Chapter Eleven—"Counting the Cost"
The journey to the Forbidden Fortress took longer than Emma would have expected. In hindsight, Emma supposed that she was just a product of the Land Without Magic; she was used to having a car to take her places, or better yet, an airplane if the trip was long enough. But the Enchanted Forest apparently hadn't ever heard of modern conveniences like that, which meant she was stuck riding a damn horse. Of course, she'd been made intellectually aware of these sorry facts during her previous visit, but then she and Mary Margaret had been concentrating on getting home to Storybrooke. Now this was going to be her life, and Emma found herself thrown more than a little off balance.
Hook didn't help, not with his constant attempts to help her, charm her, or outright infuriate her. Nor did the fact that he seemed to be locked in a constant battle with Robin Hood provide anything other than a ridiculous amount of amusement. Hook was determined that Emma should lead their little expedition, but Robin apparently took umbrage at that. The outlaw had pointed out that of their number he was the only one who'd ever actually been to the Forbidden Fortress before, and that made him more qualified. Fortunately, Robin was apparently smart enough not to make any remarks that smacked of Emma being unqualified due to her sex. She'd have knocked him on his ass if he'd done that, tough though the guy might have looked.
Having two sets of memories battling for prominence in her mind didn't exactlyl make things easier, either. One moment, she felt like the Emma who had lived in New York, who had given birth to Henry in jail but kept him, struggling to make a living for both of them once she got out but having no regrets. The next she was the Emma who Henry had hunted down in Boston, a woman who struggled with regrets and refused to believe in anything she couldn't touch with her own two hands. Unfortunately, it was that Emma who had finally come to believe in the curse, in magic, and in her own family—the more content Emma of New York had thrown all of her love into Henry and had been determined to forget that her family had abandoned her.
Except they hadn't. They were here the whole time, and they've always wanted me. The thought made pain well up, but Emma pushed it aside, instead focusing on the various aches and pains that riding the stupid horse for so long caused. Thankfully, they'd left the beasts at an inn that morning and struck out on foot, and if Emma never had to ride another horse again, it would be too soon. I hurt in places I didn't know had muscles to hurt. Urgh. What she wouldn't give for a few aspirin right now, but apparently modern conveniences like that didn't exist in the Enchanted Forest.
She still hadn't figured out why everyone had been in such a hurry to get back here.
"And," Robin reiterated for the umpteenth time, gesturing angrily at the barely visible path ahead of them. They were on day fifteen of their journey, and Hook and Robin were arguing again. "I've actually broken into the place before. I think that means I know what we should be doing."
God, Emma thought they'd finished this argument fourteen days ago. Why in the world had the boys started fighting again?
"Oh, your skills as a thief certainly qualify you to lead people," Hook retorted. His face was a little redder than it should have been, Emma thought distantly. Why was Hook so unreasonably angry about this? He only seemed determined to be difficult.
"Well, they're clearly eclipsed by your piratical talents."
Emma snorted, and Hook gave her a dirty look. "What? He's got a point. And besides, we're a grand expedition of three," she pointed out. Again. Was she the only one who felt like they'd had this entire conversation before? "Why do we need a leader at all? Can't we just work together?"
Hook rolled his eyes, and Robin bristled. "I'm not the one who keeps trying to dictate the terms of this rescue mission," the outlaw drawled. "If I'd had my way, neither of you would even be along. The Merry Men and I could have handled this fine without you."
Why oh why had she not listened to Gold when he'd told her that she'd regret trying to rescue Regina?
"Well, you're stuck with us," Emma cut in before Hook could say something that would set off another argument. Or make the current one worse. Or something. "So why don't all three of us just make the best of it and work together?"
"I'm not saying we shouldn't, love," Hook replied immediately, during those dark bedroom eyes of his on her. Emma bit back a groan. The man was gorgeous and utterly kissable, but did he ever turn it off?
"Stop it," she snapped.
Now Hook was all innocence. "Stop what? I'm not—"
"Stop breathing," Emma snapped, tested beyond patience. "No. I don't mean that. Just…stop." Why was her chest so tight? Breathing seemed a little…harder at the moment. Grimacing, she turned another glare on Robin and asked him the question she'd meant to pose days ago. "Why are you so intent on rescuing Regina, anyway?"
"Whatever do you mean?" Robin blinked.
"It's a simple question."
"Oh." Hook spoke up, looking a little guilty for once. Along with terribly amused. "I may have neglected to mention that our friendly outlaw here is romancing the Evil Queen."
That took a moment to sink in. At first Emma was certain that she'd heard wrong, and then once she turned the words over in her head, she just couldn't believe them. Then she finally managed to demand: "You're what? Aren't you supposed to be with Maid Marian or something?"
Robin grimaced, old pain crossing his handsome features and making him look much older all of a sudden. Of course Emma should have remembered that fairy tales weren't simple in the Enchanted Forest. Now she felt horrible, because she'd obviously touched on a sore subject. What kind of idiot was she? The outlaw swallowed hard before answering.
"Marian was my late wife and the mother of my son. She's been dead for three years."
"I'm sorry," Emma said softly, feeling like utter trash. Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid, she told herself acidly, and then tried out a lopsided smile. "So, um, you and Regina, huh?"
"Yes." Robin smiled faintly. "Roland adores her, and well, I've always been fond of…fiery women."
Emma wasn't quite sure how to respond other than: "Well, Regina certainly is that."
"That she is," Robin chuckled.
"Oh, that's more information than I needed, mate," Hook replied, and the rest of their evening passed in more companionable silence.
"So," Belle said quietly, her hands moving slowly through his hair. Rumplestiltskin's eyes were half shut as he lay on his back with his head in her lap, drowsing more than sleeping, but her next words still wormed their way through his haze of relaxed happiness. "You've been back for almost three weeks. Are you any closer to figuring out the origins of this magic?"
Rumplestiltskin sighed. He'd been busy since deciding to return to the world, first utterly revamping the defenses on the Dark Castle (after tearing down Regina's work, which took some doing without her around to help) and then dealing with a hundred other minor magical problems. Five different towns or villages had reported mysterious figures lurking in the shadows, whose arrival was followed by wild and beautiful community dances that everyone seemed desperate to take part in. Entire towns found themselves dancing, abandoning market days, farm plots, and even their own children. And none of them were able to stop. Town magistrates called for help before they, too, were sucked into the vortex of dancers, and no amount of begging, pleading, or reasoning could pry them loose.
It was a conundrum right out of the old days, when the fae frolicked freely, twisting up humans within their own sick games. Perhaps the problem would not have been so great if the Grand Alliance (as the royals insisted they call themselves) had not freed so few towns. Of the eleven "free" towns in the Enchanted Forest (not counting Francis' kingdom), five had been infected within as many days, and reports of the problems did not reach the Dark Castle until the evening of the second day. A dozen people died in Weselton before Tinker Bell called in Rumplestiltskin. Try though she had, the fairy proved unable to break the enchantment on her own, though the former Dark One had no such problems.
Freeing those five towns had taken far less effort than he anticipated, particularly given the fact that a powerful fairy had been hard put to unravel the multiple layers of fae magic surrounding the dancers. The first two times he'd done it, Rumplestiltskin had been concerned by the apparent ease and the cost of such magic, but no matter how hard he looked, he could not detect the magical reaction he was accustomed to managing. Nor could he find some sort of catch in the next three towns, only a pressing need to release the magic and demand nothing for it. Acting in such a manner left him acutely uncomfortable, not to mention short tempered.
"No," he half-growled. Confusing wisps of memory made him wonder, but there was nothing concrete. Rumplestiltskin hated not knowing things, particularly about magic, which led him to trying more and more with his new power—only to find that there truly did seem to be no bottom. There were times that using his magic felt like jumping off a cliff into water of undeterminable depth and hoping he'd float before he hit the bottom.
"Can I help?" Belle asked.
Opening his eyes to look at her, Rumplestiltskin studied her worried face. Belle was concerned because he was concerned, he knew. Left to her own devices, Belle just wanted to be happy that he was back, but Rumplestiltskin kept looking for the catch. The price. He didn't want to admit that he already knew what the latter was.
"Perhaps..." trailing off, he bit his lip. Rumplestiltskin had been trying to research this power, trying to look into what it could be, but every time he settled down in front of a book, something else came up. With Regina gone—and the fools off to find her—he and Tinker Bell were the only magic users left to the Grand Alliance. Under normal circumstances, Rumplestiltskin would have happily left the fairy to deal with their magical problems, but many of these problems were too much for her.
And he was trying to be better. It was easier without so much darkness inside him to reckon with, even if he had to battle three centuries' worth of behavior to do so. Helping didn't come easily to him, and his nasty habits had already caused one spat between himself and Snow White. Had Henry not wandered in, he probably would have said something regrettable, or kicked the entire alliance out of his castle and told them that they could deal for his help like anyone else, thank you very much. Thankfully, their mutual grandson had given both of them a bit of a lecture on working together, and Rumplestiltskin had been able to storm out, pride mostly intact.
Belle smiled, and he was immediately glad that he'd overcome his own desire to do everything for himself. "What can I do?"
"Research," he admitted with a scowl. "This power—my power—is old. Older than the curse of the Dark One, I think. And it's not…normal."
"What do you mean?"
Rumplestiltskin sat up, finding her hands running through his hair too much of a distraction to think critically. They were both on his—their—bed, curled and watching the sun set over the mountains and treasuring the few hours of privacy. Belle had spent most of that day wrangling with representatives of King Francis and King Midas, both of whom were demanding more soldiers to either secure their lands or win them back, while Snow White met with ambassadors from Agrabah. He was terribly proud of Belle's central role in the Grand Alliance, even if it did keep them apart more than Rumplestiltskin would like. Besides, Rumplestiltskin had spent every moment of the past two days up until an hour ago trying to sort out rumors of some "Forgotten Kingdom" that was supposedly created years before the curse. All he'd found had been a broken-down sorcerer inside a ruined castle, but given that the tales claimed that 'the Dark One' was in service of the Forgotten King, Rumplestiltskin had taken the rumors rather more seriously than most.
Snow White had been looking at him suspiciously since those rumors had first made it to the Dark Castle a week earlier, too, which meant Rumplestiltskin had been delighted to get away from the castle for a few days, even if it had meant separation from Belle. Next time he intended to take her along and steal some time together, even if that would make the dear Queen more certain that he was somehow playing both ends against the middle. Not that I've never done that before. Still, that was a problem for another day.
"There are three 'families' of magic, so to speak," Rumplestiltskin explained after a moment. "Fairy, Elemental, and Human. There are offshoots of each—like the difference between Fae magic and Fairy magic—but those are the basic categories. What we commonly consider 'magic' is really human magic. Most people just don't appreciate that there is a difference."
Belle nodded. "I remember reading something about how all human magic originally came from three sources. And elemental magic is just demons and spirits, right?"
"More or less. Before, under the curse, my magic was a unique cross between human and elemental magic. Why I don't know, but that's not relevant at the moment. Now, it's almost entirely human, with a sprinkle of something else I can't identify. But instead of that meaning less power, it means more. It makes no sense."
"You want me to see if I can find something in a book."
Rumplestiltskin smiled sheepishly. "I don't have your love of research, sweetheart." Nor the time, not with the number of problems I find myself solving.
"Flattery will get you nowhere, you know." But Belle smiled beautifully.
"Will it not?" His grin turned wicked as Rumplestiltskin resolved to leave those problems for another day. "Shall I bribe you, then?"
She turned her nose up at him playfully. "I thought you were above such things."
"Ha. No one is going to confuse me with a good sorcerer any time soon. I'm simply selfish," he retorted, dropping a kiss on her neck.
"Selfish?" Belle inquired, but she was already starting to sound distracted as he worked his way downwards.
"Of course. I can't very well go haring off on my own while you and Bae join the Grand Alliance. I'd have to drag you along with me, and then you'd complain, and then where would I be?"
"Where indeed," she murmured, but whatever else he'd been planning to say was cut off by her kiss. The kiss was soft, promising more, but power still raced through him, lighting off his senses like a bolt of lightning. The magic of the kiss was somewhat muted—there was no need for it to break curses or banish darkness—yet True Love still lurked behind the kiss, powerful and potent. It gave him strength in ways completely unrelated to magic. Belle gave him strength.
If Rumplestiltskin ever regretted breaking his own curse, moments like this made him forget that.
"Why do you think you're so damn smart?" Robin demanded of Hook on the seventeenth day of their journey. They had to be getting close to the Forbidden Fortress by now, but all Emma could see were trees, and the air was uncomfortably stuffy.
"Probably because I am."
"You certainly don't act like it," the outlaw replied with another eye roll. Maybe adults in the Enchanted Forest never told their children that their eyes would get stuck if they did that too often, or maybe Robin's childhood had been as haphazard as Emma's.
"Oh, and you do?" Hook snarled.
"At least I'm not making eyes at a woman who won't have me in a million years," Robin retorted loftily.
"Will she not? I'll have you know that last night, Miss Swan and I—"
"Hook!" Emma cut him off with a shout. What, was he going to brag about the moments they'd shared in the dark? His leering grin made her feel like nothing more than a conquest. She had been lonely the night before, emotionally run down and needing someone in ways she hadn't in years. Emma had trusted Hook to hold her, and now he was making it sound like they'd done far more than kiss and cuddle.
The pirate was damn lucky that she'd didn't use her sword to carve that smug look right off of his face, and if it hadn't been replaced by a more contrite expression, she might have anyway. Emma wheeled on the two men, absolutely fed up with their arguing.
"I have had enough!" she snarled, and then overrode both sets of objections. "I am not going to take any part in whatever pissing contest you two are determined to have. So, whatever problems you've got, get the hell over them. We're here to rescue Regina, and if you can't handle that, I swear to God that I'll leave you both tied to trees and do it myself."
Both Hook and Robin looked slightly stunned, but finally the pirate shrugged. "She'll do it, mate. She's left me tied up or chained up…well, more than once."
"I really didn't need to know about that aspect of your relationship, Captain," Robin choked out.
"Why did you insist that rescuing Regina was a fool's errand?" Snow asked seventeen days after the trio set off rescue Regina. The queen strode into the Great Hall unhappily, tablet in hand, and her scowl only grew deeper when she spotted Rumplestiltskin sitting at the head of the long table.
Belle, who had been reading in the chair to his left, suppressed a smile. Rumplestiltskin was never going to shut up about this one; he'd been exactly right about Snow wanting to have a little chat, and had even known when it was going to happen down to the hour. Ever the showman, he'd insisted on coming down to the hall for this discussion, and now he sat casually, his long fingers forming a steeple under his chin. Watching him out of the corner of her right eye, Belle could almost see the old sparkling skin and black claws, and she could definitely see the old Rumplestiltskin lingering in his smile.
"Because it is, dearie," he replied easily, and Belle resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Yes, Rumplestiltskin was entitled to a little bit of fun, but sometimes he really was a bit much. "Regina can take care of herself."
"According to Robin, he, Emma, and Hook should be at the Forbidden Fortress by nightfall," Snow replied, resting her other hand on her very pregnant belly. She stopped next to a chair and dropped the tablet on the table, but made no move to sit down.
"Good for them." Rumplestiltskin shrugged, and then twirled his right hand airily. "So why in the world are you bringing this to me? Is there a complaint you would like to register?"
Snow blinked, but it was the heavy silence that followed Rumplestiltskin's sarcastic question that finally made Belle close her book. She glanced at Rumplestiltskin again, but his face was hard to read, politely attentive at best and devious at worst. He must have felt her eyes on him, but he ignored Belle entirely, keeping his gaze on Snow and waiting to hear whatever it was that was bothering the queen. Finally, Snow got straight to the point:
"I'm not sure we can trust you," she said, looking unhappy.
A crooked smile crossed Rumplestiltskin's face. He sounded amused. "Is that all?"
"Rumple," Belle admonished him softly, and his eyes finally flicked to her, still unreadable.
"Isn't that enough?" Snow asked.
"Unless I'm mistaken, dearie, you've never trusted me."
"Is there a specific problem that's bothering you?" Belle got in before Snow could respond to that.
Snow sighed, turning to look at Belle and suddenly appearing very tired. The two of them had become close colleagues over the last year, and maybe even friends of a sort, but Belle had never truly felt close to the young queen. Perhaps the distance between them was a legacy of Storybrooke, where the Charmings had worked with Rumplestiltskin but never fully trusted or understood him. Belle's love for him had always tainted her a little in their eyes, but at least they thought she was more dependable than her ever-whimsical lover.
"I've been talking to the Blue Fairy," the queen replied after a moment's hesitation. "She is…doubtful."
Rumplestiltskin snorted. "Surprise, surprise."
"About what?" Belle asked, reaching out to grab his hand and stop him from saying anything else obnoxious. She shot him a hard look when he started to tug away, and was happy to see him relent. He trusted her, even when he someone started to get on his nerves.
Mentions of the Blue Fairy's meddling tended to do that, Belle knew, but she managed not to let her feelings show on her own face. She was biased, of course. Too long spent with Rumplestiltskin. But that didn't make her wrong.
"Blue is concerned that you're playing another game," Snow said, looking directly at Rumplestiltskin again. "That even…if your curse is broken, you're still, um, tainted."
"By darkness, you mean. Or evil, if you prefer." At least he wasn't laughing, though Belle could feel his tension through the hand she still held. "And I suppose that you're going to take her word over mine."
"She's always helped us."
"Ah, yes. She's always told you the truth then, also. Particularly that bit about that lovely enchanted wardrobe only having the ability to take one person through to the Land Without Magic."
Snow's eyes widened, and she could not have jerked back faster if Rumplestiltskin had struck her. Belle could have heard a pin drop in the great hall, and wasn't certain that the temperature in the room hadn't dropped ten degrees or so. Yet the point wasn't something that Snow could argue against; even Belle knew that the Blue Fairy had outright lied to Snow and David about that, so many years ago. Because of her, Emma had grown up without parents, and although the Dark Curse had been broken, Belle knew Snow well enough to know that it still bothered her. And judging from the stricken look on Snow's face, the knowledge still hurt.
"That's not the point here," the queen tried to say valiantly.
"Then what is?" Rumplestiltskin countered, his eyes flashing. "I've given you no reason not to trust me. I would also remind you that you're in my castle at the moment, a fact that seems to escape you from time to time, but wouldn't be the case if I were still the Dark One. My curse is broken, and much though it sometimes pains me to say it, I am on your side."
"Then where do your powers come from?" Snow demanded.
"That's my concern."
"You can't expect us to trust you if you won't trust us."
It was a good point, and judging from the slight smile that touched Rumplestiltskin's face, he knew it. He always appreciated a clever opponent, after all. Belle watched him carefully, squeezing his hand gently and wondering what he was going to say. Of course, he'd never admit to Snow that he still had no idea where this power came from. Rumplestiltskin would rather appear to be evil than weak, Belle knew, and she didn't have to like that about him to understand it. He wasn't well suited to playing the hero's role, Rumplestiltskin had told her many times. He wasn't even terribly inclined to offer help without counting the cost, even if his magic would allow him to do just that for reasons neither of them could understand. But he was trying, for her sake and for Bae's, because this war was important to them.
And there was another reason, one he didn't talk about because Belle didn't need him to. Rumplestiltskin still bore a deep-seated fury towards those who had hurt him for the past year, and unlike the others, he was absolutely convinced that the fae were somehow linked to the Witch. Once, just once, he had told Belle about the powerful fae who had held him prisoner. "I know a manipulator when I see one," Rumplestiltskin had told her. "And if she's not behind the Witch, I'm Glinda the Good." Belle had laughed at the comparison, but she wasn't going to bet against Rumplestiltskin's instincts. Not on this.
Now Rumplestiltskin sighed. "Fair enough," he said after a moment, his eyes flicking briefly to meet Belle's. "Let's just say that the power was always there. It was somewhat…restricted by my former curse, but the magic I have now is much the same that I always have had."
Belle managed not to grimace a little. The answer wasn't a lie; it was a typically carefully-worded response, truthful to the letter but only telling as much of the story as Rumplestiltskin was interested in sharing. Of course, in this case, he didn't know the entire story himself, but Belle still wished he could be more honest with Snow.
Snow frowned. "But you said your curse is broken."
"I did. And it is. Despite what your friend Ruel Gorm might tell you, 'Your Highness,' I am completely human." A dark smile tugged at his lips, and Belle saw memories flashing in Rumplestiltskin's eyes. "If I weren't, you'd be in trouble, because I don't have the dagger."
"What?"
Rumplestiltskin sat back, his body language intentionally casual, and he shrugged. "The Fae have it, I presume. But it was blank by the time I arrived in the Enchanted Forest, and the dagger can no longer control me, so you're quite safe."
"There's nothing that can now, is there?" No one could ever claim that Snow White was slow on the uptake, and her sharp eyes were wary.
"Indeed there is not." Rumplestiltskin's smile was lazy, but Belle could feel his burning anger at the fact that Snow seemed to think that he required controlling. So, she spoke up before he could make things worse.
"You should be grateful for that," Belle pointed out bluntly, making Snow blink.
"I didn't say—"
"You didn't have to. Snow, I understand that you want to trust the Blue Fairy, but her goals are not the same as ours. As you and David went to great pains to point out in Storybrooke, you are family through Henry. You accepted Bae and I based on that. Why won't you accept Rumplestiltskin?"
Her plea worked better than any of Rumplestiltskin's hard-edged sarcasm would have, and the pinched look on Snow's face softened. "I want to," the queen replied. "Everything is just…"
"What do your instincts tell you?" Belle asked, looking at the other woman's torn expression. She knew the answer already, but Snow needed to admit it for herself.
"That you're telling the truth." To Snow's credit, she met Rumplestiltskin's eyes squarely. "Just please tell me that you didn't leave Regina to rot in order to make us need you."
Unoffended, Rumplestiltskin laughed. "Now why would I do that?" he asked, rolling his eyes. "Do I really look like I enjoy running around putting out every magical fire you people can come up with?"
Knowing how much her love hated doing just that, Belle was unable to hold back her own snort of laughter.
"I suppose not," Snow allowed. "I just…worry for her. Maleficent—"
"Dearie, the day Regina can't handle Maleficent is the day I stop spinning straw into gold," Rumplestiltskin cut her off. "She's defeated her before. Regina will be fine."
"I told you to get in line!" Regina snarled, dodging yet another fireball—and flinging one of her own in return, of course.
"I was your friend!" Maleficent retorted, a wild wind of magic whipping around both of them.
They'd been at this for days, now, maybe even a week. It was amazing how time seemed to speed up when you were locked in a pitched magical battle. Last time, Regina had caught Maleficent by surprise and defeated her handily, but this time she'd woken up in a carefully warded cell that took far too long to break out of. And by the time she had, of course her old friend had been waiting, which had kicked off this glorious fight. Under other circumstances, Regina might have been impatient and frustrated, but Maleficent really had figured out a few new tricks while she'd been locked up as a dragon in Storybrooke, which kept things interesting. Maleficent's excuse was that she'd had nothing to do but contemplate revenge for twenty-eight years, and well, it did make the fallen fairy creative.
"And you would have done the same!" Regina retorted, sending a freezing ball of magic spiraling towards her opponent.
"Not a chance! I wouldn't have been so stupid as to leave myself without a single friend in the world." Maleficent let the ball of ice hit her, and shrugged it right off. This was the first meaningful conversation they'd had, however, and responding slowed Maleficent's next attack. A little. "Who did you leave yourself with, Rumplestiltskin? How brilliant! He double crosses people for fun!"
Despite herself, Regina flinched. "I didn't want friends!"
"No, you wanted to depend on your old mentor, because your relationship with him has always been ever so healthy."
Two fireballs met between them, creating a gorgeous shower of sparks. Hot ash rained down on Regina, making her wince, hurriedly casting some magic to keep it from burning her or ruining the dress she was wearing. She liked this dress. It wasn't her fault that Maleficent had horrible fashion sense and liked to destroy other peoples' clothing. But then she found herself laughing. Maybe Maleficent had been right. She'd been without a friend for too long, and what were friends for if not to throw fireballs at one another with? Regina threw another spell at the fallen fairy, but her heart wasn't in it, and it went wide of the mark.
"It's worse now," she said wryly, shaking her head. "Now we're family."
"You're what?" Maleficent's eyes went wide, and the attack she'd been brewing up dissipated. "You're not saying that your mother lied about—"
"No!" The very thought made Regina feel a little sick. She knew about her mother and Rumplestiltskin, of course, but she didn't want to think about that. Frantically, she regained her composure. "No, I mean Henry. My adopted son. It turns out that Rumplestiltskin's son wound up in the Land Without Magic a long time ago, and he got with the Charmings' daughter…you can picture the rest of the nauseating mess."
Maleficent's staff drooped as she blinked in surprise. "Rumplestiltskin has a son?"
"I know. Who would have thought?" Regina shrugged, watching her friend's eyes widen. "But he's my son's father."
"There is no way he didn't do that on purpose."
Day eighteen.
"Didn't we walk past that tree this morning?" Emma asked, her head pounding and her chest tight.
"No. My compass says we're still heading northeast," Hook replied, studying the object in his hand.
"Then your compass is broken, pirate," Robin said acidly. "Because we definitely passed that tree this morning. And yesterday, I think."
"No, we passed trees like that one," Hook retorted. "It's a forest. Trees look alike. Or did you miss that in outlaw school?"
"Which one of us is the woodsman here?"
"Obviously not you."
"Look, can you two just stop?" Emma demanded for what felt like the hundredth time. And maybe it was.
Neither listened, of course. They just continued sniping at one another and making Emma's headache even worse. Even when she shouted at them, all it started was a three way argument, with Robin claiming that she didn't want Regina found, Hook calling Robin a fool whose tracking skills compared with those of a cow, and Emma torn between kissing and strangling the pirate. At one point, she tried to do both at the same time, which made for some interesting noises.
Robin pulled them apart, which earned him a punch from Hook. Unfortunately, Robin had two hands and apparently knew how to use both in a fight, which ended in some rather colorful bruises on Hook's pretty face. That, however, earned Robin a slice to the ribs from Hook's hook. Emma pulled them apart, and patched up Robin's wound before she could start a fight with him. It didn't help when he slapped her hands away, snarling that she had no idea what she was doing and she'd best keep her ignorance to herself.
"Hold on," Hook put in as Emma flounced—why was she flouncing?—away from Robin in a huff, again contemplating the handsome pirate and how lonely she was. "Perhaps it's just me, but are either of you feeling a bit…off?"
"I'm angry," Robin snapped. "That's not 'off.' That means I'm sick and tired of tramping around the forest with two fools. This is hardly a new emotion for me. It's merely common sense."
"No, really, I think—"
Emma was really sick of hearing this, so she cut him off with a kiss. Hook returned it with interest until he pulled away with obvious regrets. "Emma…not that I'm objecting to your advances, darling, but now is hardly the time. I'm beginning to think that something is terribly wrong here. None of us are acting quite ourselves."
Her chest was still unbearably tight, and kissing Hook seemed to make that feel better. Even if it also made her think of Neal, for some obscure reason. But her head was still pounding, and concentrating on the words Hook was saying took an enormous effort. Why couldn't she think? Hook had a point. This wasn't her. This was…well, Emma didn't know what it was. Grimacing, she sucked in a deep breath, trying to clear her mind. She tried to focus her mind the way Regina had taught her, tried to clear out the extraneous thoughts and just feel. Doing so took several long moments, but there was something on the edge of her consciousness, something she couldn't quite reach…
"I think Hook's right," she told Robin tightly, drums clanging between her ears. "Something's wrong."
A/N: Thank you to all the wonderful reviewers out there. You guys really are making me feel better about my first foray into the OUAT fandom! I'm a pretty typical author in that reviews = motivation, and you all have been absolutely fantastic about helping me punch this story out. I'm hoping to finish it before March 9th, which will be a real push since we're probably looking at 30 chapters or so for the endgame. However, I finished chapter 15 yesterday, so we'll see if I can pull it off!
Questions for this chapter: 1) Do you think Regina and Maleficent will work out their differences? 2) What in the world do you think has happened to Emma, Hook, and Robin? And finally 3) What do you think the fae are up to behind the scenes?
Stay tuned for Chapter 12: "Walking in Circles" in which our rescuers try to get to the Forbidden Fortress once and for all, Baelfire commands a rescue mission, and Rapunzel shows up. In the meantime, please let me know what you think!