"You don't know how long I've been waiting for you to say that," Elizabeth murmured.
Jefferson kissed her again, overwhelmed by the sensations that buzzed under his skin.
'I've never felt like this about any of those barmaids, any lady or princess.'
Elizabeth kissed him back, and Jefferson subconsciously began to undo Elizabeth's corset. He'd had plenty of practice and nimbly undid the garment, slipping her dress from her skin whilst her fingers brushed against him as she unbuttoned his shirt and tugged off his cravat.
Jefferson suddenly stopped, his hands snapping away guiltily- even though he's amended the will, Elizabeth's wedding the following day still strayed in his mind.
"Can't we just forget about that, for one night?" Elizabeth softly asked, reading his mind.
Her wide eyes sparkled vivaciously and she grabbed Jefferson, wrapping her arms around his back, pulling him back again. She settled down on the edge of her bed. As Jefferson's hands had strayed back onto her body, he was flung onto the bed beside her.
"I love you, and that's all that matters."
Elizabeth delicately whispered in his ear and he kissed her neck in response. Soft wisps of hair landed on his skin. Everything seemed to blur into a whirl: the gentle brush of her skin against his, her hair, dark eyes and the intoxicating scent of strawberries. Taking a gasp for air, Jefferson kept kissing Elizabeth as he let the sensations, that made every inch of him feel wondrously alive, take over.
Jefferson opened an eye, surprised to find he was bathed in a bright sunlight that streamed through the fluttering curtains. He blinked hazily in the light, frowning in confusion at his surroundings.
'This isn't my bed, and it's too extravagant to belong to a barmaid.'
For a moment Regina came into his mind, but the lack of colour reminded Jefferson where he was, though previous night was still a blur.
Giving a relieved sigh, Jefferson rolled over to see a sleeping Elizabeth by his side. She was facing away from him, the sheets curled underneath her chin, dark waves spread out over her pillow. For a moment, Jefferson lay in bed, holding into the warm contented glow inside of him, but waking Elizabeth was too hard to resist. He leant over, stroking a stray curl of hair before whispering in her ear:
"Morning beautiful."
There was a muffled scream into the pillow, and Elizabeth thrashed about between the sheets before sitting up with a start.
She turned to face him, her face completely white, eyes wide with fright. Elizabeth stared in surprise at him for a moment, suddenly relieved.
"I thought you were the...wait: what are you doing...oh!" Elizabeth cried, stopping short as their eyes met and they came to the same realisation. She blushed furiously, tightly clutching the bed-sheets to keep her bare skin covered.
"I bet last night was the best birthday of your life," Jefferson said, grinning, "but I'm sorry I scared you."
In apology, he reached out to touch her shoulder, craning his neck up to kiss her. Jefferson began to whisper in her ear of how they could spent the day, Elizabeth giggling and hitting him with the pillow. She suddenly froze, her glowing cheeks paling again.
"The day after my birthday...my wedding day..." She murmured faintly, glancing at the doorway as though she half expected either Victor or the Count to burst in.
For a moment they were both still, before registering the situation and surging into life again. Jefferson stumbled out of the bed and hurriedly pulling on his clothes. His silver pocket watch had half slipped out from his shirt pocket and Jefferson could just see the hands were pointed at 8 o'clock.
"The wedding will only be in a few hours," Elizabeth cried frantically, her white-knuckled hands clutching the roots her hair.
"Don't worry," Jefferson called, winding his cravat back around his neck, "you won't marry him, I promise. And I'll be there, like in our plan. I just need to give my business partner the slip first. But it's all going to plan."
Jefferson grabbed his hat and gave Elizabeth one last kiss, though she pushed him off.
"You have to go!" Elizabeth urged, her voice shaking slightly as she called to him:
"Just remember, that I will always love-"
She was cut off by the approaching footsteps on the landing. Casting Elizabeth one last glance, Jefferson leapt into the hat. As the hat pulled him through, he heard the door to Elizabeth's room flying open, before both Jefferson and his hat vanished from sight.
Jefferson landed in the forest to find the early morning sunshine from the land without colour had been replaced by an orangey-red sky, and he suspected it was late evening.
He turned in the direction of the dark one's castle before remembering the deal he'd made. The issue of Regina still hadn't been addressed. Jefferson knew it would be pointless to return to Rumplestilstkin until he had fulfilled the deal and that as Regina had only been staying at the castle during the day, she was most likely to be at her own castle.
Turning on his heel, Jefferson headed south towards the royal castle.
As Jefferson walked, he began to regret this part of the deal: breaking into the castle would be easy enough, but Jefferson had no idea how he was going to get Regina away from the watchful eye of the King or his guards- let alone what he'd say.
He reached the boundary to King Leopold's kingdom by sundown, flashing his royal passport at the guard, still with no idea how to approach the task at hand. The castle was situated further in than the boundary, and Jefferson had to pass through a few small villages before reaching the castle walls. Gazing up at the tall glass spirals that jutted up into the darkening sky, Jefferson was disheartened to realise there was no way in except the main gates.
'If I try and enter through the gates, I'll be hauled up in front of the King faster than I can say Rumplestiltskin. The only other way is...'
Quickly checking there were no guards around to see, Jefferson clicked, willing his magic to take him directly into the castle. Regina's retellings of how dull the castle was served him well, for Jefferson reappeared within the castle walls in one piece. Hoping that he'd landed near Regina's chambers, he headed down the corridor, shrinking back into an alcove at the sound of voices.
"It's no wonder the King's away again," one of the guards laughed lowly, "I'd be far away too if I was married to our new Queen!"
The other guard gave a grunt of agreement and as they continued wandering down the corridor, muttering remarks concerning Regina. Deciding to have a little fun, Jefferson impatiently tapped his heel on the stone floor, the faint tap ringing out across the hall.
"Did you hear that?" The taller guard asked, looking around suspiciously, though Jefferson was hidden from sight in the shadows.
His companion shrugged and they continued chatting. Jefferson waited until they were almost beside him before letting out a soft whistle. Both guards leapt in surprise, their conversation cut off in their shock as they glanced around.
"Bet it was the Queen, they say she's a witch!" One cried, still searching the seemingly empty corridor for the cause of the noises.
"Can't be, she's behind that door in her chamb-" The guard froze as he turned to see Jefferson.
Before he could utter another word, Jefferson punched him in the jaw, sending the guard stumbling backwards, clutching his bleeding mouth. The other brandished his sword, but Jefferson had already retrieved the poppy dust from his satchel. He blew a few ground up seeds at each guard, and they fell to the floor, fast asleep.
Jefferson then tried the door that the guards had referred to, his own magic unlocking the spells Regina had put on it. The door swung open and he stepped inside, pushing away any lingering apprehension. Jefferson knew he needed to appear confident in order keep the upper hand.
The chamber appeared empty at first: red silk linen spread neatly across the bed like blood, everything precisely in its place. As Jefferson silently stepped further in he could see that Regina was hunched over a dresser, concocting a foul smelling green potion inside one of the castle glasses.
'No wonder they think she's a witch,' Jefferson thought, before loudly clearing his throat and announcing,
"You know, if you want to poison dear Snow White, you really shouldn't make it so obvious."
Regina whirled around, her expression half shocked, half amused at the sight of Jefferson.
"That royal passport of yours doesn't grant you access to my bed chamber," she sultrily replied.
Jefferson ignored her comment and continued:
"More importantly, you can't just practice magic in the castle. Any of guards to look in and see!"
"I have enchantments on the door," she sighed dismissively, "so if anyone looks in they just see me sleeping, though I suppose you got around those enchantments."
"Indeed I did, though I'm not here to lecture you Regina. We need to talk, about something else."
"Oh," Regina pouted, getting up from her seat and sidling up to him.
"You see, the thing is..." Jefferson began, clearing his throat, suddenly slightly tongue-tied as Regina came closer.
She rested her hand on his chest and slowly lifted her head to look up at him.
"It's not like you to be at a loss for words Jefferson," she teased, stepping around him, her hand still straying across his chest, before slowly adding,
"could this little chat be about Elizabeth?"
Jefferson stared at her, agape as she smirked up at him.
"Oh yes, I know all about you and that wizard's foolish little sister," Regina crooned, "no wonder you were so keen to have last night off-you wanted to be with her for her birthday. Rumplestiltskin would not be pleased if he knew of your whereabouts for not just last night, but these past few months."
"Rumplestiltskin doesn't need to know, and you better not tell him," Jefferson said, finding his voice as he registered the malicious glint in Regina's eye.
"I really don't think you're in a position to be threatening me: and trust me, I'm doing you a favour," Regina said, so close to Jefferson that he could feel her breath against the nape of his neck.
He shifted uncomfortably, rocking on his heels, but Regina's arms were wound around his upper body, holding him still.
"What do you mean?"
"I looked through that orb you got from Oz and saw glimpses of your past, present and future with that girl, Elizabeth. She's getting married today, isn't she?"
Without waiting for a response, Regina continued,
"Trust me, from what I saw, it's better off if you two stay apart."
"Better for you, you mean! How dare you let your feelings for me stop me from having happiness!" Jefferson said angrily, startling Regina.
He broke free from her grip and started for the door.
"I don't have any feelings for you- except pity. You're too deluded by your love for Elizabeth to see that you two being apart would be a far better future for both of you. If you really loved her, you'd let her have that better future, wouldn't you?"
"What, with her vampire fiancé?" Jefferson spat, turning to face Regina, "any future is better than that one! Now let me leave!"
"Not until you listen!" Regina snapped, waving her hand so that the door to the hall locked, thick vines weaving over it, "please, believe me when I say that keeping you from Elizabeth is for the best!"
"No! I'm meant to be with her- I'm the one that she's meant to marry! Jefferson cried, "I need her: I love her!"
As his pleading turned to desperation, Jefferson suddenly remembered his hat and reached up to grab it and make his escape. To his horror, his fingers only touched air and he looked up to find the hat had been prised from his head and was entangled in the vines.
Furiously, he tore at them, breathing heavily as he strained to reach his hat. His magic came easily from his heightened emotions, and the vines began to untwist.
But before Jefferson could even brush the tip of his hat, he felt Regina grab his arm and twist it behind his back. The thick vines from the door caught around him, twisting him around and pulling him tightly to the wall.
"I'm sorry, but you leave me with no other choice," Regina said unclenching her free hand to reveal the pouch of poppy dust that she'd stolen from him.
Writhing to be free, Jefferson fought against the fierce vines Regina had conjured, but he couldn't escape the poppy dust: or the deep slumber that overcame him.