Sorry not an update, I had to change a few things around.
Hey guys, thank you so much for the support you have shown me and encouraging me to continue this story, I really needed to hear all of what you said. I will do my best to keep the insecure monsters at bay and believe in myself better. I hope to continue to keep your interest with this story.
This chapter is a little longer than the last one and I really hope you enjoy it. This chapter is one of my favorites and I hope you can agree that this chapter really does have its epic points.
Disclaimer: I do not own OUAT, any of its dialogue or characters. But if I did, Neal would the only contender for Emma's heart.
Enjoy!
Neal frantically ran through the woods, branches and vines scratching his face and neck as he chased after the wolf ahead of him, desperate to catch him before he hurt himself.
The full moon was high in the air but the effect it had on him was muted due to the antique necklace he wore around his neck.
The wolf he was chasing did not have that luxury, not yet at least. Initially Neal had meant to give the necklace to the young cub so that he wouldn't be effected but the cub had snuck o before he had the chance.
Bursting out from the trees Neal saw the young wolf standing near the cliff's edge looking up at the moon, transfixed by its glowing beauty.
His fear slightly calmed Neal started to approach but froze in terror when The Dark One shimmered into existence, a sadistic smile darkening his features even more, right next to the young wolf.
Without warning The Dark One reached into the wolf's chest and extracted his heart.
"No!" Neal screamed, his heart hammering in his ears as he sprinted towards the monster but he arrived too late. With absolute mirth The Dark One crushed the precious organ into dust.
The wolf cried out in agony then collapsed to the ground.
Reaching his side Neal cradled the fallen wolf to his chest, his tears dampening his fur, but soon the fur receded and a young boy remained, lifeless in his arms. Henry. His son was dead.
Eyes shooting open, breaths coming out in shallow pants and his heart jack hammering in his chest Neal sat stock up in his hotel room bed. He was still battling the heart stopping image of Henry lying in his arms, dead.
With sweat coating his body and making his shirt stick to his skin Neal wiped the sweat from his brow and took the moment to calm his racing heart.
He reached over and picked up his phone to check the time, 3:32 AM. There was no way he was going to be able to go back to sleep. Upon learning of his trip to Storybrooke and the magic it contained he had programmed a timer on his phone that counted down the time until the full moon would be out and based on the time he had a little over 24 hours.
Pulling the covers back Neal stumbled into the bathroom and turned the light on and stood in front of the mirror.
His eyes were bloodshot and his face was almost ashen. Looking away he turned the faucet on, cupped his hands and splashed the water onto his face, the icy water quickly waking him up. Turning the faucet off he dried his face.
His nightmare was still burned into his memory and he knew that it would stay with him for the rest of today and especially tomorrow. The worst part of the nightmare, besides of course Henry dying, was that he had failed to protect his son from the greatest evil Neal knew.
Neal found himself praying once more that Henry wouldn't inherit the wolf, but he had no control over that but he could do everything in his power to protect his son.
Buttoning up his coat Neal pocketed his cell phone, wallet and room keys before leaving and locking the door behind him. All the lights were still off as he walked down the stairs and for a normal human this could be a potential hazard but due to his heightened senses he was able to see clearly and avoid any tripping hazards he came across.
Coming to the door leading to the outside he opened the door and stepped outside. As soon as stepped outside Neal could smell fresh dew and the crispness of the morning air. Walking down the path d onto the main sidewalk he wasn't surprised that no one else was und about, considering that it was 4 in the morning.
Letting his feet lead him Neal soon found himself on his way to the small beach Henry had shown him earlier.
The morning sky steadily brightened and the moon slowly started to fade into the background to allow the sun to take over.
Before he knew it he had reached the beach and stopped to look out at the calm waters. Even as a child he had always been fascinated by the glistening waters that flowed around him. The way it could stretch for miles and support the life of other creatures amazed him and the clapping of the waves as they rolled into the shore then quickly retreated had kept him entertained for ages as a child.
He could recall moments from his childhood when he had escaped the watchful eyes of his papa and had sat down on a small beach and watched the waves dance for him. It's dance and music had never failed to soothe his frazzled mind but there was always a first time for everything.
The waves weren't doing their job but he wasn't ready to leave yet, so deciding the stay a little longer to watch the sun rise Neal sat down and continued to admire the glittering waters.
~Break~
Regina's alarm went off promptly at 7:30 AM and awakened the sleeping mayor. Raising the sleeping mask from her eyes she turned the alarm off and got out of bed, stretching her limbs as she welcomed a new day.
As she gazed out the window a smile blossomed on her face as she thought on her plans for the day. Today was the day that she would set her plan into motion to getting her son back.
Walking away from the window she had a quick shower and did her morning routine in the bathroom then got dressed in her outfit of today that consisted of a little black and gray dress, black stockings and black high heels.
Only in the mood for a small breakfast she prepared herself a small bowl of oatmeal along with a glass of orange juice and when finished she walked to her closet to get her coat and left for the cemetery.
~Short Break~
Knowing exactly what she was looking for she bypassed the trunks that were scattered on the floor and went straight to a lone standing bureau.
Pulling open the doors she scanned the shelves for the item and smile victoriously when she found it. Picking the spherical object up she cradled it in her hand, admiring it with such adoration you'd think she was holding a newborn baby.
Continuing to smile she closed the doors and walked out of the room, all her concentration solely on her plans for a certain person.
~Another Short Break~
No one bothered her as she walked back to her house, although she could feel their intense glares but this only caused her to smile more. Let them hate her, she didn't care, all she cared about was getting Henry back.
Arriving home she walked into her kitchen and set the sphere down then set to work.
On her way home she had stopped by the woods and picked up the ingredients that she would need.
Going to the freezer she took out the containers and set them down on the counter and pulled off the lids. Going by memory she took out 3 beech leaves and placed them in the bowl and grounded them down until they were a green paste then added 5 inner flowers and 2 berries from a guelder rose; she grounded the petals up and squeezed the juices out of the berries. Moving on to the Towny Milkcap Mushroom she pulled the cap off and used a separate bowl and grounder to grind the cap into a flour like substance. Finally she added the last ingredient: 1 white oak bark to the contents in the first bowl and grounded the bark up as well.
Reaching over she grasped the spherical object then carefully rolled the orb around in the first bowl then sit it down on a stand. Almost done she lifted the second bowl and sprinkled mushroom dust all over the orb then leaned in and whispered one name "Baelfire".
The orb began to glow and soon she was watching the Dark One's son stir a cup of coffee but not making any move to drink from it.
She had done her homework on "Neal Cassidy" and with the knowledge she had acquired she could move forward with her plans.
It didn't take much detective work to deduce that he was at Granny's and with that location in mind she left her house and headed for the diner.
~Break~
Neal lifted the rim of the mug to his lips and took a long drink from the now lukewarm coffee but the drink tasted bitter and unsatisfactory.
Ruby had taken notice of the somber aura that clouded Neal so she slid into the booth across from him. He looked up at her but said nothing and went back to looking at the tabletop.
"What's going on Neal?" she asked, concerned that it may have something to do with Henry.
Sighing Neal leaned back and continued to avoid eye contact. "It's nothing, just...a bad dream is all" he insisted, not wanting to have to describe the nature of his dream.
Concerned for him she reached over and placed her hand over his, applying pressure until he looked at her, but even then she didn't let go.
"It's obviously not nothing it it's affecting you like this. You can tell me anything Neal, I won't judge you" she promised, her voice sincere and heartfelt.
Neal pulled away and Ruby couldn't hide the hurt his action caused her.
"I want to believe that but you hardly know me, and honestly, this is something that I know will make you look at me differently" he admitted, not wanting to lose the trust that was slowly building between them.
Ruby was about to open her mouth but stopped when a shadow fell over their table. The presence behind the shadow told her who the shadow's owner was before she met the false kindness in Regina's eyes.
"Hello Ruby, would you mind if I had a word with Mr. Cassidy, in private?" it wasn't a question though, it was an order.
Ruby wanted to defy her but Neal shook his head. Pasting a fake smile on her face Regina watched as Ruby glared at her while removing herself from the booth.
"I have heard many things about you Mr. Cassidy" she said as she slid in the now occupied seat.
"I've heard a lot about you as well" he returned, aware that the woman seated across from him was not just any Storybrooke resident she was the mayor of the town and The Evil Queen.
"What did you want to talk about?" It couldn't be anything pleasant.
Her smile never faded, if anything it grew even faker when she spoke next.
"All I wanted to do was welcome you to Storybrooke and to enjoy your stay. Regardless of what you may have heard I do love my son and all I care about is his happiness. It is obvious that your presence, along with Ms. Swan's is vital to that happiness so I am making an effort to be civilized to the both of you since it would seem that you'll be in his life for the foreseeable future" she was lying through her teeth, she absolutely loved Henry and wanted him to be happy but she was not going to allow them to push her out of her son's life.
Neal could sense that her words weren't entirely sincere and her aura told of deceit and anger which made himself and his wolf paranoid of an attack.
He chose his next words cautiously. "I'm sure Henry knows that your trying and that you love him very much but I don't want you thinking that Emma and I are trying to replace you, that would be cruel. Your his mother Ms. Mills, you raised him and loved him for all these years and all the love and attention you showered him with had and will continue to mold him into a decent, loving man. There is no way that Emma and I could ever properly thank you for that" and he meant every word, Henry could have turned out a common delinquent but Regina had raised him with love and as a result he was a very loveable and kind hearted boy.
HIs words had had an effect on her and she almost abandoned her plans but then she pictured Henry again and her fears that Neal and Emma would take him away from her strengthened her fears and her heart froze over. No, she had to do this.
"Thank you for thinking so highly of me. Well I have some paperwork that I have to finish so I'll be going now, good day Mr. Cassidy" receiving a farewell in return she slipped out of the booth and quickly left the diner.
Purposely leaving behind one of her black gloves on the table.
~Break~
Neal took notice of the glove almost immediately but before he could call out to her she was gone. Picking up the glove he left a five on the table for the coffee and hurried after the woman.
His wolf was whining, pleading for him to turn back but he ignored it. A mistake that would soon cost him dearly.
Once he was outside he looked down both streets and almost missed her as she was turning the corner into a familiar alley.
"Ms. Mills!" Running after her he turned the corner and slowed down when he caught up to her.
"Ms. Mills, you left your glove in the diner" he explained, now walking at a slow pace behind her.
He became highly suspicious when she stopped but didn't turn around.
"Regina?" against his better instincts he was about to reach out for her but when his fingers were only a breath away from her shoulder she stuck. Turning around she viciously tore into his chest and gripped his heart.
The pain was indescribable, the sensations would change from blood freezing to bubbling acid then electrical wires that electrocuted his insides.
He could barely breathe and every limb on his body was alive with adrenaline but yet he could not move. Eyes wide and glowing around the irises in shock and mouth gaping in pain with blood bubbling in his ears he could barely make out what she was saying.
"I will have my happy ending with Henry, and there's no room for you or the Savior" she maliciously ripped his heart out and held it in her hand as Neal finally gasped for breath and stumbled back.
The pain was no longer there but he felt empty, like a part of his soul had been taken. He desperately grappled at his chest, as if looking for a wound but he found none.
Looking back at the Evil Queen a growl reverberated from his chest and he stalked forward but she gripped his heart and waves of fiery acidic pain overcame him and he fell to the concrete, crying out in agony.
Aware that the noise would bring an audience she had to move quickly. Kneeling down beside him she waved her free hand over his head and effectively took him out of consciousness. Now with both of her prizes she encased herself and Neal in a purplish black cloud and when the cloud evaporated Regina and Neal were gone.
~Break~
Ruby had heard the cries of pain before anyone else and using incredible speed she dashed out the back door and looked around but found no one.
Not convinced that she had just been hearing things she tapped into her wolf senses and sniffed around. It wasn't long until she was hit by the unmistakable smell of magic wrinkled her nose in disgust. The scent was fresh and contained the indisputable scents of Neal and Regina.
Eyes narrowing she took one last cursory glance around then took out her phone. Something had happened to Neal, she was sure of it, and she was more than positive that Regina was behind it.
Placing the call she waited for the person to pick up, on the click she spoke.
"I think Neal's in trouble"
~Break~
He was alerted to the approaching footsteps and the smell that grew was a mixture of overwhelming magic and citrus fruits. Regina.
When she came into view Neal growled and gripped the bars that separated from ripping out her throat once she was standing in front of him.
"Down boy" she joked and laughed when Neal tried to grab her but his arm wouldn't fit through the bars.
She watched in delight as his eyes glowed a passionate ember.
The wolf wanted to come out to play and she was more than willing to open the door.
At first she didn't know what to think when Neal's eyes glowed a familiar gold but when she had done a closer inspection of his heart her suspicions had been confirmed, Neal was a wolf. This should have concerned her, mainly because there was a chance that Henry had inherited the curse from his father, but she would deal with that when the time came, for now Neal's wolf would be a new piece in her plan.
"Why are you doing this?" he demanded, the first thought he came up with was Henry.
"To get my son back. I won't let anyone keep him from me, especially not the so called savior" she hissed, the very thought of her boiling her blood.
Neal couldn't hold back his dark chuckle as he shook his head, "do you hear yourself? You kidnapping me and taking my heart wont' bring him back to you! The only person keeping you from him, is yourself" he stated, knowing that he had her by the saddened look that briefly colored her eyes before darkening into hollow stones once more.
She was facing one of the most overused situations in both stories and movies, that being that a person can change a lot of things but the most important change they have to make is in themselves.
But this wasn't a Disney movie.
"I will change, I'll be happy again very soon with my son and I won't have to deal with you or Emma ever again" she vowed, her devilish grin was enough to show her intent to harm.
Neal could not believe this woman, he knew that people would move mountain tops for the ones they love but she was making the mistake of mixing love with obsession, a trait that his papa had suffered from as well and had paid the price: the loss of his son.
"Whatever your planning, you won't succeed. Emma will see to that" he glared, his faith in Emma made him certain that Henry would be safe from the black hearted woman before him.
"Oh I won't be alone, I'll have help...from you" she stated, watching as Neal's expression turned to disbelief.
"And what the hell makes you think I would ever help you?" he didn't like the way she was looking at him. Just what was she planning?
Reaching into her pocket she pulled out a small capped vial and held it out for him to see.
"You won't have a choice. But that doesn't matter because you won't remember any of this and since you're a wolf I had to come up with something a bit stronger, so this may hurt a little " before Neal could argue he was sent flying into the back wall but instead of falling, arms morphed out of the stone work and restrained his arms and legs.
Regina waved her hand and the cell door swung open and she entered the cell, a predatory gleam in her eyes as she approached him, with the vial in hand.
He struggled but the stone hands would not loosen but instead tightened their hold until they were close to cutting off his circulation.
"There's no point in struggling Neal, it will only tighten their hold" she chastised.
He knew she was telling the truth, he had seen this kind of magic before, but he wasn't going to go down quietly.
"Henry will never come back to you, not really. He will never forgive you for taking him away from his family" he wanted to hit a nerve before she did whatever it was she was planning, just so that she would be haunted by his prediction.
Not wanting to listen to another word she summed another stone hand to grip the back of his hair and pulled back until he cried out. Taking the opportunity she clutched his chin and forced it to stay open as she flipped the cap off and poured the smoking potion down his throat and held her hand over his nose and mouth.
The sudden cut off of oxygen made him panic and he thrashed his head and tried to move his arms and legs in desperation as the acidic, bubbling potion burned and sloshed around in his mouth. He tried to resist the urge to swallow for as long as he could but soon his need to breathe became too much and he swallowed, the fowl potion trailed down his throat and sank like lead into his stomach.
Regina removed her hand and watched in baited breath as the potion began to take effect.
In quickening succession Neal's memories of the events that had transpired between Regina and him were painfully scrubbed from his mind with what felt like a heated up iron wool doused in acid.
His wolf was trying to fight back, howling and clawing at invisible forces but the potion was too strong and soon the wolf was muzzled. And with that the strength that Neal had been clinging to vanished and he succumbed to the darkness.
The stone hands released him and Neal dropped to the cold ground. Regina squatted down in front of him and studied him.
She had always been fascinated by the weakness that sleeping people displayed, especially ones that were as powerful as the sleeping man before her. In this state even the fiercest, most powerful dragon was defenseless to the strike of a deadly attack.
Standing up she waved her hand and the black and purple cloud covered them and transported them to the backyard of Granny's B&B.
~Break~
Emma arrived at the diner only minutes later after having been called by Ruby and hurried to the alley where she found Ruby waiting for her. Ruby heard her coming and a look of mild relief washed over her features.
"Emma thank god" she greeted, anxiety exuding from her voice and stance.
"What happened?" she got right down to business. If Neal had truly been taken, which was a likely possibility, then the longer they waited the danger Neal was in escalated.
Ruby shook her head, "I really don't know. I heard shouts and I came out here to investigate but all I found what an empty alley and the smell of magic with Regina and Neal's scents" Emma was curious as to how Ruby could recognize Neal's scent but now wasn't the time.
"How long ago was this?' she asked, a timeline starting to set itself up as Ruby explained that it had happened about twenty minutes ago.
"You were saying that they were talking about something shortly before Neal vanished, do you know what about?" with Ruby's heightened senses she was sure that she had.
"It was about Henry and how Regina was going to try and be more 'civil' towards you. She was lying though, I have to concentrate too hard to see that and-" her eyes widened and she snapped her mouth close. She had almost spilled Neal's secret, one that she had no right to reveal.
Emma of curious as to Why Ruby had cut herself off and was looking so guilty.
"'And' what Ruby? If it will help find Neal then you need to tell me" she insisted, aware that Ruby knew Emma would know if she were lying.
Ruby bit her lip but then realized that she could finish her sentence without giving away Neal's secret.
"All I was going to say was that I'm positive that Neal knew she was lying as well he was doing his best to assure her that you guys weren't going to replace her" seeing that they were starting to get off subject Ruby added, "Neal went after her to return her glove and it was few minutes after that that I heard the shouts."
Emma mulled over her words. The two most likely places she could have taken him were the mausoleum and her house, but considering that the mayor's house were too obvious Emma decided that she had likely taken him to the mausoleum.
Emma turned and started the walk for her bug, Ruby caught up and was quickly walking beside her.
"Here's what we're going to do: I'm going to call Mary Margaret and David for backup and split up into pairs of two. If either one of us finds them do not approach, call for back up and keep an eye on them" she instructed as they got in Emma's car and Emma got her phone out to call Mary Margaret.
She picked up on the second ring.
"Emma, hello. David and I were just-" Emma cut her off.
"Mary Margaret I need you and David to meet Ruby and I at Regina's house. We think she might have taken Neal" she explained, starting the engine and pulling away from the curb.
All the lightness from Mary Margaret's voice vanished. "We'll be there. What do you want us to tell Henry?" both were aware that Henry was still smarting from being lied to before.
Emma sighed, she didn't want Henry to come up with another "operation" and go off on his own to save his father and possibly get himself hurt but she didn't want to alienate herself from him any further.
"Tell him...tell him the truth but be as gentle as possible, I don't want him running off and trying to be a hero" she was taking a risk but Henry deserved the truth.
"Alright, we'll meet you in about minutes" they exchanged goodbyes then hung up.
Ruby and Emma were quiet for a few minutes until Ruby broke the silence.
"What are you going to do with Regina?" locking her up would definitely not work for long and there was also Henry to consider.
"Our first priority is saving Neal then I'll deal with Regina" she answered.
~Break~
When Neal came to he was met with the sight of the afternoon sun and an unrelenting pain that revolved around the crown of his head.
Slowly rising he took in steadying breaths to keep back the nauseas spinning and continued to do so as he looked around at his surroundings. He was behind an old Victorian style house that had the beauty of the forest as a landscape.
Taking a cautious first step he waited a second and when gravity didn't revolt against him he walked towards the building. When he got closer he saw that he was in the backyard of the B&B. He sighed in relief, at least he wasn't in some unknown area. The problem now though, was that he had no idea how he had come to be here.. He started to panic.
How the fuck did he get here?!
Doing a quick inspection of his body he found no visible signs of any injuries, besides the headache that was slowly going away.
He thought back to what he could last remember doing but found that a lot of his memories had been blacked out, leaving only the memory of talking to Ruby at the diner, but after that everything was a blank.
What the hell happened to him?
~Break~
Snow knocked on Henry's door and entered when she heard Henry's voice tell her she could come in. Opening the door she stepped into the room and walked over to the young boy who was laying on his bed reading a comic book.
"Hi grandma, what's going on?" he asked, easily picking up on her nervousness.
She sat down on the bed and Henry closed his comic, giving his complete attention.
"Henry your father is missing and Emma and Red believe that Regina may have something to do with his disappearance" she had done the best she could to not play around the subject and instead come out and tell Henry exactly what was going on in the briefest way possible.
Henry was silent as he thought over her words. He didn't want to believe that his mom would do something like this, he really wanted to believe that she was trying to change and shed her evil Queen ways but he was beginning to see realize that she may never change. If she did take his dad and hurt him in any way then he would never forgive her. Too many times has she tried to destroy his family and he wasn't going to let her hurt the people he loved.
"Henry?" she placed a hand on his leg, a little concerned because he had been quiet for so long.
He came out of his daze and looked at his grandma. "What are you going to do?" he knew that more than half the town would see this as the excuse they had been waiting for and finally take care of the Evil Queen once and for all.
This was the question that she had been dreading because she didn't know the answer.
"I really don't know. What we need to focus on right now is finding your dad. Now listen, I know that you likely want to come up with us but you need to stay here. We don't want you getting hurt and the safest place for you is in the apartment" she got up from the bed but stopped when she saw the argument that was building up in the young boy.
"But I can't help!" he insisted, annoyed that he was always left behind while everyone else got to fight and have adventures.
"It's too dangerous Henry, if something were to happen to you we would be devastated. Please, give us this peace of mind and I promise when we return I'll be sure to tell you more about my adventures in the Enchanted Forest, ones that aren't in that books of yours" she promised, knowing that it wasn't t greatest compromise but it was the best she could offer.
Henry frowned, while he loved he loved hearing about the adventures his grandparents had had in the Enchanted Forest he really wished that they would have more faith in him to be able to handle a potentially dangerous situation.
But for the sake of everyone he would do as she asked of him and stay in the apartment.
"Fine, I'll stay here" he sighed, silently vowing to go on loads of adventures if and when they ever returned to the Enchanted Forest.
Snow smiled gratefully, "I'm glad you understand. Your grandpa and I will be gone for a bit to help Emma and Red find Neal. I made some lasagna and all you have to do is heat it up in the microwave for a few minutes. We have our phones so call us if you need to get a hold of us and also be sure to not leave or open the door for anyone but David, Emma and myself" she instructed and waited until she had a verbal agreement the left the room, closing the door behind her.
Walking back downstairs she met David by the door and graciously accepted his help in slipping into her jacket. Taking her bow and satchel of arrows out of the closet. She watched as David checked his ammunition in his gun then walked past him so he held the door open for her.
As they walked out of the building Henry watched from his window as the warrior Princess Snow White and the valiant Prince Charming went off on another adventure.
Without him.
Again.
Being a kid really sucked sometimes.
Then again he could use this as an opportunity to show everyone that he was just as capable at being heroic like everyone else in this family.
~Break~
Neal stumbled into his room and went straight to the bathroom to get some Aspirin. Knocking back the medication he turned the faucet on cold and bent down to chug some water to help the pill go down.
Turning the faucet off he walked back into the bedroom and sat down on the freshly made bed.
It was while he was sitting that he noticed the throbbing pain around his wrists. Looking down he saw discoloration beginning to form around the sensitive skin.
For the second time he wondered what the hell happened to him?
The thought that came to mind was his papa had taken him somehow and had attempted to take away his memories of what had happened between. Rationally he knew that the thought was based on the anger he still felt towards the man but it also wasn't out of the realm of possibilities.
Growing angrier at the idea of Gold using magic on him he rose from the bed and stormed from the room.
He was going to pay that bastard a visit!
~Break~
Snow and David showed up at Regina's neighborhood twenty minutes after Emma had called them and met Emma and Ruby a few houses down from the Evil Queen's house.
"How sure about this are you Red?" Snow had always invested a great amount of trust in Red but if they were going to do this they needed to be prepared for the backlash this could bring.
"I'm only as sure as my wolf" she wished she could give them more but all she had to go on was her knowledge of Regina and her wolf senses.
Accepting her answer Snow mentally began to prepare herself for the possible battle with Regina.
"Here's what we're going to do: Mary Margaret will go with me to check out the mausoleum and Ruby and David will investigate Regina's house. We'll call for backup if either of us finds Neal or Regina if not we meet back up at the apartment in an hour" going along with Emma's plan they split up, after David kissed Snow and told them both to be safe.
Watching Emma and Snow drive off David and Red walked the short distance to Regina's house and knocked on the door.
David kept a hold of his gun that he had concealed beneath his coat. few moments later the door opened and Regina showed herself, an indifferent look on her face.
"What do you two want? To accuse me of another crime?" she mocked.
She knew exactly why there were here: Neal's disappearance. It was inevitable that the mighty savior and her band of loyal followers would immediately suspect her, and in this case they were right to.
"Neal's missing Regina and you were the last one to see him" David accused.
Regina frowned and stepped out onto the porch.
"You always think of me whenever someone goes missing and I'm really starting to tire with these accusations. I'm trying to get my son's love and trust back. Why would I risk that by harming his father? Did you ever consider the possibility that he skipped town? Maybe he didn't want or couldn't handle the responsibility of being a father" she knew by David's expression that he had had some doubts about Neal but Red still had determination.
"I smelled magic Regina, your magic and I also heard shouts. I don't believe for a second that Neal would leave town. He wants to be close to Henry and spend more time with him and Emma. Where is he Regina? What did you do with Neal?" she demanded.
Red was not going to back down, not from this woman. She was tired of running. Neal was becoming a close friend and if Regina had hurt him she would pay in blood.
The Queen was unimpressed.
"I. Did. Nothing. Now, unless you want things to become less civilized I would suggest getting off my property. Have a nice day" sneering she slammed the door in their faces and slid the two separate locks in place.
David looked to Red and spoke, "That could have gone better."
~Break~
In the woodsy part of the cemetery Emma and Snow had just entered the mausoleum.
"If Regina did take Neal what would she be planning to do with him?" Snow asked as she shone her flashlight into a cramped room.
Emma stopped and turned to face her, raising her brows in a "are you serious" look.
Snow sighed. "Your right, but we still don't know what she plans to do with Neal" she replied, a dozen different ideas bombarding her.
They were both silent for a while as they searched the remaining rooms of the mausoleum, at least the ones they knew of until they reached the room where Regina kept her spells and such.
Snow was the one who broke the silence.
"Emma, I know that you and Neal haven't seen each other for eleven years now and it wasn't under the best circumstances that you parted ways but have you and Neal discussed the long term plans of sharing Henry?"
"I don't think now is really the time to talk about that. For now, let's just focus on finding Neal" only seconds after pleading this Emma's phone rang and he saw it was Ruby.
"What's going on Ruby?" Emma hoped it was good news.
She listened as Ruby told her they had hit a dead end with Regina's house and were headed back to the apartment.
"Okay, we'll meet you guys there in a little while. Bye" hanging up she relayed the message to Snow.
Emma didn't want to give up just yet but there were only so many places that Regina could hide without drawing attention to herself. She was sure that Regina wouldn't hide Neal in her house and since they weren't having any luck in the mausoleum the only place left was the underground cave below the library.
"There's one last place I want to check before we go back to the apartment."
~Break~
Using the information that Isabelle had given him Neal was now fast approaching the pawn shop, his strides long and determined as he fumed over the thought that his "papa" had used magic on him.
As he was reaching for the doorknob a voice suddenly entered his mind, stopping him.
"Don't do this, the man, if he can even be called that, is not worth it. Turn around and go get a drink in the Rabbit Hole" pulling back he slowly turned and walked away.
His mind was conflicted with puzzlement over why he would get a drink this early in the day but another thought assured him that he needed to take his mind off his "papa" and get lost in the numbing effects of alcohol.
~Break~
Regina watched with her looking glass as Neal walked away from the pawnshop and headed for the only bar in town.
She breathed a sigh of relief and placed Neal's heart back in the wooden box. She had almost been too late to stop him. If Neal had confronted Gold the imp would have caught on to what she was planning and stop her, especially since she had stolen his son's heart.
She would have to keep a closer eye on her pawn.
He was a potential spark that could bring down her entire plan.
A/N: So...what did you think? I know I told you that Regina would have to be a little more evil in this story so don't let this be a turn off. Also, I will do my best to keep her as in character as possible but Regina's role in this story is an exploration of the lengths she would go to get Henry back without the help and goading of her mother and the backup of Hook.
Also, you guys really need to start reviewing just a little bit more. Your reviews are the only reason that I update so if you want an update your going to have to review. Not only to keep up my self esteem but the time in which I upload a chapter.
