That OUAT Finale was amazing! Thank you to those who answered my Cora question. I have taken them all into consideration.
Chapter 13: The Battle Begins
Regina and Cora were about to tell Mandy the plan but doorbell rang. Mandy was the closest to the door so she went to answer it. When she opened the door, she was surprised to see who it was standing on the other side.
"Peter! What are you doing here?" She asked with a smile on her face. She was happy to see him.
"We need to talk Miranda." He said angrily, nudging past her without being invited in.
"What's wrong Peter?" She asked shutting the door and turning to face him.
"I remember everything, Miranda. Our time in Neverland with Wendy. You tried to kill her!" His voice raising with every word.
"Whoa, Peter! Calm down. Can we talk about this later? I was just about to…"
He cut her off. "No we can't talk about this later. You weren't going to bring up her name at all. You wanted to pretend like nothing ever happened and your perfect life." He screamed. Cora and Regina heard shouting and decided to eavesdrop.
"You never let me explain myself. You just assumed I was the evil one!" She screamed back.
"You are! You're the one who tried to kill her!" He yelled, his is voice louder than before.
"Only after she tried to kill me!" She screamed trying to explain herself.
"Stop lying Miranda! I'm so sick of you lying to me."
"I'm not lying Peter! Ask Tink, she was there when it all happened." She said trying to get Peter to believe her.
"Oh, don't bring Tinkerbell into this. You knew what you were doing when you brought Wendy to the mermaid lagoon." He said disgusted.
"She suggested it! If you'd just let me explain, I can…"
He interrupted. "Save it! Did you even have feelings for me or was that just a ruse too?"
"You were the only one I ever loved. Peter! I still love you." She whispered as she put her arms on his chest.
He pushed her away, not wanting any contact with her. "I could never love someone who has evil and hatred in their heart." He said angrily. His words made Mandy and Regina wince. Regina couldn't listen to this boy rip apart her daughter's heart. She decided it was time to intervene and stepped out from behind the wall.
"That's enough!" Regina yelled. "I will not have you come into my house and say those horrible things to my daughter. I think you should go now!"
"Don't worry; I was just one my way out." He said to Regina then turned back to face Mandy. "Get your stuff out of my place. We're done."
"But Peter …" The door slammed before she could get another word out.
After Neal got out of the shower, they dropped off Henry with Ruby so he would stay safe and out of the crossfire. They walked into the shop and saw Gold lying on the floor. Neal rushed over to him first, followed by the rest of Charming family.
"Papa! Papa what happened?" Neal asked as he held Gold in his arms.
"Hook…he stabbed me." He said breathing heavily.
"What's that green stuff coming out?" Emma asked with a confused and disgusted look on her face.
"I think it's poison." Snow suggested.
"It is…" Gold managed to get out.
"We need to move him to a couch, somewhere comfortable." David said.
"In the back…" Gold told them.
They moved him to the back of the shop and tried to get him comfortable. They were all going to prepare for Cora and Regina's arrival but Gold stopped Snow before she could leave. He asked her to get another blanket from a cabinet. When she opened it, she found the candle that the Blue Fairy had given to her when she was a young girl. She asked Gold why he had it, he simply replied, "For a rainy day." He tossed around the idea of Snow killing Cora with the use of the candle and Cora's heart in order to save him. She left not knowing what she would choose to do.
Soon after Peter left, Cora, Regina and Mandy teleported to Regina's office. Cora was pacing back and forth while Mandy and Regina were sitting by the desk. Mandy had her head on the table, thinking about what happened earlier with Peter.
"Mother, will you stop walking back and forth. We need to re-evaluate this plan." Regina said frustrated.
Cora stopped to face Regina, who was sitting behind the desk. "I'm thinking, Regina. They know we have the dagger and plan to attack Rumplestiltskin."
"So how do we get Henry back and stop Miranda from having to do this favor?" Regina questioned.
Cora began pacing again. "Still thinking. Feel free to help out any time, you two." She said sarcastically.
"We are." Regina responded.
"Miranda seems to be napping, not thinking." Cora observed.
"I can hear you." Mandy mumbled, still keeping her head on the table.
"Leave her alone, Mother." Regina said aggravated.
"Rumplestiltskin's smart, and now he has time to think and prepare." Cora said getting back to the plan. Mandy lifted her head but was leaning on her hands, staring at the dagger in front of her.
"Then shouldn't we go now?" Regina asked. Mandy noticed Rumplestiltskin's name on the dagger slowly disappear. She picked it up to examine it closer.
"I think he's injured." Mandy suggested. Cora walked over and Mandy handed the knife to her. She took a closer look at it and realized what was going on.
"More than injured. He's dying." She said looking up at Regina.
"That's good right? We won't have to kill him and I won't have to do this favor." Mandy pointed out.
"When his name disappears, all of that power of his will just boil off into the air, and there will be no new Dark One." Cora said.
"You say that like it's a bad thing." Mandy noticed.
"Okay, so we have to get Henry back before he dies." Regina said standing up and walking around her desk. Mandy continued to sit in the chair, preoccupied by the ring Peter had given her a little after the curse was cast.
"Not in his condition. I don't want to kill him faster. No, there are no other options. I have to stab him with this knife and take his power as my own. I have to become the Dark One…" Cora said realizing what had to happen. This caught Mandy's attention. She got up and walked over to stand next to Regina.
"And with his power, there's nothing I won't be able to do." Cora finished her thought.
"But Henry's never going to forgive that, and the whole point of this is to…" Regina's voice began to trail off when she realized Cora might have an ulterior motive. "Wait, what is the point of all this?"
"To protect our family." Cora simply replied.
"Or you gaining your power." Regina shot back.
"Whatever power I gain is for us. To protect you, Miranda and Henry." Cora replied. Mandy dropped her ring on the floor and began searching for it.
"If we lose this battle, we'll spend the rest of our short lives on our knees in front of them… And that, my love, is something I'll never do." Cora looked down to see Mandy on her knees searching for her ring. "And neither will you." Cora said grabbing Mandy's arm and pulling her up. "Let's go!" Cora commanded and she walked out of Regina's office. Regina and Mandy stared at each other with scared looks on their faces.
"I'm not sure if I like where this is going." Mandy admitted.
"I'm a little worried myself." Regina confessed before wrapping her arm around Mandy and started walking out the door.
"Wait, my ring. I dropped it." Mandy said. They both began searching for it. Regina saw something sparkle under a chair and went to pick it up.
"Is this it?" Regina asked holding it out for Mandy to grab.
"Yes! Thank you." She said relieved. She took the ring and put it on. "Peter gave it to me." She said sadly as she remembered the fight and the person she had lost earlier.
"I know you're hurting, honey. I'm here if you need to talk." Regina said offering a smile. Mandy wrapped her arms around Regina's waist. She was surprised by the hug and hugged her back.
Cora appeared in the doorway. "Are you two coming or not? We are on a time schedule here. Move it!" She said angrily and left.
"We should go before she starts using magic on us." Regina suggested.
"You mean she can get worse than that?" Mandy asked shocked.
"Oh honey, you don't want to see her any worse than she is now." Regina said knowing all too well what Cora was capable of. They walked out the door quickly to join Cora.
They now stood outside Gold's shop. Before they attempted to attack, Cora suggested they put a protective spell on them just in case something was to happen. They took a step back and formed a circle as they linked hands. They began saying the incantation in unison.
"By the dragons light, on this April night, I call to thee to give me your might, by the power of three, I conjure thee, to protect all that surrounds me." As soon as they finished saying the spell, a burst of bright green light emanated from all three women.
"Did it work?" Mandy asked.
"Yes, we're ready now." Cora confirmed.
They stood in a straight line with Mandy in the middle. Cora tried to bust down the door with her magic but there was a protective spell placed around the shop. Everyone inside the shop knew they had arrived were ready to fight. They would need more power to break the spell and open the door. Cora gave them a look and they instantly knew what to do. They each held up a hand and created a very powerful fireball. They threw it, causing the door to open forcefully. They walked inside to find Neal, Emma and David holding swords. Snow snuck out the back as soon as they had entered.
"Regina, think about what you are doing!" Emma warned.
"Don't talk to me." Regina responded sternly.
"Miranda, you're better than this. You don't have to turn to the dark side just because your mother did." David said trying to convince her to switch sides.
"You don't know me David. I have my own reasons to be on this side." Mandy shot back.
"Enough!" Cora yelled. Regina made a fireball appear and threw it at them. David deflected it with his sword. Mandy then sent David flying out the door with it shutting behind him.
"David!" Emma screamed as she took a step forward. Cora quickly turned around and held up her hand, sending Emma flying backwards and dropping her sword. Neal then attempted to fight Cora but when he took a swing, she disappeared in a puff of purple smoke, dropping the dagger in the process. As soon as Emma got to her feet, Regina began choking her. Mandy ran to get the dagger that Cora had dropped and turned to face Neal, ready for battle. Cora's sudden return into the room caught both Mandy and Regina off guard, causing them to lose focus and become distracted. Emma grabbed a wand and spun Regina around, holding it to her neck. Neal did the same to Mandy, causing her to drop the dagger. He held his knife under her neck, ready to kill her. Cora looked from Mandy, to the dagger, then to Regina, contemplating her next move.
"What's it gonna be lady?" Neal asked Cora.
"Mother!" Regina screamed.
"Choose wisely." Neal advised. She looked back at Regina before making the dagger come to her. Emma then pushed Regina into her mother, knocking Cora to the floor and sending Regina flying over the counter, causing glass to break everywhere. As soon as Emma pushed Regina, Neal forcefully pushed Mandy down. Her momentum carried her forward as she went through one of the glass cases, causing more glass to be shattered and landing close to Regina.
"Fall back to Gold! I have the chalk." Emma screamed to Neal. Regina got up quickly but Emma had already put the barrier on the door. She helped her mother up and healed Mandy's cuts on her face and hands from the glass she went through.
"Help me take out Rumplestiltskin and then we'll go back…" Cora said her voice trailing off as she began to feel dizzy. Mandy and Regina both grabbed her arms to help her stand up.
"Mother, what is it?" Regina asked worriedly.
"My…my heart. It's in your vault. Someone's there." Cora cringed in pain. Mandy put her arm around Cora's back to hold her up better.
"Mother?" Regina asked.
"Go. Both of you. Go!" Cora commanded. They both ran out of the store as Cora tried to break the barrier
"Really Rumple…hiding's beneath you." Cora mumbled before trying to break the barrier once more.
David finally came too after Mandy threw him out of the shop. He called Emma to make sure everyone was okay inside.
"David?" Emma questioned.
"Are you safe?" He asked quickly.
"For now. I got the spell up. We're in the back room." Emma responded.
"Is Snow okay?" He then asked getting to his feet.
"She's not with you?" She asked confused.
"No. Where the hell is she?"
Snow was in Regina's vault looking for Cora's heart. She finally found it and took the little box out of the trunk. She opened it but quickly shut it as she had doubts about going through with her plan. She remembered what Cora had done and opened it again but this time she put the curse on the heart. After she blew out the candles, she closed the box and was going to bring it back to the shop when she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Snow froze in place. Regina and Mandy looked around before spotting Snow with the box in her hands.
"You have no right to be here…and you have no right to that!" Regina screamed, pointing to the box in Snow's hands.
"I was going to give it to you." Snow whispered.
"What?" Regina said confused.
"She can't love you, ya know. She doesn't have her heart. With it, maybe she can. That's why you never felt she loved you." Snow said trying to reason with Regina as to why she should put Cora's heart back inside her. Mandy looked to her mother with sadness, she didn't realize Regina basically grew up without a mother to love her, just like she had.
"She doesn't have her heart, but I do." Snow said smiling.
"You're doing this for me?" Regina asked in disbelief.
"Think about it. What would happen if Cora had her heart back inside her." Snow whispered.
"She took it out to protect herself." Regina replied, explaining her mother's reasoning for taking the heart in the first place.
"Did it work? The person she was before, do you think she survived?" Snow asked rhetorically. "She can't love, so she can't love you."
Regina shook her head." She always wanted what was best for me. That's love." She said, her voice trembling.
"Imagine real love. You'd have a mother…and a start on a family Henry can be a part of." Snow said trying to create an image in Regina's head. "Miranda would have a grandmother who loves her, not one who is just using her for her power." Regina looked at Mandy who hadn't taken her eyes off her mother the entire time. Mandy grabbed Regina's hand and squeezed it tight.
"Or you could have her be the Dark One." Snow said offering the box to Regina. "The choice is yours."
Hope you all liked this chapter; let me know what you think so far. Quick question: Do you like the whole Greg/Tamara storyline? If so I'll try to work it in but if not, I'll just forget about it.