Title: Vengeance, Sacrifice, and Forgiveness
Author: AoN
Word Count: 4,600
Genre: Drama, Adventure
Rating: PG-13
Feedback: Please and thank you! Let me know what I'm doing right or doing wrong.
Summary: With the Evil Queen's curse weakening and Regina struggling to keep Storybrooke under control, hidden secrets and lies from long ago are beginning to surface – and they want their happily ever after.
Chapter Fourteen
Ruby took a quick glance into her rearview mirror as she pulled away from the curb and then to the bottle of well water sitting in her cup holder. Shoulders slumped as eyes returned to the road. The possibility of this makeshift plan working in the manner Lucy was expecting was a long shot, but, regardless, it was a promise she would keep. Lucy had been very animated, very bothered about… Ruby was not sure. Lucy's rambling had been rather sporadic and hard to follow. Ruby only hoped that the time Lucy had been given would clear her head in a manner that did not involve transformation. She would be a fool if she believed Lucy was not going into the woods considering they had been her home for ages, but at least now they were less dangerous – it had been a rather busy morning for everyone, Ruby included.
No, the only real worry was the danger of the transformation.
Not human to beast, but beast to human – each metamorphosis brought on physical effects of drowning. Slowly, the Princess Lillian was reliving her death, the effect worsening with each change. Lucy struggled to breathe last night after transforming. Even unconscious, Ruby witnessed her gasping for air, trying to cough up water that was not there. Ruby had felt helpless – how do you save someone from drowning on dry land? When the episode ceased, Ruby had triple checked for a pulse, made sure Lucy was still breathing. She had been, but it was only a matter of time before her own personal curse claimed her. Nothing could cheat death, not even magic, not even the royal family – something they had in common with the people of their kingdoms. For now, the solution, albeit not permanent, was simple: do not become the wolf. Do not give in to the urge. Do not let temper get the best of you.
But Lucy proved time and time again to be stubborn. The vast majority of her life had been spent as an animal, not as a human being. Her idealism, her sense of comfort was different. For her, normality meant being a creature on four legs, not two, and during times where heavy emotions plagued the mind, don't we all crave the sacred safety and comfort that could only be brought by our own sense of normality?
The thought caused Ruby's shoulders to slump once more as she pulled into the parking lot of the sheriff's office. Following that mentality, Ruby knew exactly what Lucy was going to do and she desperately hoped she was wrong – why was Emma not at the office yet?
The empty sheriff's parking spot caused Ruby to furrow her eyebrows in confusion and the confusion only grew upon seeing the mayor's car next to the spot. Ruby pulled into the space over from the black Mercedes, not wanting to risk putting a dent into the mayor's car – no form of insurance could possible cover that wrath.
Bottle in hand, Ruby stepped out of her own car and headed towards the double doors of the building, fully aware that the original, simple plan had suddenly become so much more complex. Her entrance earned her stares from the two standing in the hallway. She had expected to see the mayor, but that prior knowledge did not stop the anger that was boiling within. She did her best not to let it show – It or the fact that the stare Ruby was receiving sent chills down her spine. The mayor had always been intimidating, but now knowing full well that she was in the presence of the Evil Queen, the woman responsible for so much suffering, the mayor seemed so much more frightening. Her company was even more daunting: Mr. Gold.
And by the look of things, Ruby had walked in on a rather serious conversation.
"Pray tell what you are doing at the sheriff's department?" Regina demanded. "Ms. Blanchard is not taking any visitors this morning according to her… lawyer."
"The lass is simply going to work, aren't you dear?" Mr. Gold grinned, glancing over to Regina from the corner of his eye. He saw her demeanor shifted (she was annoyed). "As always, the mayor is the last to know."
"Indeed," Regina hissed, turning her attention back to Ruby. Her eyes were dangerously narrow, sending daggers yet Ruby can see a small glimmer of… was it glee? Today was the arraignment, Ruby suddenly remembered and she could still hear a frantic Lucy exclaiming that the mayor had set up Mary Margaret. Regina smiled faintly. "Your… services," she continued, looking Ruby up and down – it was the most clothed she had ever seen the waitress. "They aren't needed here today."
Ruby, for a quick second, held her tongue, stopping her initial remark in its tracks. Being or getting on the mayor's bad side was never pleasant. "With all due respect, Madam Mayor," she began, treading carefully. "I think that's for Emma to decide."
"Sheriff Swan isn't here," Regina stated, her tone resonating off the walls of the corridor. Her smile had turned into a disproving frown, one Ruby was familiar with – Lucy had the same expression when she was annoyed. The apple did not fall far from the tree in means of appearances and that was where the similarities stopped. "Which is very unprofessional of her given the gravity of the crime," she said with a snide (okay, mother and daughter shared the same snark). "Under the circumstances, this office falls to the mayor."
"Like the rest of this town," Ruby mumbled under her breath, surprising even herself. Lucy was a bad influence.
"What did you say?" Ruby snapped.
"Nothing," Ruby quickly replied, shaking her head. "Only that I've been needing a day off – Madam Mayor, Mr. Gold," she said with a nod before turning on her heel and heading back out to the parking lot. She had hoped to find the old yellow bug outside, but the sheriff's spot was still empty. Emma was really running late, where the hell was she? Did something happen? What if something happened to Emma?
'She's setting her up.'
Her eyes widen at the realization. Ruby dashed into her car, tossing the water bottle onto the passenger's seat. What if this was part of the Queen's plan? Ruby resisted the urge to peel out of the parking lot. The skidding would bring forth unwanted attention from the two from which she departed. She did not break any street laws until she had driven a block away from the department – there was no sheriff to pull her over and that may just be the fault of the mayor. With Emma out of the picture, Mary Margaret did not stand a chance in hell.
Or maybe Emma simply overslept? Maybe there was no need to overreact. Neither of them had a decent night's sleep since Kathryn's disappearance, her murder. It seemed plausible, but Ruby could not assume anything.
The drive back never felt longer. An eternity past before she finally came upon the intersection with the main street. Ruby turned left, but midway through clearing the turn, the car began to shake uncontrollably. Engine problems? Now? Could this situation get any worse?
Ruby pulled over. She was near the diner anyway. Mary Margaret's and Emma's place was only a stone's throw away from it. Taking the keys out of the ignition, Ruby expected the shaking to stop, but it did not. Eyebrows furrowing, Ruby leaned forward onto her steering wheel to get a slightly better look. The sign in front of Granny's, the one she would put out on the sidewalk every morning, had fallen over. The lights inside were flickering on and off. She looked up the street – no yellow bug.
As the shaking began to subside, Ruby got out of her car. Crossing the street, her eyes fell upon a large crack on the asphalt which she stepped over. Her gaze followed the crack down the middle of the road. It continued for as far as she could see down the street. Ruby then turned her attention up the street – same thing. Was this the result of that small quake?
Had to be, but, right now, Ruby had to get inside the diner. She may not work there any more, but that did not change the fact that Granny, her Granny who suffered from heart problems, was her family.
And nothing was more important than family.
xxxx
As soon as Henry disappeared into the crowd of school kids heading into the building for their morning lessons, Emma's cell phone had gone off – an emergency call, the icing on the cake that had been her night and early morning. It would make her a bit late for the arraignment and Regina would have her head for it, but Emma could not ignore the call. Someone called in about that dangerous wolf and now she was probably pushing the bug way harder than she ever had since purchasing the vehicle to get to her destination as quickly as possible. She cursed herself for not switching over to the patrol car – not only could it haul more ass, the sirens would have cleared the way (not that traffic was much of an issue in Storybrooke in the morning).
Less than half a mile from the wishing well, Emma spotted a motorcycle on the side of the road, lights flashing. She knew that motorcycle and its rider who was leaning against it. In her exhausted state of mind, Emma could not help but feel less than amused.
"Fast response time, Sheriff," August commented as Emma slammed the door of the bug that had have its fair share of rough handling over the years.
"If this is your idea of asking me out on a second date," Emma warned.
"It's not," August replied, not allowing her to finish her previous statement. "I didn't even know our drinks was an official first-"
"You saw the wolf then?" Emma interrupted.
"Well, that is what I reported," August pointed out.
Emma folded her arms over her chest. She definitely did not have time for this right now. "You saw a killer beast and decided to wait around in the area that it's been stalking instead of heading back to safety?" she questioned. "Your story's not exactly panning out. What are you even doing out here?"
August frowned at her, as if she had done something wrong. The expression only furthered her annoyance. "I'm a writer," he answered. "I find that walks, especially out here, give me inspiration. There's something magical about this forest, hiding its secrets under every leaf and rock."
"All that magic crap may work on Henry, but not on me," Emma stated, turning around. He did not need to know about the jarring night she had, a night that was making her question what exactly was real and true.
"I came across the carcase."
"You found the what?" Emma asked, looking back around at him.
"And now that I have your attention…" August trailed off, leading her away from the road and into the forest.
She quickly learned that August was not one for trails. No, his walks meant trekking along, zig sagging through trees, climbing over rocks, and jumping down small cliff edges. For a stranger, Emma had to admit that he knew the area better than she did. The realization made her eyes narrow at his back as she followed. This situation was all too similar, mirroring the one that happened not even twelve hours ago. Emma quickly reminded herself that, this time, she had a weapon clipped on her belt. She was not exactly in the mood to be kidnapped again.
"Down there," August said, coming up to the edge of a small drop. He looked over his shoulder towards Emma who walked up to his side, her eyes not leaving his until he turned his attention back to the scene below.
Had Emma not known any better, she would have sworn she was on the set of a horror film. Her eyes grew wide and, for a moment, she forgot how to breathe. The tall beast had been reduced to this… mangled form. It had been ripped to shreds; Emma could barely make out the gunshot wounds she had dealt herself. With all the blood split, Emma was certain there would not be a drop left in the corpus – did werewolves have corpuses or carcasses? No, that was not the question she should be asking.
"What the hell did this?" Emma asked when she found her voice. She even noted that its throat had been ripped out. Whatever did this, it wanted to make sure the beast had no chance of recovering.
"There's an actual wolf in the area – I've seen it around," August responded. "There are no other predators."
"I've seen it too," Emma murmured. Lucy. As much as rationality told her it was not possible, evidence flat out showed her that the wolf was that woman. "But it's small – the runt of the pack. There's no way it could have done this. It was being thrown around like a sack of potatoes."
August nodded in agreement. "The Big Bad Wolf couldn't be taken down by a runt," he commented.
Emma ignored the fact that he called this animal the Big Bad Wolf for now. "So what did this then?" she repeated her original question.
"Another beast like it," August concluded.
"Another what?" Emma asked, eyebrows rising. "We're out here, not equipped to deal with something like that, August," she pointed out.
"But we're safe," August reassured, looking back at the creature. "Wolves, in whatever form, are pack animals – very loyal to each other. Packs are families; they protect each other from danger. Whatever did this, did it for the sake of protecting a pack member, a loved one. It probably saw the runt being attack and saw red."
Emma shook her head. What he was saying did not make any sense – well, it did, but at the same time, it was difficult to grasp. "We can't leave it out here," she said. "We're surrounded by hiking trails. Someone can stumble on it. I can call animal control in the afternoon. I need to get to a –uh- meeting this morning."
"Call them now – I'll wait for them," August offered. "No one needs to know what this thing smells like after baking in the sun."
"Here I thought writers were always up for new experiences."
"Sometimes we leave things up to our imagination," he retorted, turning around. "Let's get you to your meeting, Sheriff."
The trek back to the road seemed a lot shorter than the one to the sight. Once back at the bug, Emma made the call to animal control and informed August that they were on their way. Soon enough, Emma was on hers with still a bit of time to spare. Good. While the road running through the forest was twisted and full of turns, she kept her eyes forward, but they wandered over to the passenger seat once the street straightened out.
And it felt as though the damn book was staring right back at her, begging to be read. Emma let out a short bitter laugh. She could not believe what she was about to do – she did have a few minutes after all.
After drifting off to the side of the road, Emma killed the bug's engine and rested the book against the steering wheel. She had already flipped through the story of the Mad Hatter at the school – the reminder caused her to steal a glance of the top hat she had thrown onto the floor of the car.
Emma began flipping through the worn pages. Some felt older than others, a little odd, but it was an old book, she reminded herself as she continued to skim through the pages. She paused at an image of two women hunched over in the snow, the one in red pointing out tracks to the one in white. Emma knew them. She knew the people in this drawing.
Ruby and Mary Margaret.
She forced herself to flip further into the book. She opened to a drawing of David on a horse, but it could be David, it was not possible. Another flip. This time, a drawing of David and Mary Margaret – a long haired Mary Margaret at that – were staring up at her. Once more, Emma's mind crossed into the realm of 'what if.'
What if this curse was real? That Henry's Operation Cobra was something she really should concern herself about? Was it possible that the reason Emma never found her parents was because they had been stuck here for twenty eight years under a powerful dark curse? And she was the savior? Her? She was no hero…
Her heart sank and a lump grew in her throat. She quickly shook the emotion away, she could not be clouded by them right now.
The last twenty eight years have shown her how cruel the real world was. This was real life, reality. No magic. No fairytales. Her time in Storybrooke was challenging everything she thought she knew, it was breaking down a wall that had been constructed over years. Not only was it taking down the wall, it was also changing her definition of what was possible and what was impossible.
So… what if it was all true? What if fairytales did exist?
As soon as the thought left her mind, the bug began shaking. Emma's hand immediately grasped the steering wheel and her foot pressed against the break. It took Emma a second to realize that the car was not moving, it was an earthquake that was quickly over just as it had started.
"The hell," she mumbled, starting the engine. Her time was up. She had to get to the office.
xxxx
"She hasn't awaken since she's arrived, ma'am," the nurse at the front desk of the ward informed.
"Well then, there's no harm in checking in on her, is there?" Regina asked, grinning as the nurse shook her head. "And how's the other?"
"No change, still mute, ma'am," the nurse replied. "We placed the new patient right next door."
"As always, thank you for the work you do," Regina said before heading down the narrow hallway. At the end, she took a left and came to a stop at the door before the one she usually visited. Her previous grin had disappeared, replaced by her stone cold scowl. Her hand rested on the latch of the small metal door that would grant her view. She sighed heavily.
Perhaps her body died, but not her spirit.
Rumpelstilskins' words whispered in her mind. She could still hear Henry shout of that woman's name at the wolf, that wolf that had the uneven cut under its left eye. That cut was about to either confirm or… Regina still could not accept what it had the potential to confirm.
Without waiting another moment, Regina unlocked the latch and pulled the metal door back before taking a step forward to peer inside the room. She was laying there, nearly motionless sans the slow raising and falling of her chest. Regina then spotted the bewitched necklace – a sign the curse was weakening, her magic was returning. The way it hung awkwardly told her that the metal had infused with the skin, already pointing towards the confirmation she was seeking.
Her eyes trailed up to the woman's face – and there it was.
The wound on her left cheek.
Regina closed her eyes tightly as her mouth suddenly became unbearably dry. She lowered her head, shoulders falling slightly. Rumpelstilskin's words were ringing louder than ever. But not her spirit. The son of a bitch knew. The son of a bitch, who she spoke to only a couple hours ago, knew.
Her spirit lived on. As a wolf? How was that even possible? And how did Henry know? Was it all in that damn book? She needed to get her hands on that damn book.
And this wo-
No, Lillian. It was her Lily.
Regina looked back up, began watching the woman once more. How much did she know? How much was she aware of? How had the curse effected her and did it still? And if it did not, to what extent had it? Did she even know her own name? Her real name?
She caught herself thinking how much 'Lucy' did not suit her Lily. Her Lily that went back to the cemetery, back to her vault. Regina could not say for certain if Lily remembered the Enchanted Forest, but she knew that Lily had to at least remember Regina trying to rip her heart out if she had returned to the cemetery. Not exactly the most… warming mother daughter experience.
And what about the first encounter in the sheriff's office after she had been arrested? Did she know anything besides the necklace belonged to her? And what about when she broke into the manor? She gave the last name 'Mills.' Did she know then? Then at the apartment – that ridiculous story of an accident that never happened.
Regina slammed the sliding metal panel shut and locked the latch before making her way back to the front desk of the ward. "Call me the moment the new patient wakes up," Regina ordered the nurse who looked up.
She nodded. "If she wakens by the end of the business day, ma'am-"
"No," Regina interjected curtly. "You will call the moment she wakes," she demanded. "I don't care if I'm in the middle of a meeting or if it's the middle of the night – you will call my personal cell and I expect to be granted access to the patient."
"Visiting hours-"
"You will call and grant me access," Regina stated, her voice dangerously low, threatening.
"Yes, ma'am."
xxxx
Although the constant beeping from the heart monitor informed the two of them in the small hospital room that Granny was okay, Ruby could not help but feel nervous and uneasy. Granny reached out, took her hand, and gave it a squeeze, causing Ruby to look up from her seat at the bedside and forced herself to smile. Granny matched it before lifting the young woman's hand to give her a small kiss.
"I'm glad you're here, Ruby."
Hospitals made the tough Granny very sentimental.
"Of course I'd be here," Ruby mumbled softly. "Where else would I be, huh?" she asked, her voice laced with a small shaky laugh. Sleeping her way down the eastern seaboard? No, that was not Red. That was the curse. Red always put her family and friends first. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm okay," Granny reassured.
"Okay?" Ruby repeated. "Then what are we doing here, huh?" she asked gently.
"Putting you through the same worry I go through whenever you come home late," Granny replied with a sly grin. "As long as it wasn't a heart attack, Ruby, I'm okay. We'll be okay."
Ruby smiled softly, nodding. Little did Granny know that Ruby knew the worry well enough. Lucy did not have much respect for time or punctuality either. "Granny, I'm coming back to the diner," she stated.
"Honey-"
"You need the help now more than ever," Ruby pointed out. "You shouldn't be working such long shifts."
"It wasn't the long shifts that put me here, Ruby," Granny replied. "It was that earthquake – took me by surprise."
"I don't think we can single handedly blame the chest pains on-"
"You've been happier at the sheriff's department," Granny interrupted.
The chiming of Ruby's phone prevented her from responding. The tiny screen was flashing Emma's number. "Speak of the devil," Ruby mumbled. Suddenly, one of the weights on her shoulders disappeared. Emma was okay, not taken away by an Evil Queen.
"We'll talk about it later," Granny promised.
Ruby stood up and placed a kiss on Granny's forehead before dismissing herself from the room. She flipped the phone, revealing the text message: 'Where are you?'
Clearly, their lovely Madame Mayor did not inform the sheriff about chasing away her assistant this morning. Her thumb hovered over the dial button. A phone call would be quicker, but Emma texted for a reason. The sheriff had become distant, ever since their encounter with the beast. Emma was going through a lot right now, there was a lot of take in, and Ruby probably was not making it any easier.
'Granny had chest pains- at hospital. Won't make it in today. She's ok.'
She would tell her about the mayor later.
'Don't worry about it,' Emma's response read. 'Give my regards.'
The clicking of heels against the tile floor caused Ruby to look up from the text. Upon seeing Regina walking her way, Ruby took a step back and brought her phone up to her ear. "Yeah, Ash?" she said to the silence on the other end as the mayor came within ear shot. "Listen, Granny definitely won't be back in for the day. They're running tests to figure the chest pains out and…" her voice trailed off as Regina rounded the corner.
Flipping her phone close, Ruby tucked it away into her pocket and glanced up the directory across the hall from her. Where was the mayor coming from? The directory told her radiology, causing her to raise an eyebrow. What business would the mayor have in the radiology department?
It was not like Ruby to just sit around and do nothing while something was a foot. What kind of tracker would she be if she did not investigate her environment? Granted, she preferred the forest over the hospital, but she was going to be in and out of this building over the next couple of days – might as well poke around.
She followed the directory down the hallway towards radiology. Each step she took made her heart beat so much faster, worry taking over and clouding her mind. As she came closer to the targeted department, Ruby could feel a weight return to her shoulders, dragging her down. Why? The waiting room at the end of the hall was empty, nothing looked out of place. Even the reception desk was void of any worker. Had the mayor scared everyone off? She did have that effect on people. And why the sudden strange feeling? Ruby could not shake it.
But there was nothing more to the area – not that Ruby could see.
In mid turn, a red sign caught her eye and attention. 'Exit.' She furrowed her eyebrows. There was nothing wrong with an exit door – one accompanied by a number pad? An emergency exit for personnel, probably. She felt a pull towards it, an urge to go through the door and onto the other side.
Ruby shook her head, forcing herself to take that short walk back to Granny's room. The temptation of an exit had to be ignored. Hospitals may not be one of her favorite places in the world, but she could be here for Granny.
To be continued
Author's Note: Thanks for taking the time to read this chapter! Leave me a review, let me know what you think – I love hearing from you guys!