A/N: Hurray, we made it past the pilot! Now we have Episode 2, The Thing You Love Most. This is the encounter Regina and Maleficent have as they trade curses. Now off you go! Also, I didn't mention this earlier, but some of the titles for the oneshots aren't great, I've never been good at titles. Anyway back to the story.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the epic characters (or David/Charming) in the television series Once Upon a Time, those belong to the creators, writers, and ABC. these characters were brought to life by the amazing actors that play them (and Josh Dallas; just kidding) :)
Over the course of her later years, Regina had learned of the infamous Maleficent, the woman who cursed the queen's daughter with a sleeping curse.
Regina had rather respected the great witch for such a clever curse. And as her plans for Snow White began to progress, Regina decided to pay her colleague a visit.
"How are, Maleficent, you seem to be living well," Regina said, striding into Maleficent's dark castle, the locks to her entrance opened with a simple incantation. Maleficent was stroking her black unicorn as Regina came in, her body going rigid as she approached.
"I am doing quite well, Regina, and you? Is that halfwit Snow still giving you trouble?" It seemed that despite Aurora's recent happily ever after Maleficent was rather well off. Regina gave a slight frown.
"She seems most troublesome, but dear me, Maleficent, have you forgotten your manners? I see that you haven't offered me some refreshment or even a seat after my long trip." The woman rolled her eyes and glared at Regina's smirking face.
Letting out a sigh, she waved her staff in the air, a plush black velvet chair appearing along with a tray of tea. Giving another smirk, Regina sat herself on the chair, carefully preparing herself a cup of tea.
"What do you want, Regina?" Maleficent asked, her tone hard. Regina seemed to take enjoyment in Maleficent's obvious annoyance at her arrival amusing.
"Come now, dear Maleficent, are you really that unhappy to see me? You know, once upon a time we were friends," she said, taking a sip of her tea. "Yes, well, time's change Regina, so tell me what you want or leave me, I have more important things to do then idle chit chat."
Regina seemed to ponder her next words, knowing now that she was going to be the one annoyed. "I need your sleeping curse," she said bluntly, not wanting to beat around the bush. Now it was Maleficent's turn to smile, sitting down herself and helping herself to some tea also.
Her slow movements began to irk Regina, but she had a job to do and she would do it at any cost.
"And why would you need such a curse?" Maleficent asked conversationally, knowing that she was trying Regina's patience. Balling her hands into fists, Regina let out a quite breath. "It's that fickle Snow White. My plan is starting to form and now I need your curse to ensure it goes smoothly. I am willing to pay whatever price you may ask for."
Maleficent pondered over her proposal, sipping her tea thoughtfully. After a moment, she straightened up, all business.
"What could you possibly have that I may have use for?" she inquired. Regina searched through her mind, thinking of every curse she had at her disposal, every magical artifact she had that Maleficent might take an interest in. One curse finally came to her. It was a powerful one, but she need Maleficent's sleeping curse.
"I think," Regina said, opening her hand as black smoke spilled out, showing a rolled up piece of parchment. "This may interest you." She handed the scroll to Maleficent. She opened it, reading through it. As she did, her mouth curved into a deep frown, her forehead lined in distress.
"Is this real? Can you really do this?" Maleficent asked loudly, her eyes boring into Regina's. "I assume it should be, I paid a hefty price from Rumpelstiltskin for that and you know how powerful he is. It is, in fact, real. Are we at an agreement?"
Maleficent paused, looking from the paper to Regina and back again. After a long moment she sighed. "Very well, I accept your price. This realm curse for my sleeping curse." With another wave of Maleficent's staff, black smoke plumed from it towards Regina, a similar scroll dropping into her lap.
"Excellent," she said, opening the scroll up and reading its contents. "Wait, what is this?" Regina asked, gesturing towards a part of the scroll. "It says that I have to infuse the curse into an object, then somehow get it to infuse into her? How do I do that?"
Of course, Regina wouldn't try and figure it out, instead she would bully and irritate Maleficent until she gave her the answer. "It's simple, Regina. Take my spindle for example. When Aurora pricked her finger on it, the curse was able to infuse into her small wound, causing her to fall into a deep sleep. Something similar to that will do the trick."
Regina gave an exasperated sigh, throwing her hands up in frustration. "And what do you suppose I use then?" Maleficent glowered at Regina. "I'm sure you can think of something, Regina. You're a clever woman. We are done here, now leave me," she said, with a lazy wave of her hand. Regina glowered at her, picking up her skirts and walking away, a slow smirk beginning to form on her lips. She had just the object in mind...
A/N: Ooo, I wonder what item she has in mind? Okay, I'll stop being stupid now...maybe not. Read and review (I can already tell this is going to be a pain to constantly write).