The Golden Rule

by LizzeXX

Gold/OC - Emma's actions in the past have put the Pied Piper and the Dark One ill at ease. As they both work to free him from the Dagger's control, they may encounter obstacles they never expected and face the worst betrayals imaginable. When the bonds of family and ties of loyalty are strained, will it only be a matter of time before they're severed? Fourth in the Bedtime Stories.

37. Always a Threat

Always a Threat

Rose Red wasn't entirely sure what was happening. Well, she understood what was supposed to have happened, but she didn't understand what was currently going on. Because it was impossible, it was just impossible. Her father COULDN'T be hurt! He couldn't be dying. He just couldn't be!

Her father, the king, was meant to travel to a neighboring kingdom, there was some king or another, she truly didn't care enough to know his name, whose wife had an enormous library filled with very rare books. Her father was going there to try and make a contract with the kingdom to have a book or two brought to their kingdom for the scribes to copy so that there would be backup versions of the tomes incase anything happened to the originals, perhaps even copy the copies and spread more knowledge through the lands. The scribes of her kingdom were very dedicated and very well educated, which wasn't untrue of other lands and kingdoms, but their kingdom was also closer to the library's too. For having so many books, there weren't enough scribes and the other kingdom was more concerned with gaining knowledge than sharing it, so her father had decided to offer their services in protecting the knowledge too.

They weren't sure if the other kingdom would be agreeable to it though, the books were enormously precious to them and it hadn't been until recently that her father had even thought to attempt his negotiation. The other kingdom had, unfortunately, announced that the king's second child, a boy, had not lived past his birth, he had no male heir and the birth had left the queen unable to carry another babe. All they had was a princess, Nell or something, to focus on and cherish and train now, it had made her father think they might be more open to negotiations as they had to have realized how precious other things besides books were in their loss, as well as how easily something precious (like a book) could be lost if life itself could end so quickly and without warning. And, now that they would ensure the future of the kingdom by caring for their princess, maybe they would also want the future of the books secured too?

Her father thought it was a good plan, and he was going to travel there himself so that the king and queen would know he was very serious about his plan to have the books copied. The only downside to it was that she and her mother would have to remain in the kingdom while he was away. She didn't mind it so much, she would rather be in the castle than mingling with the other children and other people. And she knew that her mother preferred remaining in the palace over travelling. As much as her mother had grown used to living on land, she did not do well in travel by carriage and was often sick afterwards.

She knew why they'd really been requested to stay there though, many of the other kingdoms, even many in their own kingdom, weren't very comfortable with her mother being a Siren. Some had even refused to do deals with them if her mother was the negotiator or even just present. The prejudice was very bad for dark-creatures, she knew, and often well-founded as her mother was quite proud to remind her. And in being half-Siren, she was sure that she had been requested to stay back because of that as well…despite the fact that her father had insisted it was because she was too young to make such a trip, she knew she was old enough and had made many trips without her parents to visit her cousin. Not many people were accepting of her either, though some tried because they saw that, while she was still half-Siren, she was also half-King Ethan and that meant something to some people.

So she knew what the plan was. Her father was supposed to go to the other kingdom, talk to the king, and negotiate trying to copy the books.

How it came about that the entire thing ended in chaos, with castle in an uproar and her father was lying on his bed, covered in bandages that were already turning pink from the wounds he sustained, she didn't know.

She had been sitting in the window, looking out, waiting for her father to return. He was supposed to be back yesterday and, while they tried not to assume anything was wrong, it was worrying. Her father was always a good judge of time and how long certain trips took. He was always sure to give himself enough of it so as not to worry anyone or overestimate himself and seem foolish when he was unable to deliver. She had just been looking out the window when the gates to the castle courtyard were thrown open and soldiers rushed in…with her father lying on a makeshift stretcher carried between them. His clothing was dirty and soiled and stained with blood and she had screamed.

The next thing she knew bandages and water were being rushed to her parents' bedroom, the physicians were called in to treat him, and the servants were rushing about to try and help.

Her mother had screamed as well when she saw her husband in the state he'd been in just before the doctors could attend him. She had rushed in with her mother, she had seen him, but her mother had had the better view.

Her mother had had to be dragged out of the room by two rather large soldiers so that the doctors could do their jobs. She had followed her mother, not wanting to be ripped away from her father in the same manner, not wanting to be in the way and maybe cause things to go worse as people would have to work around her. She had to trust the doctors, her father was in their hands…now her mother was in hers. And she wasn't sure what to do about it. As old as she was, she was not old enough to be the one supporting and comforting a parent in distress.

Her mother hadn't calmed down till she'd been nearly dragged into the throne room, the space seeming to remind her that she was the Queen and could have ordered the men to let her go and let her see her husband. She'd seemed to regain a little of her senses and began demanding they tell her how her husband ended up in such a state. The men had actually jumped at the venom and darkness radiating in her mother's voice and quickly got to the tale so as not to upset her more.

They had been on the road back to the castle, had been unsuccessful in convincing the other kingdom to relinquish a book or two for preservation, and had nearly come within sight of the castle, when bandits had attacked them. Her father hadn't anticipated being attacked on the road, had even taken care to dress as a peasant for the journey to and from the kingdom to lessen the chances. He always hated flashing his status around like that. The bandits had attacked and they had fought off as many as they could…but one soldier turned out to be the one who tipped off the bandits that the king would be travelling, had been in on it…and had taken her father by surprise when he attacked them instead of the bandits.

Her father had sustained injuries from the knives and swords that were used, had even been dealt a few physical blows through the course of the attack while trying to ensure all his men survived. By the time the bandits fled...only half the soldiers were left. And now her father was on the edge of death from the wounds. The remaining soldiers had quickly fashioned a stretch of cloth between two tree branches and hurried to carry their king back for medical attention.

She had never seen her mother more furious than she was at that moment as she stood there, completely and utterly silent, rigid as a statue, hardly looking as though she were breathing. She had dismissed the guards in the coldest tone she had ever heard.

The only thing that had made her mother move in the long minutes after being left alone in the throne room was when she herself had gone over to her mother and hugged her, not knowing what else to do to comfort the woman or be comforted.

Her mother had immediately knelt to the ground and embraced her in a tight hug, though she said nothing, no reassurances that Ethan would be alright, which was understandable…there was nothing that said he wouldn't die before they even made it back up to him. After a few long minutes, her mother had looked her in the eye, wiped the tears that had fallen from beneath them though none had fallen from her mother's eyes, and promised her that all would be well, that her father was safe now, and that someone would most assuredly pay for this event.

That was all her mother had said before she took her hand and the two made their way back up the stairs. They must have been standing in the throne room longer than they realized for, by the time they returned to Ethan's side, the doctors had just finished stitching his wounds and covering him in salve and bandages, leaving him to rest. They had gone to his side, she had knelt by the edge of the bed, holding her father's hand, while her mother had sat on the edge of the bed, nearer to his head, brushing her hands through his hair and singing to him softly.

Three days later her father still hadn't woken, and the two of them had hardly moved from his side since they arrived there...until then.

~8~

"Mama?" Rose Red murmured as she slowly blinked awake from where her mother was gently shaking her, rousing her from sleep, "What is it?" she rubbed her eye…when a thought struck her and she sat up with a gasp, "Papa…"

"Is well," her mother reassured her, and it was then that she noticed her mother was wearing a dark black dress with an equally dark cloak over her.

"Mama?" she repeated.

"Come," her mother held out a hand, helping her up, "You must ready with haste," she told her, gesturing to a pair of dress and cloak just as dark lying on the edge of the bed. She had been ordered to her room after the third night of her father's continued slumber, her mother insisted, swore she would wake her if anything changed for better or worse.

"For what?" Rose inquired even as she got out of the bed and grabbed the dress, not bothering to go behind the changing curtain, it was her mother after all.

"Your father shows signs of waking," she murmured, staring out the window, watching both the guards below and the half-moon in the sky, "He shall heal. But he should never have been injured."

"No," Rose agreed, pulling the dress over her head, "But what has that got to do with…"

"You know what I am, daughter," her mother cut in, "You know what you are, as a result," Rose nodded, "I cannot abide this happening, not to my mate."

Rose blinked at that, fastening the cloak around her, "Mother?"

"Tonight," her mother took a breath, seeming like she was barely having the strength to keep her emotions in check around her daughter, "Tonight I teach you how a Siren hunts."

~8~

Rose was distinctly sure she should have felt angry and bitter for the reason she and her mother were walking through the woods that night just an hour later. She was sure she should have felt resentful that the only reason she was accompanying her mother was not because her mother thought her capable and truly wanted to teach her what was happening, but instead that her mother couldn't utilize her own magic any longer and, as a result, needed to rely on her daughter to use her magic instead.

She should have felt resentful about it...but as she walked through the woods with her mother, all she could feel was the magic inside her…and the instinct she was sure was tenfold stronger in her mother driving her to find those that had harmed her clan and tear them apart.

Her mother had taught her a new song, a new way to listen for songs, when they had reached the area that the soldiers had informed her mother was where the attack had occurred. There had been a bit of blood scattered around the area, even still, days later, and her mother had taught her how to listen for a faint trace of the song in the blood, how to get a sense of where the owner of the blood was. It was like a song in the distance that only she could hear, and the closer she got to it, the louder it became. There had been two directions the music had come from, back towards the kingdom which was the blood of the soldiers and her father, and off into the woods…which was the bandits, which was where they were currently heading. Clearly the bandits were not very clever as the song itself was not as quiet or faint as it should have been if they had been wise enough to truly flee the kingdom, instead it seemed they had decided to linger, as though waiting to hear tell of the king and if they had managed to finish him off.

And it was…odd. Because the closer she got to the songs, the more a heat rose in her stomach, the more she tingled, and the angrier she felt.

She had expressed the odd feeling to her mother who had smiled as though she were proud of her for feeling it and explained it was her instinct, as a Siren, even as a half one, that something in her knew that the songs she was listening to had caused harm to someone she loved. It was stirring inside her, the protective instinct that Sirens felt for their families, it was building a desire to see that threat dealt with and removed, to cause harm for the harm caused to her. And she was very happy that such an instinct occurred, both her mother and herself. She...she liked feeling the new traits of a Siren come up, it made her feel closer to her mother, like she was starting to understand another side of herself. When they first arose, it was almost warming, inviting, familiar to her, she liked that feeling. Usually weeks, sometimes months later, she would feel differently, or something would happen that made her think she shouldn't feel so happy about it, about being more and more a Siren. But for now...it was a wonderful feeling. It made her feel like it wasn't that bad to be a Siren, they just loved their families and wanted them safe, there was nothing wrong with that.

"Mother," she breathed, stopping short in their silent walk, "I hear it, clearly now…" she looked to the left as though hearing something her mother couldn't, "Over there," she pointed through a thick bush.

Her mother nodded and the two crept closer to it, her mother parting just a branch of the bush and crouching down, looking through it to see they were on something of a hill, at the bottom was a campfire, a group of 5 men around it, all speaking in hushed tones, a small crinkling river beside them, which covered the sound of their voices.

"Them."

For a moment, Rose wasn't sure who had uttered the word with such venom and darkness and accusation…till she realized it was herself that had said it.

Her mother nodded, letting go of the branch and turning to look at her daughter, "Rose," she began, "What I am about to do…" Rose glanced down at the strain in her mother's voice to see that the woman seemed to be shaking, gripping the branch so hard in what appeared to be restraint that her knuckles were white, "You may not wish to see."

Rose frowned at that, tilting her head back to her mother's face, "Mother?"

Her mother took a deep breath, "I can feel it…" she closed her eyes, shaking her head slightly as though to ward something off, "Even now, I feel the instinct," she murmured, she may not possess her magic, but all other Siren traits had stuck with her, grown stronger the more she allowed Ethan into her heart, grown fiercer when she became a mother, "I will not be able to resist long, and the longer I do…the more violent and…gruesome," she warned, "It will be," she forced her eyes open, looking at Rose, breathing hard, "You may not wish to look, but you must stay here."

Before Rose could even reply, her mother stood and, almost within the blink of an eye, disappeared into the thick trees around her. Rose stood a little, looking around, spinning in a small circle to try and spot where her mother had gone, only to crouch back down in alarm when she heard a strangled scream from behind her. She quickly grabbed the branch of the bush and pushed it down, peering through it to the camp below, her eyes widening in shock…feeling unable to look away even at the horror of what was going on below her.

Her mother was there, in a savage glory that she had never thought possible, attacking the men before they could even react.

As much as she felt she should look away, she felt the instinct in her telling her to watch, telling her that this was important to observe, that she should know this, know what a true Siren was like when consumed by protective fury and the lust for blood and revenge, know how to TAKE that revenge. She could feel herself pale as she watched her mother in action, but something in her told her this was right, this was just, the men deserved SO much worse for daring to harm her father!

She hadn't thought it was possible to tear someone's throat out with bare hands before.

She hadn't thought it was possible to literally claw someone's eyes out.

She hadn't thought it was possible to drown someone in a fire…

Her mother proved her wrong.

She watched in a stunned, curious horror as her mother tore the small camp apart, seeming to be in such a frenzy she didn't even realize when she herself had been harmed or cut by the men and their weapons. It did make some sense in a way, Sirens were creatures, they didn't feel as much as humans did, their range of emotion was more limited. They felt pain, yes, but not as fully as humans, they felt anger and happiness and love, but hardly felt fear or regret or much of humor. They were more primal and basic than humans were. It was one thing she had failed to inherit from her mother, she felt like a human did, she felt all their emotions, some of them overwhelming at times due to the Siren in her being unfamiliar with them. She couldn't not feel, as much as she sometimes wished to, not unless her heart started to harden and become more Siren-like but her parents were set on trying to preserve her heart as it was as much as it could be. Her heart was her heart, it was how she was born, they didn't want to change it or cause it to harden when it wasn't like that now, they wanted it to remain as it was as long as possible, even if it meant she had all the weaknesses of a human when it came to emotions.

Rose shook her head from her thoughts when she saw her mother get backhanded right in the face. But her mother was strong, stronger still in allowing the instinct to take over and fuel her. She bounced back from blows to the face and body faster than any of the knights in their training. She dodged and ducked swings with such a keen instinct. She seemed to have gained an almost inhuman strength in her fury and drive to see her husband avenged.

She had to wonder if her mother still had some sort of magic left, a magic that only came out in the most desperate of times, for there was no other explanation for how her mother could attack five men that had managed to harm her father so badly…and tear them apart the way she had while coming out alive.

Before she even realized it, the attack was over and her mother was left standing in the middle of the camp, standing on the back of a man that had his face pushed and held down into the middle of the fire, glaring at the remains of the other men, breathing hard, shoulders heaving, not even seeming to notice the tears in her clothing nor the blood running down the various cuts on her body.

She was quite sure she should have run away, should have been terrified, when her mother looked up at her, locking eyes with her through the bushes she was peering through…and smiled.

But she didn't.

Instead…she smiled back.

~8~

Rose Red watched in silence as her mother, with her head held high, strode through the village as it began to wake, her hand firmly clasped in her mother's strong hold. The villagers were startled...that was an understatement, they were horrified to see their Queen gliding along, a feral smile on her face, covered in blood and wounds. It was almost like a force surrounded the two of them as they walked on, the crowds that had gathered to look upon the Queen parting hastily as she strode by. She could hear the whispers that were rising, the questions and concerns for what had happened to the Queen…even some well guessed corrections that they ought be more worried about what had happened to the ones the Queen had encountered. She was sure her mother could hear the whispers as well, though the older woman seemed to smile more at them and the fear rising around them than anything else.

Ilayda walked along, her gaze on the castle walls, never minding the people around her, but being sure to keep tight to her daughter as one never knew what humans would do when fear was sparked. She had slaughtered five men this night, she would have no qualms taking out more, taking out men and women and even children if they dared harm her daughter in her current state of mind. She didn't slow in her walk, not till she had reached the gates of the castle walls, where she abruptly turned to face the crowd that had gathered, stopping all whispers, causing a hush to fall over the group.

She looked at the men and women before her, her gaze trailing over them before she straightened her head, "Five men lie dead in the woods," she began, her voice echoing in the still of the morning, "Five bandits that attacked my husband, my MATE, your king," her expression hardened, "Let THIS be a warning to any who would DARE harm my clan," Rose glanced up at her for that word, her mother often slipped into the terms Sirens used when she was upset, she always tried to at least make something of a minuscule effort to use more human terms when addressing the people other times, "You harm those I love, your life is MINE."

Rose blinked and her mother turned on her heel, leading her off with her through the walls of the castle, closing off the murmurs of the crowd behind them as the gates shut once they passed.

She was a little startled when, instead of returning straight to her father's side, her mother instead paused outside the door to their bedroom. The woman stared at the door a moment before she turned to face her daughter, kneeling down before her and taking both hands in her own.

"My apologies, Rose," her mother spoke quietly, squeezing her hands, "I ought not have taken you with me."

"You stopped the bandits," Rose shook her head, confused, "The ones that hurt father. And I helped. You wouldn't have been able to if I didn't go."

Her mother smiled at her softly, "I would have made do," she admitted, "I may not be able to use my magic, but I can still hunt. It would take longer, yes, but I could have done so alone."

Rose frowned, "I would not want you to. Nor would father."

"Truth," she agreed, "But he would not have wanted you to witness that."

"Why not?"

Her mother looked at her a long while, "You are still very young, daughter, we would keep you from the darker, baser instincts of Sirens as best we could."

"I am half a Siren," Rose argued, "I ought to know sooner."

"It is a difficult road to walk," her mother warned, "Far more for me than you, I should hope. You are half human, Rose," she smiled a bit in thought, "Your father's daughter," before she shook herself slightly, "But you are also mine. The people…" she sighed, "They are frightened of me, and therefore are of you as well. I would not wish that. I would wish you more human in their eyes. My actions today, in having you seen at my side after my hunt, ensured that will never be."

"You protected them, mother," Rose continued to argue, "You stopped the bandits that attacked their king, that could have attacked any of them. You kept them safe."

"They shall not see it as such," her mother sighed, "Humans…they fear that which they do not understand. And they do not understand Sirens, not like your father does. They will not see it as a Queen protecting her people, but a Siren seeking to avenge her mate. As they should," she nodded, "For that is exactly what it was. I did not do what I did for them, I did it for your father."

Ilayda looked at her daughter a long while, reaching up a hand to gently stroke Rose's hair, thoughtful, "The magic of the Sirens is strong in you, Rose, it will only grow stronger. What you witnessed, what possessed me this night…" she shook her head, "I sense you shall experience one day as well."

"The instinct," Rose murmured.

Her mother nodded, "It will be stronger then."

"I will be older."

"Not just that," her mother informed her, "What you felt, the instinct that drove you to help me, was a Siren's desire to see their family, their clan, protected at all costs. Your instinct came from your father being harmed, wanting to avenge him. I…" she sighed, "I was taken by the instinct to protect my mate. It can be…a driving instinct, intense, consuming," she looked at her daughter, "Had you been anyone else but my daughter I would not have cared if you came to harm in my quest for blood, that is how powerfully a mate affects us. We, if forced apart, can be driven to the brink of obsession, insanity even, to see them returned to us. We would kill without thought, torture without remorse, attack without guilt, to see them returned, no matter who it is that stands in our way, even family at times. You must be careful, Rose," she returned her hand to Rose's, squeezing them tightly, "You must be wary and cautious when you give your heart to another. Our mate strengthens us, gives us a…power we have never experienced, they make us better, stronger, but they are also our greatest weakness. If harm befalls them, if they are taken from us, if they are…killed," she swallowed hard, "We can scarcely control ourselves, we become vulnerable to the manipulations of others," she looked at her daughter, "I lost myself this night, my instinct consumed me, and I am no longer bound in the magic of a Siren. It may be worse for you, when you are older, Rose, even as a half-Siren. You must promise me," she squeezed her hands again, "Promise me that you shall be wise and careful with your heart, do not give it lightly."

Rose nodded slowly, seeing the true concern and fear in her mother's usually guarded eyes, this was something that could potentially be deadly to her. If she gave her heart to the wrong person, they could manipulate her, use her tie to them to use her. If she gave it to someone too weak to protect themselves, she would be living in a constant state of fear and paranoia, she would lose herself to the madness of the bond. If she gave it to someone that was unworthy, she would condemn herself to a lifetime of suffering for what she thought was love.

She had to be careful, her mother was imparting a true lesson to her, a warning, to be extremely careful about who she should give her heart to, because it would define her life from that point on. Seeing what her mother had done that night, the fury of the attack, the drive to see vengeance taken, how little she had seemed to care about herself…it was both beautiful and frightening. To love someone that much that you could become so lost in the most basic instincts, could give into them to see the person safe, it was a beautiful notion to her. But to be that consumed that she lost herself and could be injured or harmed or manipulated because of it, it was a terrifying thought.

"I promise, mother," she whispered, squeezing her mother's hands back, she would be careful about her heart, about giving it to someone.

"Your heart is YOURS, Rose," her mother added, "Your father and I will not allow it to be bartered off to a bidder nor to become a pawn in a ploy for peace. It will be yours to give to whomever you wish, and yours alone. So you must be wise."

"I will," she promised, having known her parents would never force her to wed someone she didn't love. She had seen it in other kingdoms, princesses given as wives to other kings for an alliance, her parents refused. Being a Siren, even partly, she would not be able to force love or give love where it wasn't earned or grown.

Not that it particularly mattered, she thought, no one that she knew would wish to wed her as a half-Siren anyway. They'd have to be either mad or as dark as Sirens were to want her, and there were few, if any, that fit that design.

It was almost…a relief, in a way, to think of that. If no one came that caused her heart to beat faster and made her long for another, then there was no chance of her giving her heart away to someone that wasn't worthy of it. She wouldn't have to fear the instinct taking her if there was no one to possess her heart.

She wasn't sure, at this point in her life, what she wanted. At times she felt she wished to be more human, at other times she cared so little that she might as well be a Siren. She kept going back and forth, but she was still young, she still had time to find herself and find someone that would accept her as she was beyond those in her family.

She looked up when her mother nodded and stood, the woman turning to the door and pushing it open without another word, stepping into her bedroom with Rose following after.

"My love," was the first thing either of them heard, said in a weak and tired voice, but actually spoken aloud…which meant...

"Ethan," Ilayda breathed, moving over to the bed where King Ethan was now awake, lying flat on his back, his head turned to the door, smiling at her. She took his hand, quickly kissing the back of it before leaning over to kiss his lips.

"And my sweet girl," he added, seeing Rose standing there as well. He held out his hand to her and Rose quickly hurried over, leaning up to give him as gentle a hug as she could.

"You're awake," she whispered, feeling tears prickle her eyes in relief that her father had woken.

"I am," he nodded, smiling at them, "I would not leave the two most important women in my life over a few minor scrapes," he looked at Ilayda more at that remark, eyeing her up and down, taking in her own wounds, "My love…"

"My apologies," her mother spoke quietly, though she didn't sound sorry or ashamed at all.

"I did think this would happen," he admitted gently, "I had hoped to wake before this point."

Rose blinked at that revelation, that her father had known exactly what her mother would be want to do because of the state he was in.

"You would not have stopped me," her mother sounded more like she was reminding him of a fact than angry that he would have tried to.

"Oh I know nothing can stop you when the fancy takes you," he gave her a small smile, "I had merely meant, I hoped to be in a better position to tend your wounds myself."

Rose couldn't help the equally small smile that came to her face at her father's words. If only she could find a man that understood her and her instincts, understood what she was like and wouldn't try to change or manipulate or use her like her father did her mother. She might feel safer giving her heart to such a man if one existed, she doubted there was one though. Her father was a rare breed.

"I can tend myself."

King Ethan chuckled warmly, "I am very aware, my love," he grimaced a moment later, struggling to push himself to sit up in the bed, her mother rushing to help him do so without too much strain, "But this," he sighed, sitting back against a pillow and turning, managing to reach a small bowl of water and cloth resting on his bedside table, "Is one of the few ways I can take care of you. I do not wish another to see this duty, my duty, done."

Rose moved to sit on the edge of the bed, watching, as a warm feeling grew in her chest, as her father gently used the cloth to clean her mother's wounds despite his own still obviously paining him.

No matter what the people might think of her mother, both as a Queen and Siren, nor what they thought of her and whatever might come of her life, there was one thing she was absolutely certain about…

Her father loved her mother very much, as a woman and a Siren, as a queen and a mother, as herself, and it was the purest love she had ever witnessed.

A/N: Poor Rose, she keeps getting tugged in two directions. She sees that her father accepts her mother, loves them both, and has no issue with them being Sirens or acting like it. But then she steps outside her family bubble and just about every other person around her has an issue with her being what she is :( She sees acceptance and thinks it may not be so bad to be a Siren...and then she gets reminded at every turn that the people hate Sirens and maybe she should try to be more human :(

I sort of wanted to try and give more backstory to why it hurts so much for Snow to see Piper as the enemy now, and also why it means SO much to her that Gold accepts her as she is and loves her regardless. She has always wanted something like what her parents had, and she got all that and more in Gold. Not only does she have someone that accepts her darkness, but is just as dark (more dark even) than she is :')

I can say some minor foreshadowing here too. Rose remarks that she doubts there would be a man that would understand what a Siren was like and their instincts and still accept her. We'll see a flashback chapter in Season 5 of just how much effort Rumpelstiltskin put into learning about Sirens and what they are like, just to understand Piper ;)

Some notes on reviews...

I wanted Will to just outright reveal Hook's actions too, though I doubt Emma at that point in time would have believed Will over her beau :/ I think Will and Belle were both trying to make the best of a bad situation, using each other to heal, and also because they understood what it was like to love someone that went dark and hurt them. I don't think their relationship would have gone far but more grown into a good friendship in the end :) I was curious what happened to Ana too, but I guess the writers forgot to answer that. I felt like they forgot Ruby existed till people were like 'Where's Ruby?' and then they were like 'Oh, right!' and gave us a weird backtracked episode to explain it. Maybe they'll do the same, get people wondering 'What happened to Ana?' and go 'Oh yeah, we were supposed to reveal that...' and finally say :( I could see the UW being brought to Storybrooke more, I doubt Gold left a note telling Belle he was going to the Underworld and to come meet him there, lol, so it's more likely, to me, that the UW ends up in Storybrooke, because everything else does lol. Lyssa is the OC from my Hook/OC story, Calm Before the Storm ;)

I can say Regina might get wise to the fact that's not the actual plan, turning Emma dark, but some events in Season 5 will keep her from revealing it to Snow ;) Regina's reaction to the pregnancy might be more on a backburner to her, I think with Zelena being pregnant, the LAST thing she wants is yet another person pregnant when SHE can't be pregnant, so she'll probably try the 'If I don't acknowledge it, it's not there' approach for the beginning ;) Oh I think Zelena would use anything to taunt Piper if she knew it would get to her, which the baby definitely would ;) It'll depend on Zelena's baby, I've got some twists in mind so we'll have to see what becomes of that first ;)

Oh Piper will want to make Snow suffer first, she won't forgive easily at all }:) I can say IF Emma forgives Snow, there'll be more motivating it than Snow is aware of }:)

I can say the Dagger will change hands a few times, but a certain person obtaining it will be both shocking and not quite shocking at the same time ;) I don't think Piper would want to be a hero either, at most the only reason Gold might consider heroism is because the 'good deeds' would be good for his heart but he wouldn't WANT to be a hero either nope :) I have a few twists in mind for the finale, lost of betrayal going on and things you may not expect, but I hope everyone will enjoy it :)

I'm sorry you had to get surgery done! I hope you're doing better! :)

I can say that there will be a discussion from Henry with Piper about if she thinks he might have gotten any Siren traits too in Season 5 ;) Piper might not talk to Regina about that but she'll be making some pointed remarks about how the Evil Queen has now become Snow's Servant and such ;) Oh she'll SO be commenting on that whole soap opera drama ;)

I don't think it's wrong, it was the worst twist the writers could have ever gone with, completely pointless, and they don't even handle the psychological trauma at all :( The baby will likely never have any meaningful screen time, in which case, what was the point of it? And it wouldn't have mattered if the baby survived or not if it's not going to be utilized in a very important and ON screen way, which I doubt it will nor would I want it to be present either :/

I do have a plan for an original story/series when the show ends, sort of like one more season to wrap up things and try my hand at writing OUAT myself lol :) But thank you :) I get sorely tempted to just rewrite the show, but I try to stay as true to what's going on as I can, which is trying at times, very very trying lol. There were brief moments of Season 5 so far that were wonderfully done, few though they were, but I agree a majority just got too flipped and underdone or over done :/ I thought Swan Song would be based on Emma too :(

I'm glad you like the Emma here :) I feel like she's starting to listen to and trust someone that is having a positive influence on her life and giving guidence and advice where she needs it, ironic as that might be given that the someone is a dark creature lol. In the AU I have planned, we'll see a very wise and rational Emma as she would have been raised by Piper her entire life ;) Lol, that's how I pictured it too, like Piper and Gold are just going back and forth and poor August is sitting on the couch rolling his eyes till he's just like 'Mom, go I got this' and Gold is pointing at him like he won the argument :) I actually found Regina being there odd too, in the sense that how the writers had her speaking and what she was saying sounded forced. I felt like she was there with Emma for Snow, and also tried to stop her because if she brought back a Darkened Emma, Snow and Henry would be after her and the town would point fingers like 'villain!' again at her. It just didn't seem to fit, because Regina understands pain and anger and needing to let it out, but she kept telling Emma 'Actually, no, don't release the negative feelings, just keep them bottled up because heroes don't have negative feelings.' Or that's how it came across to me, it was like she was trying to guilt Emma into not showing negative emotions or reacting to something that was devastating and scaring her instead of offering her another way to do it, which is worse to let it fester and stay bottled up :/ I really wanted that to be a big thing for Piper, honesty with her family. It's useful not only that it shows she cares for them in that she doesn't lie, so she's not 'evil,' but also...how much of an advantage has it been to the villains in being honest with Emma and Henry when the heroes have been lying all the time? It makes them seem better and more trustworthy over the heroes, which is some just desserts to them ;) So far Snow doesn't quite know there's something wrong with Gold, so she's not fully aware why Henry wants to go see Gold, but the point does stand it IS his grandfather and if he can live with his step-great grandmother the Evil Queen why can't he visit his biological grandfather the Dark One? :/ Oh Regina was very jealous of how Emma trusted Piper ;) I think Piper did help them a lot in being so blunt, she's laying out her cards and showing why she's saying what she does, whereas with Regina it sometimes came across like she was saying lines she thought she should say but didn't really mean, to control Emma instead of because she really cared about her, just my opinion ;) I didn't know about that deleted scene, I'll have to youtube it, thanks! :) I hope we get to see Eva and Leopold in the Underworld too, their reactions to Snow and Piper would be awesome :) I agree with your assessment of the writers lately, it just seems like they want to do it their way and when it blows up they just take a quick way and brush it under the rug, removing important and needed moments on screen so that maybe we'll forget the event even happened, and it just is more frustrating than anything :/ Lol, that's awesome, I'm glad Piper and your OC get along well :)