Chapter 5: Presents
"Crystal, you didn't need to do this," Mary Margret insists.
Everyone has gathered at Emma and Killian's home, as it was the closest to the daughter of the Dark One's dramatic entrance back into town. After getting take-out from Granny's, the girl was eager to share with them the souvenirs brought back from her travels. She had everyone gather at the kitchen table and one of her duffle bags sat at her end, open like a treasure chest to reveal the wonders inside.
"You guys didn't think that I'd leave and not bring you back anything did you?" she asks, sipping some soda, so happy to have a meal that didn't have to be cooked over a fire.
"Based on the weight of your baggage, I assume you brought back a lot of presents," Rumple groans, his arms slightly sore.
"Enough for everyone in the family and Henry the next time our paths cross," Crystal says.
She then reaches her whole arm into the bag, further than what would be possible. She searches around for her first few items.
"Uhm… does no one see that?" Regina asks.
"How are you…?" David stammers.
Crystal fishes out what she needs before answering. "Oh, my bag is actually charmed to hold massive loads a lot heavier than what you feel there. Got the idea from a book series and made it a reality. Unfortunately, it can't fully absorb the weight so sorry Dad."
"Not a problem."
"First the kids," the daughter of the Dark One says. She opens something wrapped in silk.
"I met a music box maker name Odele in one of the realms and she made these for the kids."
She opens the small metal box; a silver moon appears in the centre and begins to rotate with the song. The light creates reflections of stars on the surrounding walls, making a shimmering and amazing effect.
"She said the songs were derived from the Maralinet Islands, a place of performers who had the most beautiful voices and songs. Everything done on the Islands is appealing to the human eyes and ears. This song is one of their lullabies and sung during offerings to the moon. She told me its tune is asking the moon to protect one as they slumber. It is guaranteed to put someone to sleep for a peaceful night's rest."
Gideon was already starting to get sleepy, so Crystal shut the box and handed one to Zelena, one to her stepmother and the third to her surrogate mother. She looks at Emma apologetically.
"Sorry Em, if I'd known you were having a baby at the time, I'd have gotten another one."
"It's fine," the blonde shrugs.
"We can always lend it to you," Snow says.
"Next Belle," Crystal says sticking her arm back in. "Damn I wished I'd organized better."
It takes a few minutes before she grabs what she needs.
"Here hold out your arms," the young woman requests. She then piles several thick volumes and scrolls into Belle's arms.
"Wow," the bookworm says in amazement.
"Any time I was able to take a book that did not start a kingdom-wide war, I thought of you and collected them. From the Islands of the Oasis to a place known as Forbron Enclave, which is a place populated only by monks. Hell, I even ran into Diana, demigod Amazon warrior and daughter of Zeus. We fought together alongside some Themyscira warriors to vanquish."
"Wait, why do those names sound so familiar?" Emma asks.
"Because Henry used to read stories about those worlds in the comic books."
"Seriously?" Emma says. "Superheroes are real too?"
The blonde then grimaces, knowing she walked into the cliché phrase of:
"Says the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming," Killian smirks, though Emma mouthed the words along in annoyance. "I know, but out of everything that we know, I thought superheroes were still made up."
"I thought so too until in a forest realm I met the warriors on a specific hunt for a lost object. I was completely floored and offered my services in magic to help them. It did get ugly at some point and there was a bad battle, but by the end, it's how I earned the helmet," Crystal points to the artifact on the furthest part of the table.
"I just can't imagine… Henry would be thrilled to know about this," Regina says.
"Yep, I knew he would be. Like you guys and your fairy tales, many of the heroes in comic books are based on real-life people and also extraterrestrials. Although, when I showed Diana a copy of one of the comics based on her, she was less than thrilled, especially with the liberties it took with some of her stories."
"Understandable, most humans here get everything wrong about us," Zelena chimes in.
"Said by the woman who has a whole musical named after her," Crystal smirks.
The redhead holds her finger up menacingly, even without her magic. "We do not speak of that."
"What's this one?" Belle asks, attempting to change the subject. She's put the books on the table and is examining the titles with eager fascination.
"A tome that came from a long-forgotten tribe that resembles the ancient tribes of Mesopotamia. It's written in Sumerian."
"Sumerian is a dead language," Rumple says.
"Not where I was," Crystal says. "When I mentioned my stepmother wanting to study the world and was a keeper of knowledge, the chief of the tribe gifted me a copy of their traditions and stories."
"Crystal, that's amazing, you didn't have to do that,"
"You guys are my family, I wanted to,"
"But if it's written in a dead language," Zelena points out. "There's no way she can read Sumerian though…"
Crystal then puts an English to Sumerian dictionary on the top of the pile and smiles.
"I used a little magic to help with that."
The beauty goes and embraces her stepdaughter tightly before excusing herself to go to the couch and begin reading with Gideon on her lap.
Going back in, she retrieves her gift for the wicked witch.
"I met a coven of witches at one point, and they gave me this."
Unwrapping from a piece of torn cloth, she holds out a statue of a cat.
Zelena frowns in annoyance, suspecting Crystal is mocking her. The two did not have the best relationship. Instead of handing it to her, the girl continues to hold it out on the cloth.
"Just touch it," the girl insists with an eye roll.
The moment her hand makes contact with the statue, it begins to glow a green colour and shake erratically. The witch steps back in shock, trying to protect her daughter from whatever magic is possesses and lets it fall. The artifact lands with a heavy thud, denting the kitchen floor.
"What is that? What happened?"
"It's a Talisman Familiar."
"Why was is shaking? What's it supposed to do?"
"It's better if you just see for yourself."
Still extremely skeptical, the witch hands her daughter to her sister and picks up the statue. Again, it begins to glow and shake. Suddenly, the statue grows in size and in a burst of light, a 3-dimensional apparition of a cat, glowing with green energy and green eyes sits in Zelena's hands. It cocks its head and her before leaping from her hands and onto the table. It begins cleaning itself like a normal cat.
"What is it?" Regina asks. "What does it do?"
"It's a shape-shifting guardian. It can only be activated by a true witch, and it adapts to their power or magic, even if it's no longer there. The witches told me that magic is like a fingerprint and even if it's gone, the imprint is still there, which is why it's glowing green like Zel's magic. Any witch who possesses the statue can make it come to life, but it also can only be touched once and now is your protector for the rest of your natural life."
The witch looks at the apparition on the table and then her eyebrows creep together.
"You tricked me! You branded me with this thing for the rest of my life! How dare you!" the woman snapped angrily.
"How dare I? I just gave you something that can protect you and your daughter!" Crystal fires back. "And it's proof that you're still a witch even without the magic."
Zelena winces, knowing that it is still a sore spot for her being without her magic. She was once a very powerful being but was now a mortal and she did not appreciate the implications. "That's very lovely… insult me while giving me something I cannot get rid of. You truly are your father's daughter. A curse. Is this payback for Baelfire?"
"No! Why would I do that? I just wanted to give your something that will be there to help you if something happens."
"I don't want this living in my house with my daughter!"
"You can deactivate it if you don't want it," the young girl says defensively. "And you wonder why I don't like you…"
The cat seems to be completely oblivious to the conflict occurring around it. Its green eyes flicker to the different individuals in the room until it lands on the child in Regina's arms. It approaches the edge of the table, causing the Evil Queen to back away to protect her niece. However, the allure of this magic was keeping her from fleeing completely. The cat stretches forward, green eyes fixated on little Robin. It then licks the toddler's face, making her laugh with delight. The sound pulls the two quarrelling and the ones watching the fight to see what has occurred. The child reaches out and attempts to touch the familiar. Before anyone can stop it, contact is made and the cat glows much brighter than before, with golden energy mixing with the green. It purrs loudly and nuzzles the tiny girl. Robin then embraces the cat in delight.
"Like mother, like daughter," Crystal says. "Looks like Robin is going to be just like you."
Zelena is shocked by the sudden turn of events, thinking she was in the right, but now things had changed. The display of magic by her child was surprising, but also frightening. She knew how dangerous and corrupting magic could be. She wanted the best for Robin and not to endanger her.
"Guess it wasn't really your gift to accept," Regina says.
The cat then jumps up and in mid-air, transforms into a small flying monkey and then lands on Zelena's shoulder. At first, the witch flinches and wants it off, but once it was positioned perfectly on her shoulder, she pauses.
"Nothing more suited for you," David muses.
"Like I said, it's your familiar now, connected to you and your magic," Crystal says.
She moves on from the witch, knowing she'd eventually get a thank you.
"David, this is for you."
Out of the seemingly bottomless bag, she pulls out what looks like a silver shepherd's crook, and it takes a minute to completely remove it from the void.
"Wow," is all Prince Charming can say as she hands it over.
The crook was made of metal, silver from the looks of it, with carvings along the sides and there was a silver whistle.
"Hand-crafted and forged in hottest fires. I met a blacksmith in a local community of Silviron. Their village is close to these amazing silver and iron mines, hence the name and both are their key pieces of trade. The guy even carved the name of your family in their traditional language."
She points to a series of symbols along the one side, reading the names of each of David's family members, including his brother James.
The Prince does his best not to tear up at the sentiment.
"It's made from a rare brand of silver that is incredibly tough but also won't harm the animals. The whistle is also enchanted to soothe even the wildest of creatures."
"Crystal… this… I can't accept these…" David says.
"I don't exactly have a receipt to return and your sure as hell not getting store credit. It's a crook for the shepherd prince," she says before moving on to David's wife. "Snow this is for you…"
Deep within the bag, she pulls out a long velvet pouch and removes a beautiful necklace made of crystal wrapped around a majestic-looking golden arrow that shone in the kitchen light.
"This is absolutely beautiful," Snow says, admiring the engravings on the weapon.
"It's an arrow from the Amazons," she explains. "When I went into battle with Diana and her tribe, I didn't just get the helmet. I told them stories about you, the bandit princess, and how much of a warrior you were, but only to protect those you love. It's made from one of the golden apples from the Atalanta myth. She herself was an archer and a hunter and each Amazon warrior have one of these arrows in her quiver made from the apples. Artemis also blessed the arrows so its aim would always be true. Most of the time, they're sacred and used as a last resort, but the battle we were in meant we had to use one. I used this exact arrow in battle and after, the Amazons told me to keep it and present it to your most worthy female warrior. But I know and they knew that you would only ever use it to protect."
"Always," Snow says. While it was extremely unlikely that she'd ever end up using such a sacred thing, it was a sight to behold. "I can't believe this is basically a gift from the Gods."
"Never will it fail to do what you need it to."
The fairest one of all then unwraps the silver chain around the golden weapon, which has a piece of crystal on the end, and within the crystal was a single snowflake.
"From the Mountains of Snowlight," Crystal explains. "One of hell of a climb, but each snowflake is unique, as cliché as it sounds."
Snow gives the necklace to her husband, and he puts it around her neck. Neal, the ever-curious toddler, becomes enchanted by the jewelry and grabs at it.
"It's beautiful," Snow gushes.
"Perfectly preserved in Cilcrest Crystal, no harm will ever come to it and guaranteed to last 50,000 years. And save the speeches guys, I can't exactly return any of these things. The Amazons would see it as an insult, and I can't dig the flake out of the…"
"I get it," Snow says, rolling her eyes. She then hands Neal to David so she can wrap the arrow up again.
The woman then goes back into her bag and pulls out a golden tool that looked extremely heavy
She then hands it to Killian, a celestial nautical sextant. It shone in the light and was engraved with every constellation known to man.
"To add to your collection," Crystal says. "Forged from the gold of the North Star, its direction and readings never waiver from its course."
"Lass, this is too much I cannot accept this gift."
"You don't have much of a choice," she smirks. "Because it's not going back into the bag.
"I picked it up in the Cuddosa Archipelago, an island of sailors and the most massive ships you can ever imagine. Speaking of which…"
She reaches in and pulls out a tiny blue urn to give to the pirate. There were patterns of the wind and waves covering its surface.
"What is it?" Emma asks, she goes to take the top off.
"DON'T OPEN IT!" Crystal screeches, taking the urn off the couple.
"What? Why?"
"It's how the sailors navigate. It's basically wind in a jar like in The Odyssey. It's the best way to travel anywhere. I know The Jolly Roger is the fastest ship in all the realms, but just in case she ever needs an extra boost."
When Crystal hands it back, Killian pockets it and plans to put it in his safe back on the ship. He then hugs the girl tightly.
"Taking a lot longer than I thought," the girl mutters before diving back into the bag. "Fortunately, we're almost done."
"This is for you Emma," Crystal says. She unwraps a beautiful crystal statue in the shape of a swan. It was carved completely smooth, and it glitters and glows in the light.
"Oh wow… it's beautiful," Emma gasps. However, she hesitates in taking it in case it was like Zelena's familiar. "It's not going to come to life, is it?"
"Well… sort of," the daughter of the Dark One admits.
"What do you mean sort of? What does it do?" Regina asks cautiously.
"It is a totem, a symbol of love."
"It's not going to make me fall in love, will it?" Emma asks, putting a hand on her stomach. "Because that ship has kind of already sailed."
"No, nothing like that… It matches your namesake, but it mainly…"
The daughter of the Dark One trails off and everyone goes silent for a moment.
The lights in the dining room begin to flicker above them, causing everyone to pause in confusion. At first, it's an occasional blink, like something was wrong with the wiring, but it becomes more frequent as the minutes pass. Then, things around them begin to vibrate as if a tiny earthquake had begun under their feet. It started with the kind of rumbling that one might feel if a big truck was rolling by and slowly got strong. Glasses and dishes in the kitchen cupboards begin to rattle loudly, the chairs and table appear to move across the floor by themselves, picture frames and paintings on the wall shift awkwardly on their nails, and everyone tries to grab something to remain balanced. As the vibrations become stronger, the lights flash erratically, and everyone can feel the movement right down to their bones.
As suddenly as it started, the vibrations stop, and the lights return to normal.
They all look at one another, still in silence, but it could have just been an earthquake, rare as they were in Maine.
The assumed tranquillity comes to an end when a violent and massive boom echoes through the town, shaking the entire foundation of the town. All the lights flash and go out with this collision of sound. Everyone is thrown to the ground from the sheer magnitude of this explosion and many things in the house fall or completely shatter, including the windows. Some try to grab things to remain upright, while others attempt to shield the younger children from any falling glass. Car alarms interrupt the tranquillity of the early evening and scream echo throughout the town from other frightened and confused citizens. Like a clap of thunder and a bomb detonating, the sound causes everyone's ears to ring and throb. Rumple, now beside his wife and screaming child, puts a hand to his nose as sees blood leaking from it.
The smallest individuals in the room burst into tears and scream for protection from their mothers. As if on cue, the familiar jumps from Zelena's shoulders, morphs into a bird and begins to fly around Robin, remaining vigilant over her for protection. The witch takes her daughter into her arms and tries to comfort her.
Despite the screams of the children, all the Evil Queen is able to say is:
"What the hell was that?"
…
"Everyone all right?" Killian asks, keeping his arms around Emma to ensure that she and the baby are okay.
"What the hell was that?" Regina repeats.
The group took some time to gather themselves and to calm the youngest amongst them. Regina also used her magic to repair anything that was broken in the Swan/Jones' house.
"I didn't do!" Crystal says, referring to the sonic blasts she could sometimes create when her dark and light magic conflicted.
"Did a bomb go off?" Emma asks, trying to be helpful. The baby in her womb was reacting frantically, kicking like crazy. The blonde feared that her child was somehow hurt by the blast and used her healing magic to ensure this. Fortunately, the unborn was unharmed.
"No way was that an earthquake either," David adds, helping Snow calm their son down, who's still whimpering in fear.
"Did someone breach the town line?" Rumpelstiltskin asks.
However, before anyone can follow up, Emma, Killian and Regina's phones begin exploding with text messages and phone calls. Obviously, the citizens of Storybrooke were demanding assistance and answers.
"That might have to wait," the queen moans as she heads for the door, prepared to deal with the damage and take control as the mayor.
Everyone soon follows to help in any way that they can, a day in the life of the fairy tale heroes.
A/N: I apologize if this chapter is more on the boring side. A lot of sentiment and not much excitement. Does give a nice hint about the kind of adventures Crystal had. However, the mysterious event could possibly be... a police box crashing to Earth