Author's Notes: You will notice in this chapter that dialogue I used from The Crocodile and The Doctor episodes seems to in the wrong order. I've moved things around to work better with the new scenes I've added in.

The Enchanted Forest

Seven days prior to the Double Eclipse

Twenty-three days prior to the Final Eclipse

The safe haven that was now Aurora and Mulan's home was little more than a refugee camp but it was all they and anyone else had once Regina's curse ripped through the land but Emma and Snow learned quickly that it faced even greater threats, the Ogres had returned and so had Cora. Stuck in what seemed to be the medieval period, Emma was out of her element. Sure, she'd been able to slay a dragon with her father's sword but dodging Ogres and a witch posing as one of her mother's old friends was beyond her talents as she was quick to find out. This was her mother's domain and this Snow White was no damsel in distress laying around waiting for her prince to come. She'd picked off an Ogre with a shot to the eye with an arrow and defended herself nurmous times against an angry Aurora and Mulan's attacks. The pair still blamed them for Phillip's death yet they still travelled with them and now Snow was convinced their only route home was back at her castle.

"Will you take me with you?" Aurora pleaded.

"Aurora..." Mulan protested.

"I have to find Rose, Mulan. She needs to know."

"Rose?" Emma inquired.

"Our daughter." Aurora sniffled. "She would be ten years older than you if she has aged in the land you came from. If not...she will still be a child."

"I'm a schoolteacher in the new land but I don't remember having a student named Rose," Snow said. "But she may have a cursed name similar to her real one. Aurora, I am so sorry. I no idea you had a child."

"It was agreed that I would send her to the new land for her protection. She would have been raised by Sir Jasper who would've returned to his human form in the new land. Back in ours he was a cricket because his twin was also one."

"Of course! Now I remember. Jasper was Archie's twin!" Snow exclaimed.

"Whoa...wait a minute...Archie has a twin?" Emma asked.

"Yes. Archie and Jasper would carry messages back and forth between our kingdoms," Snow said. "We were hoping to unite them one day either by marriage or a treaty."

In the distance Snow could see the remains of the palace, her heart aching. Oh, she'd had so many fond memories there...and some painful ones. She could hear herself sobbing in agony over her husband's unconscious form in Emma's nursey and Regina's evil laughter as the curse clouds swept them away. They entered the palace and made their way to the east wing and Emma's nursery.

"Oh my god… I recognize this from Henry's book."

"Come – we'll stand watch at the gate." Mulan said to Aurora. She nodded and followed her outside.

"I never thought I'd see this place again. This room… It was your nursery."

"I lived here?"

"You never even got to spend a night. This is the life I wanted you to have. I was going to teach you how to walk in here. How to talk, how to dress for your first ball… You never got to do any of it. We never got to be a family."

"We have a family – in Storybrooke. And, right now, they need us to get back there. So, how do we get this to work? Where's the 'on' switch?

"It's more complicated than that. We'll have to get it back to the island. Hopefully, someone there has access to enough magic to make it work again."

"How are we going to carry this thing?"

"With the help of an old friend," they heard Snow's friend Lancelot say.

"Lancelot. What are you doing here?"

"We heard about the ogre attack, and I had to make sure you were alright."

"Where are Mulan and Aurora?" Snow asked.

"I sent them to find food. Tonight we'll make camp and then, in the morning, we'll head back. So, this is it – the portal you were after."

"The same one Emma went through. That's how she skipped the curse."

"Remarkable…"

"Geppetto carved it from an enchanted tree, but there's no magic left.

"Well, a portal this powerful… There must be another way to recharge it."

"Why are you so interested in the wardrobe?"

"Well, I just want you to get home to your husband… And son. Henry. They must miss you."

Snow drew her sword and pointed it at the man. Lancelot didn't know Henry's name but Cora certainly did and glamoring herself to look like others was one of her oldest tricks.

"Stay away from him, Emma. He is not who he says he is.

"What are you talking about? Who the hell is he?"

"There's only one person you told Henry's name."

"Cora."

"Clever girl," Cora said sweetly, reverting to her true form

"Where's Lancelot?"

"He's dead. I killed him a long time ago."

"And you've been posing as him ever since?

"Well, they'd never listen to me. And besides… Every kingdom needs a hero, don't you think?

"Just not one in you!" Snow growled and lunged toward Cora. Cora gestured and threw the former princess against the wall and pinned her there with her magic and blasted back Emma as she rushed to her mother's defense.

"Thank you, Snow. I've been looking for a way over for so long. I never thought the person to help me find it would be you." She wrapped a rug around Emma's legs

"Why? Why are you doing this?" Snow panted.

"I want to see my daughter. It's been too long. And you know, I would love to meet my grandson, Henry."

"No, you won't," Emma said fiercely,

Emma took out one of her bullets and grabbed a piece of wood and threw it at the wardrobe when it began to spark, the wardrobe bursting into flames.

"No!" Cora cried and pulled the fire away from the wardrobe and transformed it into a fireball that she threw at Emma only to be blocked by Mulan's sword.

"Mulan!"

"We're not done." Cora said angrily and teleported out. There were other methods. She would simply bide her time.

"Are you okay?" Emma asked her mother.

"You saved me."

"Yeah, well… Where is she?"

"Gone."

"So's our ride home."

"Lancelot was one of the most noble knights I ever knew," Snow said sadly.

"How could I be so blind? How could I not see that it was Cora?" Mulan lamented.

"Let's be fair – the whole shape shifting thing threw me, too." Emma muttered.

"What are we going to tell the people on the island?"

"The truth. That Lancelot was cut down by a terrible villain. He died an honorable death," Snow advised.

"Cora's still out there. We need to find her. We need to defend what's left of the kingdom."

"Who's going to lead us? You?" Aurora asked.

"No. Her."

"I'm honored. But Emma and I still have to find a way back to Storybrooke."

"We'll help you. We'll find a way, won't we?"

"Yes. I need to find my Rose...and channel my anger."

"I'm, uh, sorry I torched our ride home. I couldn't let her get to Henry. I just..." Emma stammered.

"You had to put Henry first, Emma."

"I was angry at you for so long… Wondering how you could choose to let me grow up without you. But then I just… Seeing all this… You gave up everything for me. And you're still doing that. I'm sorry, I'm not good at this. I… I guess I just… I'm not… I'm not used to someone putting me first."

"Well, get used to it. I'm your mother and it's my job, just as it's your job to put Henry first."

Snow took one last long look at the castle that had once been her home, wishing that she could've given Emma the kind of life she had but it was not meant to be. Once they were out of sight Cora teleported in from her hiding place and swept some of the ashes from the wardrobe into a vial. The waters of Lake Nostos would restore its magic and she would finally be reunited with her daughter.

Storybrooke

Seven days prior to the Double Eclipse

Twenty-three days prior to the Final Eclipse

They were in the fields of the abandoned Old MacDonald's farm, Archie dressed in his green satin robes while Rumple wore robes of black with the image of a spinning wheel in flames embroidered on the back in gold threads and Belle wore robes of blue with image of a chipped cup on the back of hers.

"A bondmate is both protector and lover of their chosen Guardian if that is the will of the OZ so he or she must learn to fight both with magic and without. You are bound to Rumplestiltskin and your duty is protect and love him until your last breath," Archie explained to Belle. "I will be teaching your non magical fighting skills but we'll both will teach you how to defend yourself against magical attacks."

"Most mages you face will only use magical attacks, sweetheart. Not very good at any others," Rumple quipped. "But Archie is capable of using both so you need to be prepared to fight both in battle."

Rumple conjured a sword and approached Archie. They faced each other and kneeled, thrusting the tips of their swords into the ground.

"It's like you're...samurais…" Belle murmured.

"The fighting skills we're taught are similar to those of Japanese samurais Belle," Archie confirmed, rising to his feet and holding out his sword.

The young librarian watched in fascination as they sparred on the field though Archie was the more skilled of the two forcing Rumple to teleport several times as a defense until he tired. He kneeled on the grass, Archie pointing the tip of his sword against his shoulder.

A katana sword appeared in Belle's hands, a chipped cup engraved into it.

"Rumple, you rest a bit while I work with Belle," Archie advised.

"Dinna go easy on her."

"I have no intentions of it. We're running out of time."

Archie was surprised that his new apprentice had some familiarity with sword fighting.

"I once traveled with a woman named Mulan. She taught me some of her fighting skills," Belle confessed.

"She taught you well," Archie praised as she sparred with the him, Belle blocking several of his most difficult blows. "This part of your training is going to be easier than I thought."

Belle was pleased to be doing more than just sitting at home worrying about Rumple, recalling the promise she'd made years ago that she would never stop fighting for him. Now she had the chance to fulfill that promise. She would help him free himself from his curse...or die trying.

"Now you need to rest and we'll talk more about your magic training. Very good, sweetheart, very good!" Rumple embraced her.

"I'm hungry too," she laughed. "Could we have hamburgers again?"

"Why don't we get some at Granny's?" Archie suggested. Rumple frowned at him. "Oh, they're not as bad as you think Rumple!"

"Aye, they're worse. All that grease! How can YOU stand it? I'd get gallstones for certain."

"You only live once Rumplestiltskin and I like to indulge myself sometimes. Eating at Granny's listening to Michael Bolton, and my environmental work are my vices in this land."

"Oh, so you're the one who hangs up all those fliers every time Regina and I have a new building project going in the woods?"

"Yes. You're destroying forest land and driving the animals out of their homes. We don't need more shops."

"But we will need housing if the prophecy comes to pass," Rumple argued.

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that."

"I'd like to try a Granny's hamburger Rumple."

"But that would mean we'd have to go into town. Sweetheart, I'd rather not risk Regina finding you."

"I'm not afraid of her. And I do want to get to know people and let them get to know me if I'm going to be a part of this community."

"And your...father?"

"I'll deal with him if I see him."

Rumple waved his hand and they were dressed in their street clothes. "Then we'll go to town. But when we return I will start teaching you the basics of casting wards and protection spells. I know the will of the OZ but I dinna trust Regina until she earns the right to be the Heart of the East."

"There's something else I would advise you to teach her Rumple. She needs to know how to tell when Alemedia is in control and when she's not. Bastinda usually took control of Dellia when she was depressed or felt strong anger."

"Aye and the Dark One does the same. Belle being back in my life has silenced her for the most part but she's still there as I'm certain she is with our cousin now that she no longer has you there to anchor her. Have you been able to mindspeak with her since the curse has been broken?"

"Yes. She wanted me to concentrate on getting this situation with the Home Office settled first but David's no longer convinced it was them responsible for all those murder. They think it was Beth's ex-husband, Jamie McDermott."

"The actor?" Belle asked. "I've heard of him. A few of the nurses at the hospital liked him but he liked to take his clothes off more than anything. I didn't even know he had a wife."

"Oh he did. Beth was married to him before she was reunited with David and since Beth was under the sleeping curse...she didn't really know what he was up to most of the time. He was a drug addict, a sex addict and abusive to Beth. And Jamie was seen with both of the victims before they died."

"McDermott," Rumple mused aloud. "Access your brother's memories. I need to see what this man looks like."

"Why? Are you thinking...?"

"The name cannae be a coincidence Archie. McDermott is Pan's surname. And you know a soul possession is stronger when the vessel has a blood link to you. We are cousins to both Alemedia and Bastinda. That is why banishing them is more difficult."

Archie summoned a Seeing Globe and waved his hand over it, displaying his brother's memories in it for the elder sorcerer to view. One he finished Rumple handed it back to him.

"Jamie McDermott is a distant cousin Archie and was under a soul possession, however, he dabbled in dark magic prior to that. It was how he kept Beth with him for so long. He was using compulsion spells on her. Being reunited with your brother weakened his hold on her."

"Rumple, that's horrible! That poor woman."

"She's alright now, Belle," Archie reassured her.

"I'd like to meet her. Rumple, maybe we should try to find any family you might have here too," Belle suggested. "If they have magic, they'll need a tutor and I can't think of any better than you."

"We will find them Belle but finding my son comes first. And teaching you how to use your gift now that we know you have it." He conjured a candle. "Let's start with working with the elements. Picture a small flame in your mind and hold your hand over the wick of the candle."

Belle did as she was instructed.

"Feel the warmth from the flame, Belle, picture it," he went on. "Just a wee spark at first but let it grow."

"I can't feel anything," she said sadly and opened her eyes.

"Try again. Focus. Block out everything else but the wick, the candle and the flame."

As she held her hand over the wick a second time she could feel the warmth from a small flame beneath it and opened her eyes to see the candle lit.

"I did it! I did it!" she exclaimed.

"Well done, dearie! Well done!" Rumple praised. "Magic requires a strong mind and you, sweetheart have one of the strongest minds I know. Now let's try conjuration. You've seen me do it plenty of times. One minute there's nothing in my hand and the next I have something. Now, do you remember where I keep your cup?"

"Yes."

"Picture the cup."

"I am."

"Now, hold out your hand and picture it in your hand."

"I see it," she murmured.

Seconds later there was a puff of blue smoke and she was holding her chipped cup in her hand. "I did it!"

"The only other person I've seen be that good on their first try is Dellia," Archie murmured. "If I may, I'd like to challenge her a bit."

"By all means."

"Belle, this next spell I'd like you to do is a little bit more challenging but if you can do a conjuring spell right on the first try I have all confidence you can do this. Look at your cup."

"Okay."

"Now, I want you to make it smaller, as small as this," Archie reached under his shirt and took out his tear shaped amber pendant. "Do you see how small this pendant is?"

"Yes."

"Try to make your cup this size. Focus on the cup...let your light flow through you until you see it getting smaller then pull it back. Good!" he praised as the cup began to shrink in her palm. "Keep going...okay now pull it back."

"Oh my goodness! I did it! I...oh..." she moaned, Rumple catching her in his arms as she began to sway.

"You're gonna tire easily when you first start performing magic," Rumple said and helped her sit down, taking the chipped cup from her hands. As he was about to resize it he had sudden inspiration. He waved his hand over it and turned the cup gold, attaching one his spun gold chains to it and handed it to her. "I've woven some protection spells into this for you Belle so that you can walk around Storybrooke safely when I'm not with you and if anyone attempts to harm you it will summon me to your side no matter where I am."

"You have another line of defense you just haven't noticed yet. Join hands," Archie instructed. Once they did so their hands began to glow. "And I apologize in advance for this but trust me...you'll understand once you see it." He conjured a fireball and threw it at the couple only to have it bounce back and burn a small patch in the grass in front of him. "Look up."

"Rumple...it's a shield!" Belle cried, pointing to the glowing dome above their heads.

"Nothing can hurt you as long as you're together," Archie said. "What you're seeing is one of the oldest forms of Ozian magic. "Your shield will hold as long as you stay together. Never, under any circumstances, do you let go when you have that shield up in the face of an enemy. I know too well what happens when you do," he added sadly.

"What?" Belle queried.

Archie summoned the Seeing Globe again, this time using it to show them Azkadellia's memory of that horrible day in the cave. "The older girl is my wife, Azkadellia. The younger one is her sister, Dorothia. This is how my wife became possessed. Bastinda frightened DG into letting go."

"I'll never let go!" Belle cried passionately.

"You can now dearie," Rumple quipped. "You're squeezing my hand."

"Oh! Oh, I'm sorry Rumple! I guess I don't know my own strength."

"Maybe that's a good thing Belle because after we eat I'm going to start teaching more physical combat skills unless Rumple wants to continue your magic lessons."

"No, we'll go with that first."

"And eventually, you both need to learn how to defend yourselves against psychological warfare." Archie eyed Rumple pointedly. He nodded. "It will help you be able to determine who is in control: Rumple or Alemedia, Belle."

"She won't be in control of him long. I'll see to it."

"Archie, I want your word as a Guardian and as a Talon that when Alemedia is in control you will take Belle somewhere safe and keep her there until I regain control."

"I give you my word for my word as a Talon is my bond," Archie recited.

"Do you think she will?" Belle asked worriedly.

"She will try, sweetheart now that the eclipse is coming."

"Then we'll just have to do our best to keep her away," Belle said firmly.

Archie smiled while they walked back to where Rumple's Caddy was parked. They drove back into town unaware that they were being followed once they passed Game of Thorns. Moe French had been desperate to find his daughter the moment the curse was broken but everyone he asked admitted they hadn't seen her. Once Rumple's car pulled into the parking lot of Granny's Diner he was furious to discover that Doctor Hopper DID know where she was and had kept this information from him...or was being compelled to by that beast his daughter had been enslaved by. He didn't dare risk trying to take her with the beast around. Now that he had his magic back, he would do far worse than give him a beating that put him in the hospital.

All heads turned and there was an eerie silence when Rumple walked into the diner with Belle on his arm, Archie behind them. Archie took his usual seat at the bar while Rumple and Belle sat down in one of the booths.

"Hey Archie," Ruby greeted. "Gonna have your usual?"

"Oh yes."

"Hey...uhhh...that's Moe French's daughter. He's been looking for her since the curse broke!"

"She doesn't want to see him and that's all you need to know," Archie said firmly.

"But..."

"Leave it, Ruby."

"Okay." She picked up her order pad and walked over to the booth where Rumple and Belle were sitting. "Hello Mr. Gold. And ahhh...I don't believe we've met..."

"Belle," Belle said softly.

"Hi Belle. I'm Ruby! What can I get ya?"

"Oh I'd like a cheeseburger with ketchup, extra pickles, American cheese, french fries and an iced tea with lemon please."

"I'll have the same," Rumple said.

"So Belle, where have you been hiding...?" Ruby inquired.

"With my fiance," Belle said proudly and reached for Rumple's hand.

Ruby's eyes widened. "Fiance? But...but how did you meet?"

"I was his housekeeper," Belle said with a smile."But we got separated during the curse and I've only recently found my way back to him."

"But...your father...he's been looking for you and..."

"There are some things that cannot be forgiven," Belle said angrily. "I don't want to see him."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry. I'll just...go put your order in and congratulations!" Ruby said and hurried back into the kitchen.

While they waited Rumple took a small box wrapped in satin foil with a bow made from his spun gold out of his pocket and set it on the table. "She unwrapped it and a key fell into her hand with a tag that had LIBRARY written on it.

"We may sit in our library, and yet, be in all corners of the earth," he quoted softly.

"John Lubbock," Belle added with a smile, recalling reading a variation of the quote in his work The Pleasures of Life from Rumple's vast collection of this new land's literature.

"There's no one else who belongs behind that circulation desk more than you, sweetheart. Regina may have closed the library but I own it and I am reopening it. Perhaps you can inspire people to read again rather than burn their eyes watching television. We can go there after lunch."

"Thank you! Thank you so much, Rumple!"

But your training must come first, he sent to her.

She blinked.

"Did I just hear your voice in my head?"

"You did. Mindspeak is an ability all Ozian Guardians have. You will be able to do it with Archie too."

"BEAST!" they heard Moe roar from the doorway. "Release my daughter!"

Rumple rose to his feet and glared at the former lord. "Belle is free to come and go as she pleases, Mr French."

"Liar. You have some kind of spell on her!"

"No one decides my fate but me, Papa and I CHOOSE to be with Rumple!" Belle cried and stood up, taking Rumple's hand in hers.

"To be his 'kept woman'?" Moe sneered. "Only a whore would make such a choice."

"Hey, you DO NOT call a woman a whore in MY diner!" Granny yelled, coming out of the kitchen holding her crossbow.

"No, not my kept woman but my wife!" Rumple announced. "I plan to marry your daughter Mr. French. With your blessing or without it."

"And after what you did to me, I never want to see you again!"

"It was for your own good!"

"Having me tortured by the clerics was 'for my own good'?" Several other patrons in the diner gasped, all of them familiar with the methods the clerics of the Enchanted Forest would use to try to drive evil spirits out of those that had been accused of harboring them.

Granny's eyes were narrowed to slits as she approached the florist, raising the crossbow. "Any father who would subject his child to the madness of the clerics does not deserve to have one!" She held up her arm to show the scar that still pained her every full moon. "THIS is what my father had the clerics do to ME because I chose the love of a werewolf over the wastrel he picked out for me! Now get your ass out of my diner before I put an arrow through it!"

"I'm not finished with you yet!"

"Oh yes you are, dearie!" Rumple growled, summoning his cane. "Or would you like another extended hospital stay?"

Rumple, calm down. If you let your anger get the best of you, she will regain control! he heard Archie's voice plead.

Moe glared at him and stormed out of the diner, slamming the door behind him.

They went over to the library after lunch as promised and Belle felt like she was in Heaven as she explored the shelves full of more books than she could ever read in a lifetime, many of them copies of books on Rumple's shelves back at the mansion. Belle grabbed a stack of Agatha Christie books off one of the shelves and began to read one at the top of the pile. Rumple selected a Stephen King thriller and sat on the sofa beside her while they sipped from the cups of iced tea they'd ordered to go.

In the mines Charming and the dwarves were working diligently in hopes that they would find fairy dust within their walls. If Jefferson's hat wouldn't work, they would find another way to try to bring Snow and Emma home.

"Keep swinging, dwarves." Leroy ordered.

Ruby came into the mines with a basket with some bagels and muffins they could munch on for their breakfast.

"They find any fairy dust yet?" she asked Henry.

"No, not yet. But they will. When… When they do, we'll figure out a way to get Mary Margaret and my mom back."

"I'll be back later with lunch."

Charming put down his pickaxe and put on his shirt. "I hate mine dust. Leroy! If you find anything, I'll be at the Sheriff's station."

"You're taking over as Sheriff?"

"Stepping in. Until Emma gets back."

"Good. We need some law and order here," Leroy said and got back to work.

The Enchanted Forest

Hook stood on a hill spying the haven through the lens of his telescope when he heard footsteps behind him.

"Hello, Hook."

"Hello, Cora. You told me you had something important you needed to show me."

Cora held up the vial of wardrobe dust she'd collected.

"Sparkly dirt. Wonderful," Hook said sarcastically.

"Just the remains of a magical wardrobe that can travel between worlds."

"Is there enough to get us to where we need to go?"

"Not quite. But it's a start."

"We're almost ready to set sail. What's our port of destination?"

"Storybrooke."

"Hmm, curious name. Is that where…"

"She is. And so is he."

"Excellent. You'll be able to see your daughter, and I can skin myself a crocodile."

"Twenty-eight years. We've waited long enough."

"I've waited longer love, but it will be worth it. Well worth it." He made a face. "Perhaps we should have tried to make one last excursion to Oz. That talisman would've come in handy."

"The Sorceress has closed off the portals. The double eclipse is coming and she doesn't want any more outsiders sneaking in. Besides, we don't need the talisman. We can defeat Rumplestiltskin without it."

And I will have all the powers of the Dark One, she thought gleefully.

"...I don't know if I can do this. I'm not a very good liar." Aurora was saying to Snow as they were walking back to the haven. "Neither was Rose. She was always trying to sneak off somewhere but not far enough that Jasper couldn't catch her.

"Oh, it's not really a lie, Aurora. Lancelot did die an honorable death, and Cora did escape. All true."

"Just leave the particulars to us. There's no reason to cause unnecessary panic amongst your people." Emma advised.

"I'm not so sure it's unnecessary..."

"Wait. The tower – we always have sentries guarding the entrance. Stay close !" Mulan warned when she noticed that the guard tower was empty.

"Oh my God…" Emma gasped. The safe haven had somehow become a battlefield with corpses scattered all over the grounds.

"This can't be… Our land… We were protected here – hidden. How did the ogres find us?"

Snow knelt down and gazed at one of the victim's chests. It was covered in blood. "Ogres didn't do this," she declared.

"What?"

"Cora did. Their hearts… They were ripped out. This is her magic, twisted and evil. We have to stop her."

"Too late. She killed them. She killed them all."

"Well, we have to stop her before she hurts anyone else!"

"Hey! Hey! Look!" Emma cried, running toward a pile of bodies and debris. She could see a hand waving from beneath the rubble. "There's someone under there." She and Aurora began to dig through the rubble, finding Hook underneath, exactly as planned.

"He's alive," Aurora said.

"Please," Hook pleaded weakly, as weakly as he could bring himself to.

"It's okay."

"Please, help me."

"It's okay. You're safe now. We won't hurt you."

"Thank you. Thank you…" Hook said.

"Have you seen him before?" Emma inquired of Mulan.

"Yes, I've seen him around. He's a blacksmith. Came to our camp a couple months ago. Said he lost his hand in an ogre attack. Why would Cora leave a survivor?"

"It's messy. Doesn't make sense"

"You think he's lying?"

"I think Cora's tricked us before. I don't want that to happen again. Here you go." Emma handed him the cup of water Aurora had taken from what was left of one of the huts.

"I can't thank you enough for your kindness. Fortune, it seems, has seen fit to show me favor."

"An island full of corpses. You're the only one to escape. How exactly did that happen?"

"She attacked at night – slaughtered everyone in one fell swoop. When she started ripping out people's hearts, I hid under the bodies of those who had already been killed. Pretended to be dead myself. Mercifully, the ruse worked."

"So much for fortune favoring the brave," Emma said bitterly.

"It was all I could do to survive."

"I'm going to let you in on a little secret. I'm pretty good at knowing when someone is lying to me. And you are full of shit!"

"I'm telling you the truth," he said. The wench even curses like a pirate, he thought.

"Are you? I doubt that."

Damn. The pretty blonde was going to be a problem.

"We should leave here in case Cora decides to come back."

"We should start searching for a new portal back to Storybrooke. I only got about five minutes with my husband, not to mention my grandson," Snow said impatiently."

"You have a grandson?" Hook asked, staring at Snow.

"Long story."

"Well, I know this land well. I can guide you."

Emma pulled out her dagger and pressed it against Hook's throat.

"You're not going to guide us anywhere, until you tell us who you really are!"

"And you are going to tell us," Mulan added, brandishing her sword. "In the woods. Move!"

Hook walked ahead, grinning. It wasn't every day that a pirate found himself the captive of four beautiful women. He was eager to get to Storybrooke to have his revenge against the crocodile but who said he couldn't have a little fun first and these women were his idea of a good time, especially the hard headed blonde one. She had the mouth of a pirate and the body of a goddess in those odd looking clothes she was wearing but she'd come around after a few pokes with his sword...the flesh one. Seducing her would be his greatest challenge and Killian Jones was a man who loved a challenge.