenger seat, but she was jarred awake when she felt the car lurch and accelerate roughly. She opened her eyes and looked at her brother, who had a white knuckle grip on the steering wheel.
"We're being followed…" Adrian said nervously.
"Adrian...we can't lead them into Storybrooke," she reminded.
"I know Annie! Hang on...I'm going to go off road and lose them," he said, as he took their jeep off into the ditch and started weaving through the trees. It was a very rough ride and they screamed, as another off road vehicle suddenly intercepted them. Adrian swerved and they hit a tree. Fortunately, they were both belted in and their injuries were minor. But that wouldn't matter. Several operatives exited the vehicles and approached with their highly specialized plasma ray guns. They put their hands up in surrender, as they were pulled out of the vehicle. They watched as the smug Mushu, also known as the Dragon, approached them.
"Hello author…" he greeted.
"There is no way in hell that I'm leading you and these psychos into Storybrooke," she refuted.
"That is unfortunate…" Mushu stated, as they grabbed her brother and pressed the barrel of one of the guns to his temple.
"If you refuse us...then he dies," the Dragon warned.
"Annie...don't," he pleaded.
"Adrian…" she said, as tears filled her eyes.
"You can't let them in...it will destroy everything," he warned.
"I can't let you die…" she said, as she relented.
"I'll do it...just don't kill my brother," she pleaded. Mushu smirked.
"A wise choice," he said, as they were led back to the road and put in one of the vans, as Mushu got in the front seat.
"Why are you doing this? You're from there...you're betraying everyone. The damages of these actions could have catastrophic consequences!" Adrian warned.
"These people mean nothing to me. They have taken my daughter away and all to hide their existence from this world. A world they do not even belong in. As the author, you know the dangers of their entrance into this world, yet your father did nothing," Mushu accused.
"My father took the vow of the author to not interfere very seriously, as do I. We had an author that once planned to manipulate the story to leave his mark and it would have had devastating consequences. And this will too," she implored.
"Oh...I'm counting on it," the Dragon answered, as the van pulled back onto the road the line of vehicles followed, as they drove along the winding roads of rural Maine. With the author in their presence, Storybrooke would appear to them when they reached it and allow them passage...