Mary Margaret had faded in and out of consciousness for the next two hours. Emma sat faithfully by her side, armed with the scalpel since that…Rumpelstiltskin had taken everything from her but her clothes (she was certain he struggled with himself on that one).

Every time her mother woke up, she'd asked what happened and she asked where they were and she asked where Charm…no- David was. Emma explained it as best she understood. They were back in time…she didn't know how far but apparently during some time where Regina was recognized but Mary Mar- Snow White wasn't.

And Mr. Gold was way WAY different…as if he wasn't creepy and callous enough, now he wore extremely tight leather pants and undressed her with his eyes.

And he was capable of throwing her around with magic; Emma knew that if she didn't cooperate with him soon then she was in trouble.

Emma helped Mary Margaret up, seeing her on that table just freaked her out.

"Emma," Mary Margaret said in pain stumbled, "Dizzy…."

Emma helped her kneel down, Emma rubbed Mary Margaret's back as she heaved on the floor and then helped her scoot over against the wall.

"Emma," Mary Margaret whispered and looked around, "This is the Dark Castle-."

"Yeah," Emma muttered. What a creative name, "I know."

"W-why?"

"Rumpelstiltskin found us before we woke up."

"We're home?"

"Sort of," Emma said and gave an involuntary wince when Mary Margaret rested her head on her shoulder. She was so jumpy and until she and her mother could talk about their relationship then it was going to be weird the more they had contact especially since they were here, "We're back in time-."

"What?" Mary asked in confusion.

"Magic is unpredictable at home apparently…or at least my home…," Emma muttered, ugh everything was so confusing…what did she call this place? Because this wasn't home. She spent all of about five minutes here if Henry was right…

Not 'if'. He was right. HE had been all along and Emma had never listened to him even though the signs were there.

"Emma, listen to me," Mary Margaret started and lifted her head up.

Emma tensed at the authoritative tone in her voice, "Mary Margaret, you need to rest, you have a concussion."

"He's going to try and persuade you to make a deal…you can't do it."

"Oh don't worry, I already owe him a favor and I certainly-."

"Don't let him know that," Mary interrupted her with a harsh whisper, "Emma, he'll make it sound like you have no chance unless you deal with him and he'll attack you when you're vulnerable…"

"I know that already," Emma muttered, "I don't need you looking after me."

"When we're in the crosshairs of the Dark One and dealing with magic, everyone needs to look out for everyone."

Emma rolled her eyes, "I didn't need you following me! Why did you jump in the hat after me?"

Mary Margaret looked hurt and Emma instantly regretted it. She didn't mean to sound so harsh as there were bits of Mary Margaret that was her friend in there and this was her mother…

Her mother that threw her in a wardrobe and expected her to save the world in a land that she more than likely didn't understand. Her mother that couldn't understand that Emma couldn't just suddenly forgive her and let go of the anger that she felt towards her parents for what she thought was abandoning her on the side of the road and the 16 years of abandonment issues that followed until she got emancipated.

Emma knew that her mother did it to save her but she still couldn't help but feel angry. She was just a pawn and she had suffered for it. That wasn't her mother's fault and she knew that but for some reason…she just felt so angry…she wished her mother could get her wish and that anger could go away immediately but it didn't look like it was going to happen.

And now her mother jumped in with her and now she had to deal with Rumpelstiltskin using her mother as leverage to get what he wanted and Emma would have to protect her mom from everything out there as well. True, she knew some of the story of Snow White from Henry's book, but Snow White had been Mary Margaret for 28 years. She was bound to get rusty.

The door opened when it began to get dark and the imp stood there, once again dressed in a red vest but now he had a red cravat on and a yellow silk shirt to match.

"Dinner…," he hesitated and then gave a big gesture towards the hallway, "is served."

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Rumpelstiltskin had to threaten to magically teleport them to the dining room before Emma even considered moving from her spot on the floor but just because Rumpelstiltskin could force her to be anywhere he wanted for her to be did NOT mean that he could force her to eat.

"Chimera," Rumpelstiltskin had said it was. Apparently it was like Turducken or something and nothing about it looked filling or appetizing. Mary Margaret whispered to her that it was a delicacy but she didn't seem to have the stomach for it either. Her mother just sort of picked at the meat. Emma was more defiant, she didn't touch any of it. She crossed her arms and glared at Rumpelstiltskin the whole time. He acted like a perfect gentleman and it freaked her out. He tried to make small talk and encourage them to eat….one would not guess that they were being held against their will.

"You could feed a family for a month with what's on this table," Rumpelstiltskin told Emma when he finally had enough of her silence.

"So feed them," Emma snapped. She had enough experience around food and magical beings to really last a lifetime.

"Ooo," he said mockingly, "Tense, aren't we?"

"Let us go home and maybe we won't have to deal with this awkward small talk that none of us really want to do."

"Oh, I'm sure you'd very much like to go home," he said, "But if I could get you there, don't you think I would've already gone myself, dearie?"

"Then I suggest you figure it out," Emma snapped.

"Oh, I'm trying to dearie," he said that word again and Emma felt her jaw twitch, "But if you don't tell me what I want to know then I can't help you…"

"E-," Mary started to say and then stopped when Rumpelstiltskin realized that she was about to say her daughter's name. He looked toward Mary and then gleefully leaned toward her as if he was eagerly, "Alice…don't."

Rumpelstiltskin sat back in disappointment. Emma wasn't sure why he didn't just listen when they were whispering to each other but Emma supposed it was just a game to him. IT wasn't so much that he knew her name as it was that she told it to him.

"Your mother would be right if you had any other chance to get home but we all know that you don't and unless you tell me what you know then I can't get you home…don't worry dearie with you and I working together time and space will be in our reach-."

He reached out to stroke the back of Emma's hand flirtatiously and Emma jerked her hand away and nearly slammed the knife into it.

"I thought nothing was beyond your reach…"

Emma tensed when she heard the voice and so did Mary Margaret. They both slowly turned behind them and there he stood. In far more leather and eye makeup then Emma ever thought she wore herself and it didn't seem like the most eccentric thing on him.

"Jefferson," Emma practically hissed.

He gave her a winning smile…well at least the leather didn't seem too odd on him for some reason. Maybe because she's already been exposed to his odd choices in wardrobe over on the other side, "Company! Should I-?"

"Oh, just negotiations going on here, dearie! Since they seem to know you, I'd say you have a sit down or this food is going to go to waste anyway."

He moved to sit next to Emma and that's when she lunged. She couldn't hurt Rumpelstiltskin but she could hurt Jefferson. Normally she wouldn't do this but she was in a land that she didn't understand and just began to believe in with her best friend who was also her mother and she was trapped by a man she owed a favor to who didn't know that yet and was desperate for answers.

He didn't even get a chance to put his butt in the seat before Emma shoved a knife against his jugular and pulled him up.

"What are you doing?" Mary Margaret asked desperately

Rumpelstiltskin got up, concern in his eyes, "Don't do that."

He could easily dissipate that knife if he wanted to. That was the first thing that tipped her off that she might just be walking into his plan and perhaps Jefferson was working with him. She should think of something else to escape but this was their only window thus far.

"Oh please don't hurt me," Jefferson said pretty unconvincingly and she knew. HE was an ally of Rumpel.

"Mary Margaret," Emma whispered, "Let's go."

She was walking right into whatever plan they had, she knew that. They probably expected her to buy that she could actually take Jefferson as a hostage and he'd stick with them and find out information. But Emma had other ideas, she was going to find his hat and use it to get home. Magic was in Storybrooke so that meant they could get home now since his hat only connected to magical realms.

Ditching him and getting her hands on the hat without getting caught and brought back by Rumpelstiltskin, now that might be the real problem