Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
Spoiler: Same as before
A/N: A couple more chapter after this one.
"We're all damaged in our own way. Nobody is perfect."
Johnny Depp
- Previously -
He could picture their faces from the night before his dad showed up, his mom afraid for him, and his ma afraid to be alone; they were struggling with their own inner demons – demons that were devouring them slowly. He needed to do something to help them. They were everything to him.
He waited until The Blue Fairy turned the corner before slipping out of the alley and following her.
Chapter 12: Cora
Henry frowned as he moved quietly through the woods, far enough away from the Blue Fairy that she wouldn't be able to see him. The path she was taking was awkward and long, and if he thought about it, he didn't know where she was leading him. This could be something as innocent as finding herbs or berries. He could be worrying for nothing, but his gut told him to follow her, though what he would find was anyone's guess. As he continued to follow, the area became more familiar. He crouched behind a nearby tree and the fairy continued forward, heading straight to a glowing mass of magic. The well. What is she doing?
He pulled out his phone to text his mom, but a low groan tore his attention from the device. He peered out from behind the tree. He caught a glimpse of blonde hair and froze, fingers clutched tightly around his phone. What is going on? He sent off a quick text to his mom as Emma sat up, clutching her head.
Emma spared a glance at Mother Superior as she carefully walked over to the well.
"What the hell?"
"Do you like it, Savior?" She turned to the fairy, confusion on her face.
"What did you do here?" Keep her talking, Swan. You've got this.
"Just a little surprise for you and the Evil Queen."
"What kind of surprise?" Her fingers inch towards her gun. Just as her fingers reached the butt of the weapon, she felt the magic in the air shift. She turned to the well, watching as the magic slowly started to come together. Cold fear shot through her as she recognized the feel of magic in the air, shouting to be heard over the swirling magic, "You created a portal?!"
If there's an answer, she doesn't hear one; her vision blurs suddenly, her magic reacting violently to the portal. Her fingers tingle with the familiar presence of her magic, but when she looks down, the white flow of magic is leaving her. The blood drains from her face as she staggers backwards, trying to distance herself from the well. Whatever this portal was linked to, it was drawing out her magic.
"Shit…"
"Don't be alarmed, Emma. It just needs a little bit of magic from you."
A little bit of magic shouldn't hurt this much. It feels like her insides are on fire, the burning sensation from her traumatic dream is rearing its ugly head again, and she can't stop it. It leaves her weak in the knees, and she actually drops down at she feels her magic start to fade. Fuck. Finally, after what seems like an eternity, she feels her magic – however much of it she has left, she doesn't know – break from its connection with the well.
She's on her hands and knees, trying to draw breaths back into her lungs, when she hears the crunch of dead leaves and feels the hair on the back of her neck stand up.
"Hello, Savior."
Her body tenses, freezes. She doesn't even need to look up to know.
Cora.
A/N: This chapter is way overdue and really short. I decided to make the next chapter longer and have the epilogue after that. There won't be any more updates of this story until after Christmas, more than likely, seeing as I'll be in Japan from the end of August until mid-December. As always, please comment and tell me your thoughts/reactions.
Hime