There was a heavy debate between the heroes on whether or not Nadri could accompany them to the Blanchard apartment, knowing that Hades had eyes and ears everywhere within the Underworld to make he would be able to drag Nadri straight back down to his domain without any chance to escape again.
Henry, Emma, Killian and surprisingly Regina were on Nadri's side of bringing her along because she knew about the Underworld and about Hades the most out of everyone because of the agonizing time she had spent down in his control. David and Robin were completely against putting Nadri in harm's way, especially after what had happened in Emma's house and Nadri had been completely knocked sideways after the nightmare that felt so terribly real. Liam leaned over on Nadri not going even though he had only been back in Nadri's presence in the last few hours.
"Do I not get a say in this?" Nadri raised an eyebrow as they all sat at the dining room table, as if they were going to keep her under house arrest. She wanted to help as much as she could, knowing what she knew about Hades and promising her raaviir that she would be by his side throughout. "I know the Underworld like the back of my hand, joriin."
"I don't think it's safe. If Hades can get you then that'll be it." David shook his head, trying to sound sympathetic to her situation but Nadri wasn't having any of it. "We won't see you again."
"I will not break. What happened earlier…earlier took me off dein." Nadri mumbled out. "You need me."
"We don't need Hades straight on our backs, darling." Robin chimed in.
"Now, Nadri, Hades will be trying to bring all of his efforts together to find you." Liam contributed, making Nadri narrow her eyes at the oldest Jones brother. Who was he to have any say in this? Nadri had only bumped into Liam very few times when she was searching for Nathaniel, he didn't know her enough to comment on her situation. None of them did, not even Killian himself.
"Nadri could help us a lot. There could be passages, secret places where the book could be that we wouldn't have even thought of." Regina defended, helping towards Nadri's case.
"Am I invisible?" Nadri rolled her eyes as they began to talk between them. "My deal is to help you, all. Including Rumpelstiltskin. I do not want to lose myself back into slavery because you are all too heroic to have extra help." Nadri raised an eyebrow, leaning back into the chair that she was sitting on and she crossed her arms over her chest. A few sighed, muttering to themselves as they got up from the table and Nadri couldn't help but let a smirk slide through.
"So, are we going to get going or not? I think the lady has made her choice." Nadri's eyes landed on Killian, who had been grinning at her the whole time. He winked in her direction and her cheeks tinted a pale rose.
"Let's start at the apartment." Snow had shrugged, being impartial to Nadri the whole time. She was still weary around her after the scene in the caves with Hercules. "That's where I found the Storybook in the first place so we can check there."
"Lead the way." Emma spoke to Regina, everyone bringing themselves up from the table to gather around Regina. Nadri's hand was taken by Killian, holding her tightly. Regina conjured the clouds and smoke around her, bringing all of her magic together and bringing them into new surroundings of the Blanchard apartment.
It was new surroundings to Nadri, perhaps more strangely than Emma's house. She looked around curiously, looking at the half-open planned apartment with stairs that led up to another bedroom. It was still wrecked from Cerberus storming through and trashing the apartment, debris had been cleared up and anything else that had gotten broken. David walked around the room, heading to a book case that was kept next to the couch in the middle of the room. He rummaged around the bookcase and brought back an old wooden box, detailed with carved flowers along the edges of the box.
David started searching through the box, flicking through pages but there was no book that Nadri could see.
"I'm sorry, this was a wasted trip."
"Are we really surprised? That book is the embodiment of hope, and there's not a lot of that here in the Underworld." Regina sighed, turning around with her hands on her hips as David shut the lid of the box, pushing it aside.
"Let's just keep looking, it'll be here somewhere." David said and the group dispersed, beginning to turn the flat upside down as they searched for the Storybook. Nadri left Emma and Killian looking around downstairs as she headed upstairs mindlessly, curious and wondering around at the new objects that she hadn't seen before in her life.
Nadri headed up the stairs and began to look through the chest of drawers. She wasn't entirely sure what she was meant to be looking for, she knew that the Storybook was that – a storybook. She was told it was large and had Once Upon a Time penned neatly on the front cover. Nadri just hoped that she would find it soon enough without alerting any of the eyes that Hades had sent to watch the movements of the Savior.
"Can we talk, Nadri?" Nadri gasped, hearing Liam's voice quietly behind her as she rummaged through the doors.
"By the Gods, Liam, please you can't sneak like that." Nadri shook her head, breathless. She closed the drawer, straightening up as she stood opposite the pirate's brother. He kept his hands warm in his coat pockets as he stared down at Nadri with his aging green eyes. "Did you find it?"
"No, I was wondering if we could talk about Killian." His well-spoken accent asked her and Nadri nodded, seemingly confused at why they were talking about Killian without his presence in the room. "Killian blames himself for ending up here, but he told me what happened. Killian's been fighting darkness his entire life and he gave into it in an instant."
"Liam, myself and Killian have only touched on the subject." Nadri stopped him, shaking her head not wanting to hear the rest. "If he does not wish me to know his past I will not push him. He does not push me with mine." She told Liam softly, not wanting Killian to overhear their conversation.
"That's the issue, Nadri." Liam lowered his voice, coming closer to her. "You've both clearly become very close. Does he know what will happen when Hades is defeated and you get your magic back?" He whispered and Nadri hushed him, taking his arm and bringing him further away from the stairs where Killian and Hook were standing at the bottom discussing if the book could have been hidden in another location. "My little brother seems to be blinded by your beauty and good looks, that won't help him when you turn back into a beast and he will be heartbroken.
"I care deeply for Killian." Nadri responded in a loud whisper. "I would never dare to hurt him."
"Yet when Hades is gone you will have no choice but to go back to what you were. Killian feels for you deeply, I can see that, but do you know what it would do to him?" Nadri bit her lip, looking down to the ground.
She had forgotten. She had gotten lost in the moments and renewing her memories that she had completely bypassed the part of what would happen when the deal is finally broken and done with. The crystal holding all of her magic hostage would come back to her, finally the reign of terror ending and she would be transformed back into her mythical body. She wouldn't be able to touch someone as a human being again. She wouldn't be able to feel the sun on her pale skin, only her dark scales.
She wouldn't be able to love.
"Whatever is going on between the both of you, it needs to stop and you need to let him move on from this realm." Nadri shot a look back up to Liam and his self-righteous energy. "Do you really think he'd love you like that?"
"Stop." A sharp tone left Nadri's lips. "Just stop."
"I'm sorry for reminding you Nadri, but I care for my brother. You obviously don't know how far that extends."
"Oh yes because the dragon doesn't have an expanding concept of human emotions." Nadri snapped back, louder this time and Liam hushed her clearly not wanting to be heard by his little brother. "Do you think I wanted all of this? I was happy running. I wanted to run and hide away. I wasn't expecting a raaviir to come running into my cell and help him escape. To think of Killian being hurt…it killed me." Nadri ended in a frightened whisper, remembering the chills that ran through her body when Killian had been dragged away to the River of Lost Souls. All the pain she felt surged in her body, like it was crumbling from the inside out.
"That's why it needs to stop." Liam left it at that, beginning to slip away from Nadri and back down the stairs. Nadri felt angry tears threatening to spill, mentally scolding herself for the human emotions she was given and the need to always be crying.
'Stop being pathetic.' She told herself heatedly in her mind, taking a deep breath and continuing to get down on the ground and look underneath Emma's bed for the Storybook, focusing on the one thing that was important right now. Nadri could hear Emma and Liam exchanging words downstairs and the surge of fire just seemed to burn in her more and more. Steps were taken to get up the stairs, Nadri pulling herself out and up from the underneath the bed and she turned to the soul that had taken the trip upstairs.
"You all right, love?" She was met with Killian's gorgeous, soul wandering eyes. He was looking into her with deep concern, seeing the expression on her face that he had seen too many times already.
"I'm okay, Killy." Nadri half-heartedly smiled, Killian still staring her down like he was searching for a hint of the lie that she was telling him. Nadri knew that Killian could read her like a book already, as a human she didn't know how to lie. Hades had threatened her with violence and she could only just about keep her cool to lie. Killian knew something wasn't right. "Did you need something?"
"Nadri…" Killian trailed off but Nadri brushed past him and towards the top of the staircase.
"Ruveyzun, please." She sighed, looking back to the man who cared so much for her if his heart was in his chest it would burst for her. Nadri's voice changed and she kept trying to look away from him and down the stairs, desperate to escape from the encounter like a wounded animal looking for safety. "I am fine, my lokaal."
Killian still wasn't accepting it.
"Is it him? Is he getting in your head again?" Killian spoke worriedly, referring to Hades, and Nadri shook her head trying to grit her teeth to keep tears back. "I'm worried, love. You've not been right since your dream…" He trailed off, looking at the young woman. It was like she had gone white as a sheet as soon as he had mentioned the dream that was still playing in the back of her mind.
Nadri shook her head, the only thing she could do. If she had spoken, her voice would break into little pieces. She wasn't ready for the conversation that they needed to have, why did Liam have to be so cruel and bring it up now? She approached him, seeing his sad-puppy dog eyes covered in eyeliner, and pressed her hands on either side of his face. Nadri stared into his eyes, it was like getting lost at sea after the storm had hit, standing on her tip toes. She gently pressed her lips against his, wanting to feel his comfort.
"You're really worrying me now, love."
"I feel for you, Ruveyzun." Nadri ghostly whispered against his lips. "I would exchange a mountain of gold for your happiness. Every single gold coin." Nadri looked up at him, her face still close to his as he leaned down. Killian knitted his eyebrows together and was about to speak but Nadri cut him off with another passionate kiss. "I am glad you found me."
By the Gods, she was close to sobbing in his arms there and then.
"I'm glad I found you, Nadri." Killian gave back her affection as she sweetly caressed his face. "I've not known you to be so gooey." She couldn't help but laugh at Killian's strangely worded compliment. "Could we do it less cryptic next time? We've got a book to find and then we're home free." He kissed her once more, wrapping his arm around her back and pulling her in closer.
Home free…Now that would be a beautiful thing.