"My apologies for that little drama. The Sheriff can be rather ill-mannered at times."
Gold mutters, making his way back into the main room to find Jefferson sitting on the floor with his back to the wall. Nodding towards a silver pot standing on the work surface of the small kitchenette, he leans heavily on his cane.
"How long until it's ready?"
"About half an hour or so. Any sooner and it may not be strong enough."
"Half an hour is fine. I don't believe we'll be seeing another escape attempt for a while from Miss Swan."
Gold muses, and the Hatter frowns up at his host.
"Why did you call me over? You could have just put her under yourself."
"I could have, but it's something at which you are well-practised, and the Saviour's safety is paramount."
"Yet she can't even support her own weight due to the trauma from the injuries evidently sustained to her wrists..."
Jefferson counters with a raised brow.
"A minor setback, but she lives to tell the tale."
"Why?"
"What do you mean, why?"
"Well, if she is who you say she is, why keep her alive at all? I was under the impression that our wishes were of a similar nature; that the Curse should finally be lifted. Why keep the Saviour alive, when there's a much simpler option?"
"There is no simpler option."
Gold replies sternly.
"No? You told me yourself that the Curse would break should the Saviour die... It was what made me reluctant to give the Queen the apple. It seemed-"
"-What apple?"
The pawnbroker interrupts curiously.
"Regina paid me a visit only two weeks ago... She had me retrieve the apple used to curse Snow White back in her pasture in our homeland."
"That's not possible. There's no magic here..."
"No, and I wasn't able to go back. There was only enough magic within the ring she provided to open the smallest of portholes to grab the apple."
"What ring?"
"I'm afraid I don't know, and she seemed reluctant to tell. Just a simple ring. A wedding band of sorts."
"She-... She gave you this ring?"
Gold demands, his dark eyes glittering through the gloom.
"She did, and I summoned the apple. I had little choice, you know how she can be... As I said, I suffered my doubts in giving it to her. After all, should the Saviour fall under the Sleeping Curse, the chances of me getting my daughter back would go from slim to none... I was tempted to merely finish the job myself."
Jefferson admits, cracking his knuckles pointedly. Ignoring the madman's irrelevant threats, Gold shakes his head as he pushes to the heart of the matter.
"Regina... Did she actually use the apple to curse the Sheriff?"
"I don't know. I would have thought so judging by the urgency she professed for revenge, but clearly, the Saviour remains very much awake... It's most curious."
"Yes... Curious indeed."
Gold frowns as this new information leaves him feeling shaken.
Surely Regina didn't actually feed the apple to her Sheriff? After all, as the Hatter says, Emma is very much awake... Unless...
Oh.
Oh my.
Perhaps I've underestimated the situation, after all.
And that truth must ache terribly, I imagine, Your Majesty.
For if you did poison the young woman only to be successful in reviving her... Well... Your feelings for the girl are abundantly clear.
But for the rest of us to find ourselves continuing with this clueless existence...
That says more than I'm sure you would like about Emma's state of mind.
"Whether she gave her the apple or not, clearly the girl didn't eat it."
Jefferson shrugs indifferently from his slumped position against the wall.
"Clearly..."
Gold replies distractedly.
"So, answer my question. Why are you keeping the Saviour alive? It serves no purpose."
"It serves every purpose. That young woman lying in there owes me a debt, and I plan on making her pay when the time comes. She is of great importance, not just to us, but to the Queen. If Emma dies, there will be a slaughter on our hands, you mark my words, and, should the Saviour die by your hand... Well... I wouldn't want to be you when Regina found out."
"The Queen's your student; she poses you no real threat."
"Not true. Never underestimate the power of True Love."
"What love? For her boy?"
"For the Sheriff."
"Impossible."
The madman scoffs with a wide grin at the very idea.
"Not at all. In fact, when you sit down and think about it - which I have found myself doing a great deal these past few days - it makes all the sense in the world. I believe you would be hard put to find two people as well-suited for one another as the women in question.
"But, for the Queen to love another woman?"
"What of it? The carnal aspect of their relationship, while providing some fascinating mental imagery, is simply a quest for pleasure. Love, though... Love is sexless. Your question should be, 'for the Queen to love another at all?'... And to that, I believe I may now know the answer to be 'yes'. Regina loves the Swan woman."
"But, I thought-... Why does the Curse still exist, if what you say is true? If the Queen loves the Saviour, then-"
"-Ah. Because it is not Regina's love that will break the Curse."
"...The Sheriff doesn't reciprocate her feelings?"
Jefferson asks, and Gold considers their surroundings as he replies pensively
"Oh, I'm almost certain that the Sheriff believes that their affection is equal. The problem is that affection is as far as she's willing to allow her mind to go. I had thought it would be the boy who would break her, I admit... But I believe there is something to be said for physical love. Emma reacts to the Mayor in a way that is completely foreign to her, but, alas, she has yet to discover the true depth of what she feels. That's why she's here. And that's why I'm keeping her alive. She will feel it eventually. She must."
"And what becomes of her once the Curse breaks? If she doesn't believe in magic, will it not ruin her to be launched into the thick of things as we left them? She may find it within herself to love the Mayor, but to love the Evil Queen...?"
"What happens to Emma once the Curse breaks is none of my concern. I will have my power back, and I will be able to demand my favour of her, whether she wishes to comply or not. Regina can't stand in the way of her paying the price for our deal. And, as you say... I do believe that once Miss Swan finds herself confronted with the reality of things, she may desire never to lay eyes on that despicable woman ever again... Who knows? Such problems are her own."
"A cruel take."
"Perhaps."
"Inspired."
"I've had a long time to think on such things."
Gold admits with a shrug.
"How long will it take? For the Sheriff to realise her feelings?"
Jefferson demands.
"My, you're rather impatient for a man only recently privy to such information."
"You're not the only one who's had a long time to dwell on things..."
The hatter reminds his companion darkly.
"No... Well, as for the time it takes Emma to give in to her emotions, I should think that really depends on quite how resourceful our lovely Mayor finds herself to be... I find it encouraging that she's already resorted to accepting aid. That was most surprising!"
"How does Regina's searching add up to the Savior finding True Love?"
Jefferson's brow furrows in open confusion.
"Simple. I believe that right now, the Sheriff spares no real hope that she will be found. Emma is a peculiar young thing, to say the least, and she is a woman who not only finds it hard to trust, but finds the fault in the matter to be with herself. She doesn't believe the Mayor will find her, because she doesn't truly believe she's worth looking for. Emma needs to see with her own eyes the lengths that love will make someone go to. She needs to understand that the Queen loves her. Once she understands that... Well... I believe she will find it within herself to accept that she feels the same thing. She needs to understand what love is in order to feel it."
"... And if she loves the Queen, the Curse will break?"
"When she realises she loves the Queen, everything falls in our favour."