Author's Notes: I do not own Once Upon A Time which is a show on ABC that just... really? Really? Anyway, thanks for the reads and reviews. I'm sorry this took so long, but some of you may recall I work in retail. In Texas which has recently experienced arctic vortex conditions and see no one in Texas can remember it was ever going to be cold before it actually happens so they rush to buy clothing where I work and create general chaos for my writing schedule when my boss asks, "Can you stay later?" I can't really answer, "No, Beatrice ran off into the woods and Sherlock is chained up talking to Olaf." Also, my allergies are going to kill me. Thank you again for the reads and reviews, I will get back to you soon. Please let me know what you think and happy reading!
Then
It was always dark.
It had been dark as long as she could remember.
The dream always remained the same. Light vanished from the sky, darkness blotting out everything.
It was always cold where she was. Cold and damp.
She could see her mother's face lit by the torch fires.
"You can feel it, can't you?"
Beatrice could in fact feel it, but her mother wasn't speaking to her. She was talking to whoever was holding her. She never saw the face but when she looked down an oddly colored hand with black talons held her.
"Yes." She didn't know the voice. "It won't be long now."
The air was tense between them. Something rippled around them. She squirmed, trying to get loose but the hand gripped her tighter.
There was a rumbling. The air began to swirl around them, blowing out the torches.
It was completely black. She couldn't see her mother, but she felt her edge closer.
"Is this-"
"Yes."
There was a great crack that made it seem like the earth itself had cracked.
She felt her mother's hand on her face.
"I love you."
The ground disappeared from beneath her and she screamed.
And she always woke up screaming.
"Beatrice?"
Belle flipped on the lamp and sat on the edge of the bed.
"Baby? Hey..."
Beatrice sat up, catching her breath.
"What's wrong? What was it?" Belle ran her fingers through Beatrice's hair.
Beatrice shook her head as Gold finally made it in the room.
"Nothing."
"Was it about Moe? He won't hurt you again."
"No," said Beatrice. "Just the same nightmare."
Belle nodded and hugged Beatrice.
Now
It was strange for Mr. Gold to raise a daughter knowing who her True Love would eventually be.
Om some level it was annoying. He wondered at the man he was in the time line that had never existed, where he had let Belle and their child slip through his fingers and Beatrice grew up without him. The thought of his sweet girl thinking she was nothing to him made his blood run cold.
Then the other aspect of annoying was that he always knew that there was another man who thought he was capable of being his daughter's protector. The thought had bothered him when she was a baby. When he awoke in Storybrooke, Belle had been the one to discover that Sherlock Holmes wasn't some random person. He was in fact the Great Detective, one of this world's most famous heroes with stories, novels, plays, films and television adaptations to his name. Worse yet, Beatrice actually like the stories and the television show. Every time Gold walked past the Sherlock poster in her room it was as if a bomb was ticking. When Joseph had actually appeared in Storybrooke, the bomb finally went off. His girl had her True Love. It made him long for the days of simply listening to Beatrice's Reichenbach Fall theories.
So if he took too much pleasure in seeing Joseph chained up in the woods trapped in conversation with a talking snowman, that was why. He continued on following the path the ice had created in search of his daughter.
Then
Belle let her father in the house and got the tea ready. They were supposed to discuss Beatrice, but it seemed he was distracted by more general news of Storybrooke.
"Did you hear?," Colin began. "About Mary Margaret Blanchard and the wife of her charming friend."
"What happened?," asked Gold.
"Rumple, we're not here to gossip," Belle objected.
"Oh, but see, he has to know. It's all part of his elaborate plan."
"What happened?"
Belle sighed. "Fine. Get it out of your systems."
"Excuse me, but nothing happened in this town for twenty-eight years and now that things have actually started to happen, I want to talk about them."
"What happened?," Gold pressed again.
"Kathryn Nolan slapped her in the middle of the elementary school. The entire town's turned against Mary Margaret. They are a fickle sort..."
"And now could we discuss Beatrice?," Belle asked. She gave reprimanding looks to both men.
"Discuss away," said her father.
"She doesn't believe."
Colin, or Merlin as he had been known, eyed Gold and Belle with derision.
Gold readied himself for whatever his father-in-law's response would be.
"Of course she doesn't believe you. You raise a smart girl in a Land Without Magic, of course she's not going to believe in magic."
"She doesn't even believe we are who we are!," Belle protested.
"Of course she's not going to believe you're Belle from Beauty and the Beast. She already met the real Belle at Disney World."
"Do you have any solutions or not, dearie?"
"Why? Too busy with your brilliant plan to get the Savior to believe? What step of the plan are we on now, exactly? One thousand four hundred and fifty-two?"
"We have tried." Belle shrugged. "She doesn't remember anything of our land. She's grown up here. It seems more reasonable to her that this is all part of some elaborate experiment than a curse."
He was quiet a moment.
"Yes, there is a step you're missing," he said. "I can see that now."
"Will you help her?," asked Belle.
"Of course I will, sweetheart."
Joseph stared face to face with the snowman.
"I don't remember you?," asked Joseph.
"No."
"We've never met."
"Yeah, we did."
"I think I would remember a talking snowman."
"No, see, Beatrice created me so I have Beatrice's memories."
"Snow that remembers. Excellent. Now, anywhere in those memories do you have how to get these chains off?"
Olaf stared back at Joseph blankly.
"You didn't put them on?"
Joseph hung his head in exasperation.
Then
Being stuck in her room ought to have seemed like a shame to Beatrice, but if anything, it was a relief. She didn't have to go out, she didn't have to face the hushed whispers and outright ridicule her very presence seemed to invite.
She hated her life. She hated Storybrooke.
She hated herelf more for not fitting in. There was nothing she could do about that, though and she had tried. The best she could so was hide in her room with British television and a well-stocked TARDIS fridge.
Beatrice looked up at her grandfather. He held up a shopping bag.
"The Dark Star pharmacy had a sale on Reese's hearts," he said.
"Thanks," said Beatrice.
Colin pulled the velvet armchair by the bookcase to Beatrice's bed. "How are you feeling?"
"Lousy."
"What are you watching?"
"Sherlock."
He frowned. "Again?"
"I'm working on my Reichenbach theory."
"I don't know if that's the best possible use of your time."
"Did they send you?"
"You mean your parents? They don't send me anywhere, but they did tell me about your little chat."
"Are you going to try to sell me on this fairy tale theory?"
"I don't have to sell you on it," said Colin. "It's the truth."
"And you're Merlin," she said dryly.
"If you're expecting a hat and a beard I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you."
"What's my fairy tale name?"
"Beatrice."
"You couldn't even come up with a convincing name."
"I don't have to. It was one of the conditions of the deal your mother made with the Evil Queen." He opened a Reese's heart. "Ask me anything. I'll tell you the answer."
"My mom made a deal with the Evil Queen?"
"She had to. For your safety and so you wouldn't be separated from your father. He has never been one of her favorites." He paused. "You still don't believe me."
"Not at all."
"I could show you something. Something that will change your mind."
Now
Emma and David arrived to quell the crowd, dispersing Moe and the others. Merlin took Belle to the library where Catherine and Venus were.
"What happened?," asked Venus as Merlin helped his daughter to a sofa.
"Something's happened to Beatrice," said Merlin. "She's been made to lose control of her powers. She hit Belle in the heart."
"Gods," said Catherine.
"True Love's Kiss?," asked Venus.
Belle shook her head. "True Love's Kiss has never seemed to have had the same effect here as it did in our land."
"That's stupid," said Venus.
"Where's Beatrice now?," asked Catherine.
"She got frightened and ran off. Joseph and Rumple went after her."
It was now that Pamela rushed in, joining the group.
"I came as soon as I heard."
Belle's teeth chattered. "I'm freezing."
"Of course you aren't," said Catherine.
"Well, she's convincing if she's not," said Pamela.
"Grandmother..."
"You are my descendant. You do not die from a frozen heart."
"I don't have any powers-"
"That's not quite true," said Venus.
"Belle, just because you've never learned to control your powers doesn't mean you don't have them," said Catherine.
Belle looked at Merlin.
"Your grandmother makes an interesting point."
"I don't think I have time for this."
"Possibly, I think you might benefit from her instruction." He looked up at Venus. "You stay with her."
"And where are you going?," asked Venus.
"Pamela and I have a heist to conduct."
Then
Beatrice ate her cupcake. She and Colin had been sitting in the Land Rover for twenty minutes now, parked a block down from the Storybrooke Cemetery.
"Why are we here?"
"It's Wednesday night."
"So?"
"Regina visits her father's grave on Wednesday nights." He turned to Beatrice. "Incidentally, she was the one to kill him."
He turned back to looking out the windshield.
"Why did she kill him?"
"Because to cast the Dark Curse you must sacrifice the thing you love the most."
"That's twisted."
"Indeed."
They watched as Regina came out of the cemetery, got in her Mercedes and drove away.
"Let's go," said Colin.
"What?," asked Beatrice.
"That's why we're here tonight. The only time I can almost be entirely certain that Regina won't return is when she's just been. Come on."
Colin got out and walked towards the cemetery. Beatrice hesitated and then followed.
Now
Beatrice wasn't sure how she had found the ice cave or why she decided it was a good idea to go inside, but it had happened.
"Beatrice..."
Beatrice looked to her left. A white cloth was draped over something. She pulled it revealing a mirror.
Where she saw herself.
"There you are. It's about time. Figures you would take forever."
"What?"
"Oh, no clever comeback? Really? Or have you just used them all? Or maybe you're not as smart as you think. Seeing as oh yeah, you shot your mother with ice."
"It was an accident..." she stammered.
The mirror Beatrice chuckled. "Yeah, welcome to your whole life. You are an accident. Why would anyone want you?"
"My parents love me."
"Your parents would be so much better off without you. God, think about it. The Blue Fairy never would have sent your brother off and your mom's mom would be alive, not to mention the hundreds of other bad things that have happened because you are you. Not the least of which is your mom's heart is frozen!"
"I..."
"You what? You're useless. You are as terrible as all they say."
"No, no I'm not."
"Then why has your mom got a frozen heart? Why did you go to kill Zelena?"
"I didn't, though."
"Then why is your True Love chained up in the woods? God, how stupid are you? If you loved him at all, you would send him far, far away from you because everyone that loves you gets hurt."
Then
"This is weird," said Beatrice as they walked into the Mills family mausoleum.
"Wait for it."
"What are you doing?"
Colin pushed aside the coffin in the center revealing a staircase that descended below. He looked up at Beatrice.
"Is that supposed to be there?"
"Come on."
"I really don't want to."
Colin sighed. "Suppose you're right and the fairy tale theory isn't true. Then all that's under here is just a room possibly full of Mills ancestors."
"And what if you're right?"
"Then this is where the Evil Queen hordes the last of her magic. It's been dying in the twenty-eight years since she came to this realm and I want to show it to you."
"I don't think I want to go either way."
"Beatrice, get down the stairs."
Now
Things had not progressed back at the library.
"Only an act of True Love can thaw a frozen heart," Belle said, teeth chattering. "That's what you always told me."
"Yes."
Venus piped in. "But you have my heart. It's nothing but love. This should be no problem for you."
Belle felt her inner Beatrice coming out. "It really seems like a problem."
"You're fighting it," said Catherine.
"What?"
"That humming you've always felt. The one that's brimming on the edge of life? You've always fought it. Perhaps it was Maurice or your nursemaid, but it's always been inside you. Perhaps you tried to change it in Beatrice."
Belle was aghast. "What? No! I would never change a hair on her head!"
"Perhaps it's resentment for your current condition."
"No! It was an accident! She lost control, Moe and the knights, they frightened her."
Belle stood.
"Where are you going?," asked Venus.
"I have to go find Beatrice, to let her know I understand."
"But you're freezing to death," said Catherine.
"I'll be fine."
Belle stopped suddenly, clutching at her chest. Venus and Catherine came to follow.
Belle grabbed at something. She didn't know what it was but she grimaced as she pulled it. When it was done, she looked down in amazement to see that she had pulled shards of ice from inside herself.
She looked up at Catherine.
"See? You're fine," said Catherine.
Belle was stunned. "I don't understand."
"It's magic. No one understands it."
Belle rushed out.
Venus looked at her watch. "We can still make our mani-pedi appointments if we hurry."
"Excellent notion."
Then
Beatrice followed Colin down.
"So, where's this magic?"
"As I said, it's dwindling," he said, opening a cabinet. "Just your standard potions in there."
"Did she learn them from Professor Snape?"
Colin didn't answer. "She's got some baubles..."
"Why do you know what she has? Is this like a regular thing breaking into here?"
"Well, I had to know what she had. Feel any different yet?"
"What?"
"Do you feel any different?"
Beatrice thought about it. Her heart beat ever so slightly faster and she was focused.
"I guess."
"It's like a hum. It's just there where you can feel it on your fingertips."
That was as apt a description as anything.
"Yeah."
"That's magic."
"You said this was a Land Without Magic."
"Except when it isn't."
"What does that mean?"
"It means there are places in this realm that bleed through to our realm and you can see it through magic, through tales of other realms."
"Fairy tales."
"Stories don't just come out of someone's head."
"What about Doctor Who?"
"Get closer. You'll not feel anything from over there."
"It's dark," said Beatrice.
"The dark doesn't bite, sweetheart," said Colin. "Though there is an Agrabah viper somewhere in here so don't open anything too quickly."
"Are you for real?"
"Come over here."
"I don't want to."
"Alright."
"Alright?"
He shrugged. "Well, I'm not going to drag you over here against your will, now am I? What would the point in that be? I would just hope that you would consider the possibility that I brought you down below a mausoleum in the night for a reason and that there is something I think you should see over here."
Beatrice frowned. She crossed her arms and walked over.
"Good girl. Thank you."
"I'm over here. What's over here?"
"Well, for starters..." He placed a leather case on the pedestal in front of him. He opened it as Beatrice watched closely and pulled out a hat.
"Your magic trick is pulling out a hat?," asked Beatrice. She looked up at him. "You're supposed to have a rabbit come out or something."
"This is the Mad Hatter's hat."
"Oh, now we know the Mad Hatter."
"He ran errands for your father from time to time. Also, he's gone completely insane."
Colin walked further down the line, picking up various wands, goblets and trinkets.
"Most of these are unable to retain their magic in Storybrooke. Even my powers are limited under this Curse. I'm not quite what I used to be. Her Majesty's made it to where magic is drained here, a consequence I'm uncertain she ever fully intended."
"Right..."
"There is in fact only one type of magic that is capable of traveling between realms, the strongest of all magics, True Love."
"That's your story. True Love is the most powerful magic of all? Why not clapping or something?"
Colin turned and tossed something at her. "Quick! Catch!"
Off balance, Beatrice caught the object. She then opened her hands to see what it was.
A ring. A small golden ring with a young man's picture projected inside it.
"How's it doing that? Is it a hologram?"
"Magic. It was almost dead. You just recharged it."
"What?"
"Beatrice, you are the end result of the longest line of True Love ever created in the Enchanted Forest. Powerful magic upon powerful magic is inside you."
"There's not magic here."
"No, not here. Inside you, yes. The Queen's Curse may have transported you to this realm, but it did not decide your fate here."
As Beatrice considered this and what her grandfather's motives could possibly be, she became aware of something else. More humming. Loud feeling humming. She edged towards the doorway Colin stood in front of.
"What's that?"
He didn't answer. Instead he let Beatrice walk in. The walls were covered in boxes that reminded Beatrice of a big card catalog. She looked back at her grandfather.
"Nothing in there will hurt you."
Beatrice opened one of the little cabinets in front of her.
Inside it was a glowing heart.
"What's that?"
"What does it look like?"
Beatrice opened another.
And another.
"I promise you they're all the same thing."
"These are hearts. Why are they hearts? Why does Regina have a room full of hearts?!"
"Thesse are the hearts she took. When one takes a heart, it becomes enchanted. You can control the person who it belonged to."
Beatrice turned to him. "Graham."
He didn't speak.
"Graham didn't think he had his heart."
"He was quite right."
"How do you-" She paused, dots connecting. "He had a heart attack."
"I'm sure that's what they would say happened."
"What did happen?"
"I'm fairly confident Regina crushed his heart."
Beatrice pushed the drawers shut. "I want to go home."
"Beatrice-"
"I want to go home!"
Now
Gold continued to follow the path of ice and when he looked up to see that it led into some kind of ice cave, his heart quickened. He hurried inside fearing the worst at what sort of trap the Snow Queen must have laid for her.
When he arrived, he was relieved to see that Beatrice was in one piece. That feeling was quickly quashed as she saw the mirror Beatrice was staring at.
"Beatrice."
Gold looked at the mirror and back at her.
"Sweetheart, come away from there."
He pulled on her arm and she shrieked.
"No, no, don't make me go back! Please! I don't want to hurt you!"
"Alright, I won't make you go back."
"What?"
"Sweetheart, you can't hurt me. Remember?"
Beatrice caught her breath.
"Remember?," asked Gold. "Only one thing can hurt me and it's certainly not ice."
With tears, Beatrice collapsed into her father.
She couldn't hurt him.
"I left Joseph chained up in the woods."
"I locked your mother in my dungeon. These things work out."
"Hello, Beatrice."
Beatrice turned to see who had said that and saw a blonde walking towards her. She felt her father's hand immediately clasping around her almost too tight.
"Hi," said Beatrice. "Who are you?"
"Never mind that," said Gold.
"I'm Ingrid. Your parents have been trying to keep us from meeting."
"Dad?"
"If by keeping you from meeting you mean keeping her from being kidnapped then yes, dearie, you're right."
"They don't understand you, Beatrice. How could they?"
Beatrice turned her head up to face Gold. "Okay, she's kind of weird..." she whispered.
"You know you don't really belong."
"Enough," said Gold.
"You would have left long ago if you could have, isn't that right, Beatrice?," she asked.
"Stop it." Gold clasped his arm around Beatrice.
"Because no one can understand you."
"Okay, so we should be going..." said Beatrice.
Ingrid frowned.
"It's that boy, isn't it?"
"What?"
Ingrid motioned at the mirror.
"I've seen inside your soul. You think that boy understands you, don't you?"
"What are you-"
"Well, I can put a stop to that."
The Snow Queen disappeared. Beatrice turned to her father.
"We need to get back to Joseph."
"Of course."
"A talking snowman. How cute."
Joseph looked up.
"Ms. Fisher."
"Ingrid, if you will."
"I doubt I will."
"Beatrice left you out here, did she?"
"Obviously."
The woman was suspiciously silent as she circled around Joseph.
"Who's she?," asked Olaf.
"Oh, what, now you don't know?," he shot back.
"I am so sorry, Joseph, but I think you have to go," said the Snow Queen.
"What?," asked Joseph.
"What?," echoed Olaf.
"You're just not very good for Beatrice and she won't be needing you."
"Someone recently told me the same thing about her."
"What a relief this will be then."
Ingrid held up her hands. Before the ice could hit him, his chains disappeared leaving enough time for him to bolt out of the way. He looked up to see Gold and Beatrice standing a few feet away.
"Leave him alone!," shouted Beatrice, lobbing another bolt of ice the Snow Queen's way.
Gold carefully took a step next to Beatrice.
"Enough, dearie," said Gold.
The Snow Queen looked at Beatrice.
"He came to me, you know. He wanted to know how ice worked. He was afraid of you."
"I was no such thing," seethed Gold.
"He wanted to take away your power. People like him always do." She cast a glance toward Joseph. "He'll be just the same."
"Stay away from both of them."
"Beatrice..." the Snow Queen shook her head, her laughter silent. "You can't take me on."
"Want to try?"
"Why don't we all just take a moment to catch our breaths?," asked Gold.
"See that, Beatrice? That's fear. He knows he can't defeat me."
Gold smiled. "Oh, dearie, don't test me because if you do, there is no place in any realm that can hide you."
Joseph and Olaf exchanged glances.
Olaf looked up at the other three.
"What were we talking about?"
The Snow Queen shrugged. "That's the problem with snowmen."
Beatrice shrugged back. "Yeah, well, at least he's not eating anyone so really I think we're doing pretty good."
Ingrid smiled and raised her hand at Joseph. Beatrice raised hers back.
From the side, an ice bolt came, landing on the Snow Queen's wrist, powerful enough to knock her over.
Beatrice, Gold and Joseph stared dumbfounded.
Beatrice glanced at her hands.
"Hi, Belle," said Olaf.
Belle frowned at the snowman.
"Belle..." said the Snow Queen gasping for breath.
"You're going to stay away from her," said Belle. "And him. And my family. She is my daughter and no one gets between us so don't you dare try."
Ingrid smiled. "So, you finally learned to use your powers. Good for you."
"Stay away from her."
"We're not done yet."
The Snow Queen vanished.
Belle turned to her family.
"Are you alright?"
Beatrice eyed Belle. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. I promise," said Belle, taking her daughter in a fierce embrace. "Never run off again."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't worry about it." Belle didn't let go of Beatrice as she turned to Gold. "What happened?"
"The Snow Queen lured Beatrice to her lair and she had a mirror."
"Yeah, what was the deal with the mirror?"
"It attempts to make you believe the worst of yourself."
"And what's the point of that?," asked Joseph.
"I don't know, but I'd like to find out," said Gold.
"Fine, she wants Beatrice. I get that. Isolate her from the town, do something to distract them, ice wall so there's no escape, but why did Beatrice put the ice wall around Regina's vault?"
Beatrice shrugged. "I didn't."
"We've been over this. You did," said Joseph. "The last I told you about Regina was her involving your nephew in something called Operation Mongoose."
"Mongoose?," asked Belle.
"What's a mongoose?," asked Olaf.
"Yes, that seemed to mean something to her because of cobra."
"Guys, what's a cobra?"
"Henry's plan to break the Dark Curse?," asked Gold.
"You told me about that?," asked Beatrice.
"Who's Henry?"
Gold motioned at Olaf. "Is that all he does?"
"Sometimes," said Beatrice.
"And I take it you're attached to him?"
"Yes!"
"Rumple," said Belle, "focus."
"Regina is undoubtedly up to something. Beatrice was on the edges of it and it is all tied to the Snow Queen," said Gold. "And whatever it is she's involved my grandson. She is going to answer for this."
Then
"Hey," said Belle.
Gold looked up as he put his keys on the hall table. "Hey."
"I tried to call. Where were you?"
"Errands," he said quickly. "Why? Is something the matter?"
"No, my father just took Beatrice out for the evening to try and cheer her up. I thought we might have dinner."
"Well, I'm sorry I missed it."
"We'll have other chances. Did you hear from Mr. Spencer?"
"Nothing new I'm afraid."
Lady seemed to stand to attention as she edged past Gold to the front door. Seconds later, Beatrice entered followed by her grandfather.
"Beatrice-" said Colin.
Belle smiled. "Sweetheart, how was dinner?"
Beatrice was in no mood for pleasantries.
"You said you taught her," said Beatrice.
"To whom are you referring?"
"Regina."
Colin looked at Gold. His eyes seemed to convey a warning he couldn't decipher.
"Yes, I did teach her back in our land."
"To rip people's hearts out?"
Gold's blood ran cold. He looked up at his father-in-law.
"Where did you take her?"
"Okay, that's a yes," said Beatrice.
"I taught Regina because I had to."
"Why?"
She looked up at him.
Gold didn't answer. He froze.
He'd been delaying this day for years. When she knew, knew what he really was, everything would change.
He couldn't let go of her yet.
"Rumple-"
Beatrice rushed past them, Lady following her. Belle looked at Gold.
"Tell her," she urged.
"There is no possible point in her knowing yet," he said curtly.
Belle glared at him and turned towards the stairs. "Beatrice?"
Gold was left alone with the elder sorcerer.
"Where did you take her?"
"Her Majesty's vault."
Gold shot him a glare and he shrugged.
"She was never going to believe you without seeing some magic. My other choices were a collapsed dwarf mine and a dragon's lair."
"You didn't need to show her anything."
"It worked by the way."
He frowned. "What did?"
"Her magic. It works. She revitalized the Queen's old ring, she could feel the hearts."
"She could?"
"Quite a powerful daughter. It's too bad you don't trust her with the truth."
Beatrice didn't know what to do. Magic. Hearts. Freaking hearts! What kind of a psychopath had a room full of hearts?! A Dark Curse? Was her dog actually Lady and the Tramp Lady?
Belle entered, Lady following. The dog curled up at the foot of her bed.
"Sweetheart-"
"Who are you people?!," Beatrice screamed.
Belle knelt down in front of Beatrice. "We're your parents and we love you more than anything."
Beatrice shook her head as tears began to fall. Belle sat on the bed next to Beatrice, took her into her arms and rocked her.
"It's okay, baby. This will all make sense, I promise."
