Watcher still hadn't heard from anyone else she knew, but was still very thankful for it.

She figured she'd better leave Johanna's and head back to Rumplestiltskin's house; at least she may have some protection from her mother, if she got there.
And if the protection at the house was stronger than the protection at the shop...if there had been protection on the shop...

"Johanna?"

She walked into the kitchen where the older woman was baking, a wonderful smell filling the small space.
Watcher smiled at the memory of watching Regina bake during the short time she had spent at the house.

Her sister was very different compared to their mother, she didn't seem the one to choose to be evil, she seemed like the one who was pushed over its foreboding cliffs and was in a continuous state of falling and every time she manage to find something to cling to it would be cut away, letting her fall all over again.

Maybe if Regina let her, she could be something that could help her sister climb towards the better light, again.
By the way Regina treated her, compared to how Cora did; it seemed that there was already a lot of love there.

"Yes dear?"

Johanna had just pulled out a tray of Muffins from the oven and Watcher saw the steam rising, her mouth salivating as she realized she hadn't had lunch.
She moved over to the oven and turned it off for Johanna as the older woman pulled the last tray out of the oven.

"Oh, thank you dear. Oh! These old bones" her back cracked slightly as she straightened up.

"Sometimes you wonder when your next day will be your last"

"Don't say that! You've still got a few good millennia left on you!" Watcher said jokingly.

Johanna laughed with her.

"Thank you dear. A compliment at the start and a compliment to end it. It's been a good day today, I think"

The two stared at each other smiling before Watcher said what she was intending to;

"I was thinking of heading off. I'm staying at Rumplestiltskin's house. He's said that he's put up protection spells against Cora and Regina and I don't want to put you in way of harm"

"I'm a tough old bird! I can take Cora any day, just you watch me!"

Watcher laughed

"I don't doubt it" she said quietly.

"Well, if that's the case at least take two for the road" Johanna said holding the tray out the Watcher.

Watcher raised a brow at the others bossiness but smiled none the less and picked one from the tray. This place was beginning to, almost, feel like home.

As she reached for another, a plume of magical dark blue smoke wound its way around Johanna and she disappeared from sight.
Watcher stared at the tray that had clattered to the floor, spilling its contents.

'What's happened? What's happened?! Think Watcher! Think! Johanna – Eva's maid, Cora and Regina looking for Rumplestiltskin's Dagger in the woods...It's Mary-Margaret's birthday! Oh no!'

"I forgot Mary-Margaret's birthday!"

With her muffin still in hand she bolted from the small kitchen and kept running, heading toward the Clock Tower in the centre of town, hoping to all gods above that she could make it in time to think of something to save Johanna's life.

P.O.V Change

Cora chuckled

"I think the day has finally come, my darling Snow, for you to learn a long overdue lesson"

She waved her hand and in a puff of blue smoke appeared Johanna.
Mary-Margaret called her name in shock as Johanna stared at her in complete shock and confusion.

"You see, in the end, it isn't good or evil that wins, but power"

Johanna looked into Regina's eyes in fear as the taller woman stepped around in front of her.
Regina plunged her hand into the elder woman's chest and pulled out her still beating heart, two screams were heard, Johanna's and Mary-Margaret's.

Regina turned to Mary-Margaret and David holding Johanna's heart.

"Your choice"

Three panicked eyes flitted about the room as the clock's minute hand ticked.

"Do not harm her. She has nothing to do with this" Mary-Margaret begged

"Of course she does!" said Cora, a little too chipper.

"Whatever they want Snow, don't give it to them!"

"Quiet Handmaid!"

David pulled his gun.

"Mother, watch out!"

Cora all but shooed it out of his hand letting it clatter down to the bottom of the tower.

"Leave me Snow"

Johanna groaned in pain as Regina's gripped tightened on her heart.

"Enough of this" Cora said sweetly

"Surrender the dagger. We all know you you'll follow your mother's example no matter the cost"

Mary-Margaret looked over to Cora in confusion when she said this.

"All she ever wanted was for you to be good"

P.O.V. Change

Watcher had made it into town, but was still ages away from the Clock Tower.

She fell against the wall of a shop breathing hard.

'I have to get there! But I need more time!'

P.O.V. Change

"Those words? Where did you hear those words?"

Mary-Margaret felt even more confused, but she was too high on adrenaline to be able to think properly.

"Where do you think?" Cora dared.

"The Blue Fairy made me swear never to speak of that candle again"

Mary-Margaret's mind was finally starting to function and had begun to piece things together.

"Not because it was a secret, because it wasn't her!"

Cora scrutinized her through half lidded eyes before holding out her hand

"The Dagger, dear?"

"She didn't give me that candle. You did" Mary-Margaret could feel her anger sparking.

Cora watched her unmoving as the younger woman came to a horror filled insight.

"My mother wasn't sick at all, was she?"

Johanna looked between them all as Cora chuckled.

"Oh, she was quite sick"

"You did all of this" Mary-Margaret hissed through gritted teeth.

"You killed my mother"

Regina looked toward her own mother slightly horrified herself, then she thought of Watcher, her baby sister, whom her own mother had tried to kill her only a few hours ago.
If she thought she was any sort of a monster, she was nothing compared to the woman she now stared at with disgust and resentment, but she was too far down the rabbit hole to turn back now.

"Actually, the candle would've worked. You could've saved her"

Regina now looked over to the crying Snow White, trembling slightly.
Remembering how she had looked exactly the same way when she thought she'd lost her sister. She kept her face a mask and said nothing as Mary-Margaret talked.

"But you knew I wouldn't. Why? Why did you take her from me?!"

Cora shrugged "To make my daughter the Queen"

They all went quiet as four sets of eyes landed on Cora in aversion and astonishment before Mary-Margaret let her eyes turn to Regina, who hid her pity and sympathies well.

"Hand over the Dagger" she stated.

"No. No, I will not let you win. Not Again!"

Regina couldn't help but think this was a poorly chosen time to grow a back bone, considering she now knew her mother would do anything unpredictable to get what she wanted, like she always had.

"You've already lost your mother" Cora stated.

She indicated to Johanna.

"How many connections to her do you have left? Not many, I'd wager"

"If we give up the dagger we can still win" Prince Charming really should've spoken up sooner

"Let me go, Snow! It's alright"

Regina started to crush the heart again

"What would she say if she could see you now? If she wasn't dead?" Cora held out her hand again

"The Dagger, dear"

Mary-Margaret finally broke, falling to her knees and throwing the dagger down.

"Enough!"

P.O.V. Change

Watcher had finally reached the Tower but was at a loss at what to do next.

Thankfully there was no body, so maybe there was still a chance.

P.O.V. Change

In the Tower, Regina relinquished her grip on Johanna's heart and Cora summoned the Dagger into her hand.

"Such a good girl" she said with a sick smile.

Mary-Margaret looked between the Mills women "You have what you came for"

Cora looked expectantly at her daughter, small smiles playing on their faces and Regina replaced Johanna's heart.
Mary-Margaret stood in relief and Johanna and herself reached for each other, but just as they came together, Cora had a thought.

"Not quite everything"

With a wave of her hand Johanna was sent through the glass of the clock face and down onto the pavement below, leaving a shaking Watcher staring at the sight as tears began to streak down her face.

In the Tower above Mary-Margaret and David rushed to the broken frame looking onto the scene below.
Regina was just as shocked as they were at the sudden motion of her mother and, though she did not stand next to them, she too did her best to look down below and observed her sister rushing to kneel besides the now dead Johanna, shaking her in a desperate attempt to wake the other, only causing more distress for herself.

The pang of sickness she felt, obviously nothing compared to what Snow and Watcher were feeling.

"Well there you go" She said keeping pretences. She didn't want to follow Johanna.

"You see where good gets you?" she allowed her magic to engulf her and carry her down to her sister leaving a sobbing Snow White to be consoled by her Prince Charming.

Regina pulled her sister into her arms.

"Come on. Hey! It's gonna be alright"

She combed her fingers through Watchers short curls and held her close as she magiced her away to where their mother now waited, noting that this was going to be a very interesting family meeting.

As Regina entered her office, she held her sisters hand tightly, for fear she would disappear or run off like she had that morning.

She sighed in happiness.

"It's nice to be back. Hiding is quite wearisome"

Cora moved to the desk, placing the Dagger on the table top and taking a seat in the chair "I like what you've done with the place"

The two girls looked at their mother a little cautiously.

"I'm so happy you approve" Regina stated.

"What is my love? You're troubled"

'And I'm not!' Watcher thought, but she stayed quiet listening to her big sister and her mother converse.

"You never told me about your history with Snow's mother"

"I spared you that burden, like any good parent would do" Cora replied

"You didn't think I deserved to know exactly what it took for me to become Queen?"

"Now you know"

Regina thought for a moment.

"That day at the stables, when I rescued her, that wasn't an accident, was it? You made sure I'd be in the pastures when Snow rode past. You had to make sure, when I met Snow White...her father would be searching for a new queen"

Watcher had flashes of young Snow White on a runaway horse screaming for help.

"And what does this knowledge change for you?" Cora asked Regina, who chuckled before letting go of Watchers hand and sauntering over to the desk.

"That you won, mother" she leaned on the pair of chairs placed in front of the desk.

"I am the Queen. And if that's what you wanted so badly, why do you need Rumplestiltskin's Dagger now?"

"You're worried my interests are no longer aligned with yours"

"My only interest now is Henry" Regina shot at her mother.

"And I've told you, you'll have him"

"But how?"

The question was valid and Watcher could hear the desperation in Regina's voice, she missed her son.

"Now that Mary-Margaret and David know we have the Dagger, we can't use Gold to kill them without Henry finding out"

"Have patience, my love. By the time Rumplestiltskin returns, Emma Swan and the rest of them will be nothing more than a vaguely unpleasant memory. And Henry will be yours" Cora said whilst caressing the Dagger.

"But why did you have to kill Johanna? What did she have to do with all of this?"

Cora's gaze snapped to her youngest and Regina turned to look at Watchers tear stricken face, amazed at the way her pupils had dilated and all emotion was stripped from her eyes.
Almost as if she was staring into a never ending abyss.

"Why?" repeated Cora "You want a reason?"

Watcher nodded, not moving from her place, her gaze never faltering. It was starting to be a little unnerving.

Cora stood, both hands on the desk.

"The reason...because I could. Because I wanted Snow White to suffer"

"You bitch!"

"Language! I am your mother!"

Cora waved her hand but went wide eyed as her spell rebounded pinning her against the window, although she didn't know it rebounded.

"Regina! What are you doing?!" Cora gasped.

Regina gaped like a fish "It isn't me mother!"

Regina looked to her sister and saw her glare darken.
She saw Watcher blink and heard her mother slide up the window.

Watcher smirked like the Hatter at the fear that she awakened in her mother, fear that had long been suppressed.
Regina turned back to her mother to see her centimetres from breaking her neck on the ceiling.

But in Cora's mind, the fear had been replaced, with inquisitiveness and pride.
Never had she encountered someone with such strong power other than, maybe, Rumplestiltskin. But there was the chance that this young girl before her was even more powerful than the Imp. Where she got it from though, was a mystery.

Regina was dumbfounded, if a little fearful.
To be able to blink and magically pick someone up of the floor and hold them in the air, even if they were pinned to a wall, showed massive strength and talent.
It had taken almost a year for Regina herself to be able to do that and she was sure, so far, that Watcher had not shown any sort magical abilities since she'd been in Storybrooke, aside from when they had fought.

But she remembered her sister telling her Watchers had science that was akin to magic...maybe that was what was fuelling her power even more so.