"Hello Rumpelstilskin."

The Dark One had to do everything in his power to fight the shiver wanting to crawl up his spine. He turned around with his usual blank stare. He could tell Marian wasn't buying it. He was okay with that. He wasn't buying the sane look either.

"I'm paying my debt," she said.

"No need for that, dearie," he replied, "Your sister volunteered to take up the mantle in your absence."

Marian shook visibly. Honestly it was a wonder the woman was even able to stand on her own two feet. The magic was consuming her and she was letting it. He had a similar experience when he lost his son. He almost allowed his magic to destroy him. He wasn't nearly as strong as Marian though. He was too attached to the power to truly let it do the job and kill him. Instead, Marian just wanted the magic long enough for revenge. After that she pretty much didn't care.

"My sister doesn't have the means to pay the debt like I do," Marian replied.

She waved her hand and a stream of magic coursed through the air. It all gathered together into a little ball on the table. The magic flickered and melted until the ball took shape. A globe grew from the warping power. It turned and tilted until the globe was all that was left. It stood there, humming.

"With just one tiny prick of your finger," Marian said, "Your son will be found."

Rumpelstilskin stared at the globe longingly. He knew what it did. He knew how it worked. There was nothing that could stop him from getting what he wanted. Well, there were a few things that would stop him actually.

"I've already thought of that," Marian replied. She stretched out her shaking hand and a bottle appeared out of nowhere. She extended it towards him, a gift of peace and gratitude. "Pour this on the object you love most and it will allow you to cross the border without losing your memory."

"Why didn't you use this on yourself?" He asked, "You could have been free a long time ago."

Marian gave him a pitying look. She patted his cheek in some act of comfort. She then stared at the bottle in sadness. She caressed the way one would a child. A moment of sadness dimmed the red in her eyes. She looked up and the years came upon her decades at a time.

"Revenge will be my downfall," she said.

Rumpelstilskin grabbed her before she could even turn to go. His heart broke as he recognized the woman before him. The need for power was unmistakable. The lines formed from too many burdens on such slender shoulders, too obvious. Regina had nothing on this woman.

"Cora," he whispered.

Marian smiled at him sadly. Her head bowed and pulled up again. It was Cora. She returned. She was here, in Storybrooke. She made it back when no one else could. Which meant Emma and Snow weren't far behind.

"Hello, old friend," she said.

Rumpelstilskin pushed her away in shock. He felt vulgar, tricked. He wiped away at his hands. This woman was the one who caused this. She manipulated both of her children, warped them into tattered souls who didn't know how to be happy. She was the true source of her daughters' unhappiness.

"Where's Marian?" he asked.

"I don't know," Cora replied honestly. That was a new approach. "I'd say she's vying for her quest to power."

"Power," Rumpelstilskin scoffed, "Is that all you care about? Power? Your daughters are about to duel to the death! They're going to kill each other and all you can care about is power!"

"You sound upset, master," Cora said, "Isn't this what you predicted. One child would soar above the other. That is what you predicted when you discovered I was pregnant with my second daughter."

"She shouldn't have been!" Rumpel screamed, "She was innocent. They both were. You ruined them."

"And you helped," Cora sneered.

Rumpelstilskin nodded. She was right. This was his responsibility as well. He should have never helped along their little rift. Now he would never see his son again. They would destroy the world before then.

"Am I to detect a tiny hint of regret, master?" Cora stepped towards him, ready for the kill. "I guess it's a good thing my daughter does not have your weakness."

"The magic is killing her!" Rumpel shouted, "You always made her fear it! She thinks it is against her. She doesn't accept it!"

"Then let that be her downfall," Cora shrugged.

"You've sent her after my dagger, haven't you?" He gasped.

"Of course," Cora smiled. She was straightening the lapels of his shirt. "Don't take it personally. It's strategy. I didn't tell her exactly where to find it. I don't know. I merely hinted at where it would be. Regina will meet her in battle long before she gets to her destination and you're going to help."

"How am I going to help you?"

"I just paid off my daughter's debt," Cora shrugged, "I'm sure we could come to some sort of arrangement."

%%%%%%%%%%%%

"What do you mean Parker's your daughter?" Hardison demanded.

He was not having a good day. Magic was real. Parker's necklace was growing way too brightly. Eliot wasn't freaking out at all. Nate apparently thought he was a fairytale character as well. Henry was the only normal person in the room and he thought fairytales were real just like everybody else in this stupid town. They were wrong. Fairytales did not exist and Nate and Sophie were not Robin Hood and Maid Marian.

"Hardison," Nate sighed, "I know this is hard to believe-"

"No!" Hardison shouted, "No, hard to believe is the idea that magic is real. Impossible, Nate! It is impossible to believe that Parker is your daughter! She's a blonde for crying out loud!"

"Heredity isn't exactly something that can be ignored, Hardison," Eliot growled.

The hacker sent him a lot of glares for that one. How come he wasn't freaking out? This wasn't exactly normal. Of course, most of the things they did weren't normal. This definitely was top on the list of weirdest jobs ever. He was seriously considering taking Parker and getting out of there. He just couldn't leave without Eliot, Nate and Sophie in tow.

"Her grandmother is goldilocks!" Henry said.

"Why does Sophie want to kill Regina?" He rasped. His patience was wearing thin. He didn't know how much longer it would be before he blew up on all of them. "She's supposed to be her big sister, right? Sophie doesn't exactly enjoy the idea of killing people… except Nate but that's just normal."

"I…" Regina stuttered, "I did a very bad thing."

"You killed Icarus," Nate closed his eyes.

Hardison wanted to comfort the mastermind. He even stood up straight to assist in some way. He just didn't know who Icarus was. He also didn't know how the mastermind could possibly know. The real question was how. The former mayor couldn't possibly be that evil, right?

"She said that when we visited your father's grave," Nate explained, "She was after the book there. You killed our son."

"Wait," Hardison was thoroughly confused now, "Our son? You and Sophie had a kid!"

"Two, Hardison," Eliot growled, "Haven't you been paying attention. Icarus and Parker!"

"Parker has yet to be proven!" Hardison replied.

The hitter shrugged in reply.

"We're married too, Hardison," Nate sighed, "and Parker is our kid. Marian… Sophie cast a spell on the locket as a precaution should Regina actually succeed in casting the curse. The locket would tell us the wearer was our child no matter what situation we found ourselves in. Only our children can wear it."

"It won't glow unless it's near its true owner," Eliot gasped.

Nate nodded. Then his eyebrows narrowed at the hitter's quick thinking. He shrugged his shoulders and turned back towards the hacker. It took Hardison a few minutes to realize why. He was waiting for another question. At least he was acting normal-ish.

"So how do you suddenly remember who you are?" The hacker asked, "Sophie said you weren't her true love. True Love's Kiss, right? It didn't work."

"It did work, Hardison!" Eliot growled, "Are you really that thick? Dammit Hardison!"

"Dammit Eliot!" Hardison growled, "Weren't you paying attention? It was working before the kiss! He remembered things… things that didn't make sense. Magic comes with a price!"

"He's right," Nate smiled. Hardison stuck out his tongue in victory. "I was starting to remember before. It's because I broke the rule."

"What rule?" David asked.

"Don't kiss Sophie, duh," Parker shrugged, "She told him not to kiss her. She knew the power of True Love's Kiss, right? Henry said that it didn't work with his grandparents because they both didn't believe in magic. Sophie woke up as Marian. She remembered and thus when she kissed Nate; he remembered too."

"How did Marian remember though?" David asked, "They weren't in Storybrooke when the curse was broken. The barrier proves that it didn't get that far. How did she remember?"

"Isn't it obvious, Charming?" Regina huffed, "They were cursed separately."

"We were sent to the real world first," Nate nodded, "Sophie was the only one who actually had the curse fully affect her."

"But I stabbed her to make certain it didn't affect her the way it was supposed to," Regina nodded, "I may be evil but I love my sister. I didn't want her to suffer like the rest of you."

"No you just wanted to kill her children and make her into you!" David hissed.

"The stab wound was how she wouldn't' forget," Nate explained, "I'm going to say my lovely sister-in-law dipped it with the antidote for the curse. I do mean the lovely sister-in-law sarcastically by the way. I'm considering killing you myself, actually."

"That's normal," Hardison said, "but it's not normal for Sophie. Why is she suddenly so bent on killing her sister? It doesn't make sense. Killing is one of the biggest sins you could commit in her eyes. No offense Eliot."

"None taken," Eliot replied.

"What?" Regina growled, "I'm offended."

"We don't care," Hardison said in perfect tandem with the hitter. It was true. It didn't matter what she did. She wasn't a member of their family. They only tolerated her because she was Sophie's sister.

"The magic," Nate said, "It's consuming her. I told you this would happen."

Nolan looked sheepish suddenly. He bowed his head and scratched at his scalp. He then turned towards Parker and frowned. He shoved his shoulder into Regina as he moved to stand beside Nate. Both men were looking out the grand windows, calculating their next move.

"You said she wouldn't accept the magic as a force of good," David said, "I'm sorry I didn't believe you."

"Well, what did you expect?" Regina huffed, "She was raised by Cora just as I was. Mother wasn't exactly kind when using magic as a weapon. If it wasn't for me, Marian would still think magic was something to be proud of."

"And you're the Evil Queen who never gets a happy ending in the fairytales," Nate snarled, "Isn't that ironic?"

"Can we focus?" Parker shouted.

"We need to find Sophie," Henry agreed.

"Nate," Eliot said, "You're still the one who knows her the most. Where would she go next?"

"She needs more power," Regina sighed, "That spell will make her crave it in ways even Mother would envy. She's going to look for the next greatest power source."

"Right," Nate grimaced, "The Dark One's knife."

Hardison was confused. "Who's the dark one?" He asked.

%%%%%%%%%%

Nate pushed the immortal into the nearest wall. His firm grip was steady and his feet well planted. Mr. Gold couldn't do anything with his magic. The man was well protected to say the least. He was also properly motivated to block it. That was never a good sign.

"Ask your question," Nate ordered of his sister-in-law.

"Why did you recruit me to cast this curse instead of Marian?" Regina demanded harshly, "You knew she was the more powerful one."

"Too powerful," Gold agreed, "She would have overthrown me and devoured my power."

"Regina almost did that," Nate snarled, smacking the man against the wall again. "What's the real reason?"

"She's too strong," Rumpelstilskin snarled, "You've seen her with magic! Every spell she casts. Every movement she makes. She's too good. She always chooses the light. That's what makes her so powerful. There is nothing in this world that can stop her unless she lets it."

"But she's trying to kill me!" Regina growled.

"Well I guess you shouldn't have killed her son, dearie!" Rumpelstilskin winked.

Nate dropped the immortal into a heap at his feet. He backed away slowly and tried to keep his composure. His hands were shaking and he looked paler than he had moments before. Charming and Eliot both stepped forward to help the man but he waved them away. Then Parker interfered with his retreat.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"It's not Marian," Nate replied.

"What do you mean it's not Marian?" Regina scowled towards her brother-in-law, "Who else could it be? That's my sister's body, my sister's mind, my sister's power! Who else could be driving her to kill me?"

"It's Sophie," Nate explained slowly, "Sophie's the one who's driving Marian on this hunt for magic and blood."

"Aren't Marian and Sophie supposed to be the same person?" Parker asked confusion written all over her features.

"They are exact opposites really," Regina explained, "Sophie is everything that Marian isn't. She's abuse, lies, mystery, emotionless; evil basically."

"David is the exact opposite of me," Charming replied, "That doesn't mean I would turn to the dark side so easily."

"Ah but you're forgetting one very important detail," Nate pointed out moving towards the curious eyes ever so slowly. "You're all forgetting what Sophie chose as her profession."

"She's a grifter," Parker shrugged.

"A damn good grifter," Hardison agreed.

"The best grifter of her generation and quite possibly several more," Eliot finished with fear creeping into his voice. "That shouldn't have anything to do with this madness."

"She lived outside of the cursed town," Nate replied, "Which meant she was free to experience hardships nobody else had to face. And Sophie Devereaux was not her first alias. She's had twenty-eight years in the real world where magic and fairy tales don't exist. She's always hinted that her life wasn't ideal…"

"Sophie knows about Sam," Parker realized, "She knows what losing another kid would do to you."

"With that many identities swimming around in her head," Eliot added.

Hardison gasped, "Sophie's on power overload!"

"Two lives cursed worse than ever," Charming repeated the words Jefferson had whispered to him not too long ago.

"Except Sophie doesn't have two lives," Nate nodded.

"She has a million," Regina said closing her eyes in regret.

Nate turned towards his sister-in-law with pure hatred on his features. He grabbed her by the neck and took great pride in the fear he saw when her eyes snapped open. He slammed her against the nearest wall and raised her so her feet dangled. Then he applied pressure to her throat, squeezing ever so slowly. He wanted to enjoy the feel of her neck snapping. Everybody else just yelled his name.

"You killed my son," Nate growled, "Then you took my daughter away from me. I hate you for that but that's nothing compared to what you've done to my wife! You took her away from love completely. She's experienced nothing but pain and pockets of happiness. Those pockets didn't even last long enough for her to cherish or recover! You turned her into a crook and made her life in this world even more of a hell than it had been before. Then she came back to me only to discover that I had a new family, a family she didn't get to be a part of."

Eliot came and put his hand on the older man's forearm. He didn't pull or apply any kind of pressure. The hand was there just to inform the mastermind he wasn't going over the edge. The hitter was the guide and the guide alone.

"Let go, Nate," he said, "You don't want to do this."

"If I kill her Sophie won't," Nate replied, "Besides, I wouldn't have lost Sam if it wasn't for her. I never would have been his father. I never would have had to watch my son's entire life. I wouldn't have put Sophie through everything I have. We wouldn't be in this situation."

"Nate, you can't kill her," Parker hollered, "Sophie doesn't want you to."

"Hardison, take my daughter out of here," Nate ordered keeping his eyes on the woman pinned to the wall.

The hacker immediately did as ordered. He pulled the thief towards the door and even grabbed the small boy while they were at it. The mastermind just waited until he heard the bell chime. Then he grinned at his victim and started to increase pressure.

"Nate, stop it," Eliot growled increasing pressure as well. He even stepped forward to make certain the woman wouldn't die.

"I should kill you," Nate explained, "rip you to shreds right here, right now. I have every right after what you've done to my family."

"Nathan, you should stop this," Charming ordered watching the interaction with wide eyes. "This isn't who you are."

"You are so lucky I'm an honest thief," Nate finished, dropping the woman to the floor. "I've become a coward and a wretch of a man because of you. I will not let you destroy her too. Where is she going, Rumpelstilskin?"

"And what makes you think I would trust you with that information?" Gold replied sharply, "You weren't exactly courteous to me just a few minutes ago."

"Because if you don't tell me where she's going my wife will kill you," Nate hissed towards the man, "And unlike you I'm kind of okay with that. I don't want her to kill her own sister. Getting to her now just makes my job easier and it's in your best interest."

"Your wife and I had a deal," Rumpelstilskin complained.

"And she upheld that deal," Nate swore, "Now tell me where she's going!"

"The Forest," he replied, "She's headed towards the forest."