It felt strange to be back in Oz after being gone for so long and finding another home elsewhere. It felt foreign to Zelena, in ways she despised. Evanora's castle was to the north of Oz, protected by a magical barrier. The bright blue wall of protective magic fell when they approached. She didn't even have to use Mal's staff. It worried her, but she followed Glinda and Locasta through the large gates nonetheless. The castle towered overhead, pristine and pale blue, casting a large shadow across the courtyard. Regina walked behind her, looking around warily for any sign of danger. It was all quiet for the most part.
"Remember, if we can talk her down, then-"
"If it turns out she sent someone to assassinate me just for helping you, which I hadn't even agreed to at the time, then she's dead." Zelena said. "I know you want to spare a life, Glinda, but one of your friends seems really keen on ending ours."
"As I said, she is not to be killed." The white witch replied with a stern look at Zelena, who was hardly bothered by it.
"If it's my life or hers, you know what I'll pick."
"It won't come to that."
"You hope it won't." Regina muttered. She kept an eye out for other witches or other magical beings as they walked into the castle. They didn't know much about those that Evanora now employed and they had seen no dragons either. One thing that bothered her was that Teressa had been allowed to go free. Perhaps Evanora had locked her back up again, but it put them at a disadvantage if she told their enemy any information that would backfire on them.
Zelena knew it was a trap the moment they walked into the throne room and made their way through the long hall. Tall stained glass windows filled the empty room with light, but Evanora chose to remain in the shadows at the other end of the room, standing next to the throne rather than sitting on it. She only vaguely remembered the woman from when Glinda had tried to recruit her to the council and even then, Evanora seemed mostly content to allow Glinda to do all the talking and persuading. That day was gone though and it would appear that she had found a voice of her own.
"I'm surprised to see you two here." Evanora said, nonchalantly conjuring her wand.
"You mean alive?" Regina asked.
"No you're not." Zelena replied. "I sent you a message. You knew I was coming. I told you to get ready."
"That you did. You were always a bold one." Evanora smirked. "Powerful and bold, but foolish."
"Foolish enough to run you out of your own kingdom." Zelena retorted, watching the raven haired witch descend the throne's steps. She was a tall and slender woman, with an elegant and somewhat appealing visage and a bit of an arrogant demeanor. It surprised her to see that she still wore the bright blue colors of the northern region of Oz. Zelena silently took notice of her necklace when the large blue diamond caught the light. If they could remove it, Evanora would have no choice but to surrender. She knew that it was a symbol of her power. It would amplify her magic, but once it was gone, her magic would be severely weakened, if not completely gone.
"Surrender, Evanora." Glinda said. "We don't have to fight."
"I will not go back to the way things were." Evanora growled. "I refuse."
"Why not? If there were problems, you could've told me. You didn't need to do all this."
"Because you ruled, Glinda. Only in name did you not." Came the hiss, a look of frustration on the witch's face. "There was no point of us. No point to the council. Look at her." She gestured to Zelena, who arched an eyebrow. "All she did was trap you and everything we stood for fell in one swoop. As much as I dislike her and what she did, I'm glad she did it."
"You're glad that she cursed me and took over Oz, neglecting our people and their needs? You're glad of that?" Glinda started to scowl, taking a step forward.
"Yes," Evanora didn't retreat and met her gaze evenly. "Because she revealed every crack, every flaw in our defense. You wrote it off as it being Zelena and her being apart of a prophecy and unnaturally talented, but we all knew the truth. Had it been anyone else, anyone who truly wanted to destroy our world, they would have succeeded with ease. What good is the order? What good was the wizard? What good was any of it?!" She almost screeched. "Yes, I removed you because you weren't listening. No one was." She threw a glare at a seething Locasta. "I followed you without question for years, even when I did question your methods and decisions. Everything and everyone bent to you. If you had listened, we could've come up with a better plan. Instead of four witches, we could have a true council. There are many young witches and warlocks at Shiz who would love to devote their power to protecting our people. It would only be a start, but it would be better than what we've done for years."
"So be it." Glinda decided with no hesitation. "We can see this young witches and warlocks and we can combine our power if that will please you and stop this."
"You can't be serious." Locasta frowned.
"It will be spread evenly across the council." Glinda continued. "That way, no witch will be more powerful than another and every witch's voice will be heard. No more ruling. We will lead. Together." She held out her hand. "If you do not, Zelena and her wife will try to kill you for sending an assassin after her."
Evanora had looked away, pondering her promises, but the word assassin snapped her head back around. "Assassin? I never sent an assassin anywhere. Where the hell would I even get one?"
Zelena frowned. "You didn't send a dragon after me?"
Evanora looked between them like they were crazy. "No. The dragons have been locked away for centuries. I don't even know where the tunnels begin. Why would you think I would try to kill you?"
Zelena and Regina exchanged looks. By the sound of things, Evanora wasn't as dark hearted as they'd thought. If she had truly taken over Oz in order to help it, then she wouldn't have tried to kill Zelena. This could all be a farce, but she wasn't putting up a fight. "Who are you closest to?" Zelena asked. "It must be someone powerful. She knows where the dragon tunnels are and hired one of them to kill me. She had the Grimmerie and an Emerald Vlary in her possession. She is no mere student from Shiz."
"Mombi." Evanora said without even thinking about it.
"Who is that?"
Glinda let out a sigh. "Evanora brought the matter of expanding the council to me before and she chose Mombi to demonstrate her talents for me. I refused. I felt that things were well enough-"
"Did you mention my name?" Zelena demanded.
"Once, as a warning."
"Thank you." Zelena scowled and turned to Evanora. "Where is she?"
"I-I don't know." Evanora said. "I haven't seen her in days."
"What do you know about her?"
"Not as much as I should." Evanora admitted. "She expressed a lot of interest in joining the council and a lot of promise and I didn't think she was given a fair chance-"
"She framed you. I came here to kill you because of her." Zelena told her. "Teressa said that it was a witch named Evanora who hired her directly. If that wasn't you, it had to be her."
"I swear it wasn't me." Evanora pleaded. "I wouldn't even begin to figure out how to find you in a world without magic anyway."
"Where is she then?" Zelena hissed impatiently. "We need to find her before she…" She trailed off when she heard the screech. Regina ran to the nearest window and she followed, using magic to remove the color so they could see better. It was Eric, crying out in pain as a horde of flying monkeys swarmed him. A rain of scales followed his path as they ripped them from his body and clawed at the soft flesh underneath. He was meant to come in as backup, but apparently his cover was blown. Zelena conjured her broom and used magic to blast the window open, taking off after him. Eric twisted and writhed in the air, desperately trying to remove the mass of angry monkeys hanging off of him. They were dragging him down and Zelena knew far too well the damage a dragon could take should it fall from the sky. She flew over Eric's back and started blasting the flying monkeys with fire, burning them away. Once killed, they melted into purple dust that sparkled like diamonds in the sunlight.
"Dive!" He roared and she obeyed instantly, grabbing her broom and rapidly descending. Eric spun onto his back and caught the diving dragon before he could grab her. Both of them spun out of control and slammed into the ground anyway, viciously raking at each other with razor sharp claws. She started to go and help him, when she heard a deep rumble and glass shattering. Zelena barely had time to turn around before Mal and another dragon came crashing through the walls of the throne room, bringing down half the castle in the process. Zelena landed, waving dust out of her face and watched Mal challenge the other dragon.
"Surrender and I won't kill you."
The dragon snarled. "Never."
Mal actually purred in reply, her tail quivering excitedly. "I was hoping you would say that."
Zelena would've loved to watch the fight, but she chose to go find Regina and make sure she was okay. She found the other witches crawling out of the rubble and her sister downing a red vial. "You alright?"
"Yes. Mild concussion and maybe a broken hand, but this should fix it."
"Excellent, because we need you to help the dragons. Control the east side." She handed Regina a small box. "Call in Lily and Ruby if you need to. We'll take care of these damn monkeys. And you," She spun to look at Evanora. "Find Mombi. The rest of you, follow me." Regina ran in the opposite direction to help the dragons and Zelena lead the others in the direction the dragons had come from, her steps faltering when she saw the storm of winged monkeys barrelling towards them. This was going to be difficult…
/
Regina ran to the other side of the courtyard, finding that Lily had already joined the fight. She dragged a third dragon off her mother while she battled two more that had appeared as if by magic. Ruby was picking off the monkeys trying to intervene in the fight, but she would soon be overwhelmed, disappearing beneath a horde of beasts, mobbed and shredded by claws and teeth. The creatures were everywhere, like an infestation. Regina scowled and summoned her light magic. Blasts of white light burned away the dark creatures and reduced them to purple dust in moments, but more simply took their place. There was no end to them.
Locked in battle, Mal noticed little else beyond her opponents. Blood roared in her ears and stained her teeth, slightly burning her barbed tongue. Chaos surrounded her. The sounds of magic being cast, screaming, roaring, monkeys squealing, the sounds were deafening. Fighting two dragons at once had her spinning to keep both at bay, lashing out with teeth and claws. Every now and then one managed to catch her off guard, raking her face with a quick swipe or ripping out some of her scales. It hurt, but it also felt good. She'd missed this. A real fight was something sorely missed in her life and these dragons more than delivered. She didn't mind the pain because she dealt out far worse...and she was enjoying every moment of it.
Regina kept the monkeys away from Mal, summoning walls of light magic that mowed down dozens of monkeys at once, covering the ground in purple dust. They needed to find Mombi and cut these creatures off at the source or else they would soon tire of prolonged battle. The minutes ticked away. As Zelena commanded, Regina controlled the battlefield, keeping the flying monkeys away from Mal and Lily while they fought and assisting them when she could. Light magic flashed from her palms again and again until the brightness no longer bothered her. It sapped her strength faster than dark magic ever did, but she pulled it together. In the distance she could see Zelena flying through the swarm of monkeys and electrifying so many that they erupted in an explosion of sparkling sand. Out of the corner of her eye, Regina saw another dragon dive bombing Lily. The young dragon hadn't noticed so she looked around until she saw the fallen tree nearby. "Lily!" She threw out her arm and took hold of the tree with magic, launching it at her. Lily caught it and swung it hard, knocking the dragon to the ground with a vicious crack, evening the odds once again. Eric and his enemy were off in the distance, tearing up trees and shaking the earth. Regina hadn't seen the other witches since the start.
Beneath the sounds of battle came the thundering of hooves. She came out of nowhere, jumping off the back of a golden stallion to begin blasting away flying monkeys with fireballs that had Regina ducking to avoid them. A woman with long dark hair, fierce green eyes and a blue diamond tattoo on the front of her throat. Regina asked no questions and fought side by side with her as they destroyed more and more of the bastards. It was a long battle and spending years without properly practicing with her magic only meant she would tire out twice as quickly. Luckily, her newfound companion was able to pick up the slack. Whoever she was, she was powerful. Her magic was chaotic and made Regina's skin tingle just being in close proximity with her. Her fighting style was reckless and wild and she seemed as happy as Mal was to join a fight.
"You're the princess, I assume?" Regina said. "Oziana."
"And you're the queen. Zelena's sister, Regina. On your left."
"Check your right."
Both of them spun in opposite directions, spraying fire and surrounding themselves in a cyclone of flames. With a single motion, the cyclone was blasted outwards, incinerating more of the magical beasts.
The waves of monkeys began to ebb and Regina was even able to pause and catch her breath as Ruby threw herself into the middle of them, her claws melting them in moments. Mal was still battling it out, crashing overhead and causing Regina to duck and dive for cover to avoid her lashing tail. One of the dragons she had been fighting was lying on its side in the grass, panting and bleeding heavily. The second was bigger and stronger, but Mal met him blow for blow and scales rained down from above.
Teeth suddenly connected with her arm, dragging Regina off her feet. She lashed out with fire on instinct and for a moment, it was all she could see, blinding her. The monkey held on to her arm even as it burned, sending pain shooting through her. It finally let go and she tapped the ground, raising a shield of magic around herself as she assessed her wound.
Zelena appeared in front of her and crouched down to help her. "We've got Mombi. She was making the monkeys. They should stop coming. Lay still." Her sister commanded. Regina obeyed, wincing as her arm was healed. Her pantsuit was going to have to be thrown out after this. There was far too much blood to wash out and the sleeve from where the monkey bit her had been ripped to shreds. "You did good, Regina. Light magic, as annoying as it is, seems to be pretty handy."
"Thanks." She sighed, rubbing her arm where the bite still burned. Zelena helped her up, only for them to be thrown to the ground as something bounced off the shield. A pale sphere ping ponged across the ruined courtyard, bouncing off broken rubble, flying monkeys and dragons. "What the hell?" Zelena burst out laughing.
"Mal must've smacked Glinda with her tail."
"What?" Regina finally noticed that the sphere was actually...a bubble. A screaming bubble. It rolled to a stop nearby with a dizzy Glinda laying inside.
Meanwhile, Eric had subdued the dragon he was fighting and was dragging him back to the others. He looked up with a smile at seeing Mal fighting. She felt many eyes on her, but she was focused for she was about to win. Mal's jaws closed around the neck of her opponent. She held him there while he thrashed and fought, spitting fire and growling curses. Mal violently shook her head, swinging the other dragon onto his side as if he weighed nothing. He went limp, but she wasn't fool enough to release her hold on him just yet. She bit down harder and the dragon finally submitted, whimpering and pleading for his life. She nearly missed the shadow of the second dragon attacking from behind. Zelena called out to her, but she was already ready for it. In a single swift motion, she swung her head back and felt her head grow heavy as one of her horns pierced her attacker's neck, impaling him. She turned her head, sliding her horn out and the dragon crashed to the ground. Blood trickled down her forehead, but everyone could hear her purring.
"That was fun." She shifted back into human form to say, smiling as she healed the dragon she'd impaled on her horn. "Change back and take a seat. Disobey and you will be killed." She commanded. The other dragons reverted to human form. She and Eric conjured handcuffs and forced them to their knees. There were five in total and only one refused to submit. Mal only smirked when he took a swing at her. She ducked and caught his fist on the second swing, pulling him off balance to headbutt him so hard he crumpled to the ground. "That was pathetic."
"Damn, I want to have her babies." Zelena whispered.
Regina snorted. "Told you. Who needs a knight in shining armor when you have a Maleficent covered in blood."
Zelena sighed. "I'm gonna get pregnant again."
"Most likely."
/
Now that the threat was under control and the dragons properly restrained, they turned to Mombi, who had resigned herself to her fate. She trembled from exhaustion and sweat poured freely down her forehead. Beyond the fact that she was a crazy bitch, she was rather young, barely looked out of her early twenties, and quite pretty. Zelena could see why Evanora wanted to recruit her. Unfortunately for her, Mal didn't give a damn. The blood drenched dragon crouched in front of the weary witch, looking her in the eyes.
"We're not killing her." Glinda said.
"Without us, you would still be in Storybrooke." Mal looked up to say. "They would still be in power and you would be powerless. I told you that I was going to kill-"
"You said you would kill Evanora. We know now that she is not the enemy."
"I also said I would kill the woman who hired an assassin to kill my wife. Now, Glinda," Maleficent allowed her eyes to glow bright gold as she addressed the witch, stepping right into her personal space. "Are you really going to stop me if I want to rip this bitch apart? Do you think you can?"
"Perhaps we can come to an agreement." Oziana suggested. Mal rolled her eyes and looked over her shoulder. Zelena and Regina both smirked at the dragon's annoyed look. "I know this is probably an easy decision for you, but even though she has committed crimes against you, she has also committed crimes against Oz and should be judged accordingly. I promise you that she will pay, but not in blood. You have my word, as queen of Oz." Glinda glared at her, but Oziana ignored her entirely.
"Oh please, we both know this is the most interesting thing to happen in Oz in years. Besides my wife's arrival and subsequent conquering of your entire world. You are not my ruler and this is not my world. Your rules and trials are most likely as stupid as those in the others. Yes, it is an easy decision and you are wrong. You threaten my mate, you forfeit your life. End of story."
"I'm not letting you kill her."
"Again, do you think you can stop me? I genuinely want you to try."
Zelena almost didn't hear the conversation. Mal just looked so savage, so dangerous. She looked like she could and would kill everyone in attendance and Zelena would only find it sexier. Dripping with confidence, itching for another battle, primed for war. There was something primal about Mal right now. Something intoxicating that hadn't been there before.
"I thank you for your help in solving this matter." Glinda attempted to reason. "But in Oz, we do not kill our enemies."
"That's probably why you have so many." Mal remarked, to the amusement of Lily and Eric. "This is like the third time you've been kicked out of your own kingdom, isn't it?"
"At least let us talk to her first." Oziana suggested. "To find out if there are any more plots to uncover and make sure the danger has passed. If there isn't, you will be the first person I send to deal with it."
Mal seemed to pause before looking at Oziana again. "Send me? You're going to send me to- Zelena. I think you need to talk to your friend. You have five minutes and then I am putting my fist through her chest." She spun on her heel and walked over to speak with the bound dragons. Eric followed, while Lily moved away to assess Ruby's wounds. The werewolf was bleeding with a bad bite on her leg and there were numerous marks cutting through her fur. Zelena arched an eyebrow, watching Mal as she walked away.
Stop looking at me like that. A soft voice purred in the back of her mind and Zelena reluctantly tore her eyes away from her wife to focus on the interrogation.
"What was the purpose of this?" Oziana asked. Mombi scowled and looked down, refusing to speak. "If you don't talk, the dragon will kill you. That'll be the end of whatever all of this was. Now, you don't look like a fool. Talk and we might help you."
"She's going to kill me either way." Mombi whispered.
"Talk. Tell me that all of this was more than just taking over Oz."
"No." Mombi said. "It was about taking down Oz." She looked up and glared at Oziana. "Every single one of you. For everything you've done to my people. All of you deserve to burn."
Zelena arched an eyebrow. "Burn?" She crouched down and summoned a fireball in her hand. She pressed it right to Mombi's face and wasn't surprised at all when it didn't burn her. "You're a dragon. This is a little more interesting. You escaped the tunnels?"
"That's impossible." Glinda scoffed.
Mombi threw herself at the witch, slamming her own head into Glinda's with brute force. Oziana and Regina grabbed her and forced her back to her knees. "You locked an entire species underground!"
"Calm down." Zelena sat down on the ground in front of Mombi. "Talk to me, dearie. I want to understand. I want to piece all of this together. Please."
Mombi glared at Glinda before meeting Zelena's eyes. "Dragons used to be common in Oz. We lived in peace for the most part."
"You're not old enough to know that." Zelena said.
"I was told. I know enough to know that we were banished underground because of the actions of some idiots. It's true that there were dragons who were more beast than anything else, who burned and killed and destroyed and they deserved their fates, but not the rest of us."
"How did you get free?"
Mombi sighed. "We've tried breaking out over the years. Succeeded several times. Every time she made the barrier stronger and it took more effort to remove it. We couldn't replenish our magic because we couldn't feed. Eventually, we stopped. Everyone had given up. During the last escape, some of us got away and blended in with the rest of the world. All of this with Evanora was just opportunistic. She'd always wanted to help other magic users and that was fine. Didn't really care about it, but it gave us an in. I pretended to be a student at the school and demonstrated my skills for the council. The bitch over there decided against it. No one was really surprised by that." She flashed a fake smile in Glinda's direction. The witch scowled as she healed her bloody nose. "Anyways, we helped get rid of the bitch and we were ready to try and break the seal on the caves again, but then you came into the picture." She looked at Zelena. "The famous Wicked Witch, one of the most powerful witches Oz had seen, showing up and helping the enemy was a chance we couldn't take. Teressa was sent to kill you. With you and Glinda out of the way, we planned to open the tunnels and set everyone else free. Everything would be blamed on Evanora."
It was all a lot of running around to Zelena, but the dragon in front of her couldn't have been more than a couple hundred years old. She probably had been born underground and knew very little more than that. However, she was impressed, if a little annoyed at being targeted. There were plenty of more efficient ways to do things.
"Why didn't you open the tunnels as soon as you were free?" Regina asked.
"We're not strong enough." Mombi answered.
"Not old enough." Zelena added. "All of you are rather young. I'm guessing the older dragons have a bit of a different mindset. I'm hoping anyway. Otherwise, we can't let them out if they're just going to destroy everything."
Mombi's jaw dropped. "You're going to open the tunnels."
"Yeah." Zelena grinned. "Already starting to plan it out before you tried to assassinate me." She gestured to Mal. "That woman is my wife and she's very upset. In fact, we now have a lot to discuss. Not that you can go anywhere, but wait here." She stood up and motioned for the others to follow. They walked a little ways away and were soon joined by Mal and Eric and relayed Mombi's tale to them.
"What do you guys want to do?" Regina asked.
"I say we continue with our original plan." Mal said. "Except we speed things up. Let's go get the dragons."
"Who gave you the right to make that decision?" Locasta demanded. "You could be releasing a bunch of animals back into the world and endangering everyone else!"
"You seem to think I need your permission. You would be wrong."
"Yes, you do." Glinda added. "I still rule here." Mal rolled her eyes. "I know what you think, but I did what I did-"
"To protect Oz. I know that." Mal interrupted. "But those dragons were trapped centuries ago. Any eggs they had before or after they were locked up, have hatched and those children have grown up in darkness knowing nothing but hunger and anger. A hundred years without food can keep a dragon alive, but only just. Let's not even talk about the children. It doesn't matter what I think of you. I know my kind. I know the damage we can do to a world, but I'm sure there were plenty of dragons who didn't do anything to deserve what they got. You can stop trying to defend yourself. No one gives a damn."
Zelena silently agreed and chose to stay quiet, admiring how bright Mal's eyes were against the blood staining her skin. Why was she so sexy? "Fuck." All eyes turned to look at her and she smirked. "Sorry, just thinking out loud."
"Moving on." Regina said. "You should find out what you're going to do with them and clean this place up."
Zelena felt it before it happened. A high concentration of magic that for a moment caused the air to buzz in her ear. Mombi was back on her feet, the charred metal of her shackles laying on the ground. She uttered a quick spell and the dust from all the flying monkeys that had been destroyed, began to rise again. This time, it took the form of soldiers wearing plated armor, reminiscent of dragon scales. They moved as one, forming a wall between them and the bound dragons and Mombi was already going to release them. Mal and Lily didn't even wait. Mal lead the charge, slamming into one man and taking him off his feet. She grabbed the hand axe he had been carrying and wielded it like a pro, annihilating the army with Lily at her side. Armor meant nothing against the strength of a dragon and Mal...was having fun. She let out a snarl when one of them caught her leg with a spear, but that only seemed to piss her off.
"Were we even needed?" Zelena asked.
"I love this move." Eric grinned. Mal hooked a sword with the axe, causing the soldier to swing it in a wide arc over her head and in one swift move, she bashed in his skull. "Taught her that myself. Ooh." He pointed at Lily landing a swinging punch to another soldier's chest, caving in the metal plate. More and more of them crumpled into dust. "That's my daughter right there."
Regina rolled her eyes. "Dragons." She noticed Mombi and her other dragon friends trying to run and looked at Ruby. "Want to go hunting, Wolfy?" Ruby wagged her tail and crouched down, allowing the former queen to climb aboard. They took off, sprinting around most of the army that was preoccupied with Mal and Lily to catch the ones escaping.
"So…" Zelena said. "How you been, Ozi?"
"Can't complain. I see you got married." Oziana grinned.
"Yep. And with three kids. Hopefully, more."
"Congratulations." Oziana threw her arms around Zelena's neck, catching her off guard. "I missed you."
"Missed you too." Zelena patted her back until she broke the hug.
"Did you really?"
"I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it." Zelena smiled. Oziana gave her a small smile in return, her cheeks turning a bright red. She always used to do that when she spoke to Zelena for some reason.
It took another half hour for Mal, Lily and Eric to dismantle half an army and Regina and Ruby returned bloody and exhausted, dragging the bodies of two dragons that chose to fight to the death and two more who gave up. Mombi was tied up and was being dragged behind the giant she-wolf.
The ground started to shake beneath Zelena's feet and she turned around as a group of shining soldiers on horseback approached. They each rode golden horses with the symbol of the Vinkus on their breastplates. One of them, Oziana seemed to recognize instantly. The lead rider was a dark haired woman with fierce brown eyes that had a hard glare fixed upon the princess.
"What the hell? What happened to our agreement, your highness?" She demanded, almost jumping off her horse as she dismounted. She tried to be formal, but her tone suggested a different familiarity.
"I had to leave on my own or else Regina here," Oziana smirked at the former queen. "Would have had all the fun." Regina didn't respond. She was breathing heavily and Zelena frowned in concern. "Z, you remember Dorothy Gale, don't you?"
"Not particularly." Zelena said, going to her sister. She held out a hand to help her off of Ruby's back. "You okay?"
"Just tired. Monsters don't show up as often in Storybrooke so I don't get the chance to get much practice in." She looked down at herself with a sigh. "I need a shower."
"You did good." Zelena smiled. "Really good. Thanks for watching our backs."
"Anytime. Call first. Better yet, shoot me a text." Regina said. "What's next?"
Zelena gestured to the arriving cavalry. "They can take it from here, I suppose. We can go home and celebrate our victory. Come back when we've rested and cleaned up." Regina simply nodded in reply. "I'll go get the kids." She knocked on the empty air next to her, her knuckles glancing off of something hidden in plain sight. A panel opened and Cynara jumped out.
"That was amazing! You guys are the coolest family ever!"
Both mothers grinned as the children came dashing out of their hiding place, each one talking a mile a minute. Mal and Eric rejoined them, laughing at the girls' enthusiasm while Erec ran around their legs, quivering excitedly but unwilling to touch them lest he have to take another bath for the day.
"Do we really have to go home so soon?" Adrienne asked.
Zelena thought it over, quickly finding a new idea. She wasn't even sure she could muster the strength to open a portal home. She did have a few choice places in mind and one just so happened to be in the direction of the Vinkus' region. It was rather perfect. Bittersweet, but perfectly placed.
/
"You sure you don't want to come back with us?" Oziana asked, conjuring a horse drawn wagon for her former mentor.
"I'm sure. We'll be there soon." Zelena answered. "Besides, you have some stuff to deal with." They both turned to look at a scowling Mombi, still bound and angry from her defeat.
"I do." Oziana sighed. "See you soon."
Zelena nodded and ushered her family into the wagon. She cracked the whip and they set off.
"Mama, where are we going?" Erec asked, climbing into her lap.
"A safe place."
Maleficent glanced up at her wife, noticing her quiet answer. Cynara and Adrienne were now talking to Lily, still excited by watching the battle. Mal was starting to wind down. It was a fun day and she really enjoyed being able to stretch her claws again, sink her teeth into a worthy opponent. She found herself purring at the thought of it.
"We don't have far to go." Zelena said.
"Will there be a bed at this safe place? Or a shower?" She asked.
Zelena smirked at her. "It will have everything we need. Until then, enjoy the sights of Oz."
Mal took a look around, seeing nothing but rolling hills and patches of trees. "I don't see much."
"I didn't say it would be a particularly interesting sight."
Mal smiled and closed her eyes, leaning on Lily. Most of the ride was filled with the chatter of children. It wasn't until the sun had gone down and she felt the wagon wheels leave the yellow brick road to drag slightly on thick grass did she open her eyes again. They were entering a forest where the trees grew far apart, giving Zelena plenty of room to maneuver the wagon. Her dragon eyesight allowed her to split the gathering darkness. In the distance, she noticed a small house, worn and rundown. Zelena avoided that and instead focused on a nearby tree that was entirely gold. She stopped the wagon and walked up to it, drawing a magic symbol on the trunk.
"Give me a second to make sure the place is clean." She said. The ground gave way beneath the tree, revealing a hidden doorway.
Maleficent climbed out of the wagon and helped the others down. "Is everyone alright?"
"Yes, Mommy." Her children chorused. Elizabeth hopped out of the wagon and looked back up at Regina. She was moving slowly, holding one of her arms. Ruby had yet to move at all.
"Regina?" Mal reached for her and she pulled back.
"I'm fine."
She glanced down at Elizabeth and sent her over with the other children. "You're not fine. Let me see."
Regina sat down on the edge of the wagon. "I got bit pretty badly."
Zelena appeared next to them. "I figured as much. Come on, I have something for it." Mal held out an arm for Regina to help her down. Zelena took over while Lily picked up Ruby and carried her into the hidden room. Well, it wasn't exactly a room. More like an underground house. It was made of smooth, dark wood and lined with stone. Magical energy hummed in the air as Mal came down the stairs. There were several rooms, each one fully furnished as a bedroom with new modern bathrooms. There was a large den area with two large couches and a thick green carpet. Vines crept up the walls and around many of the torches planted against the stone. It took her a moment to realize that this was Zelena's old vault. "I added in some more rooms for you guys, so pick one and enjoy yourself. Regina, Ruby, follow me." Mal followed her as well, passing a large dining area covered by a large table grown straight up from the floor. There were pantries and cupboards and a small spring situated in the corner. They headed down another short set of stairs and into the main vault that was more familiar. Bookshelves lined the walls with tables covered in random papers spread out everywhere. An impressive set of potion making equipment took up one corner of the room and another spring dominated another. A glass case held a number of trophies from her wife's Wicked Witch days and an entire wall was covered by racks of vials and potions. "Over here. Put them on the table." Zelena walked over to the racks and used a ladder to climb up to the second to the top row. She quickly found what she was looking for and came back to Regina and Ruby, holding a bright green vial.
"What is this?" Regina asked.
"A cure. It's made from Emerald Vlarys. Very potent and can cure almost anything. Very valuable too so feel special." Zelena said. Regina rolled her eyes at her, but opened her mouth and stuck out her tongue on command. Zelena allowed a single drop to fall onto her tongue and Regina closed her mouth. Green and gold light started to shine from her skin. Zelena did the same to Ruby and the same effect began to happen to her. "You guys are going to be night lights for a few minutes, but whatever you got infected with will be gone. In fact, I think everyone should take a drop, just in case."
"What about the other witches who fought?" Ruby asked.
"Fuck them."
Maleficent smirked as she accepted a drop of the antidote. She hadn't noticed any flying monkeys attacking her, but she supposed she could've gotten scratched or bitten and not noticed. She felt the magic as soon it touched her tongue. A rush of iciness spread through her being, lasting for a few minutes before fading away. The glow she emitted went with it.
"Now," Zelena grabbed Mal's arm and pulled her off to the side. "I'm going to make sure everyone is situated and the kids are kept busy. In the meantime, I want you cleaned and naked as soon as possible. Do you understand me?"
"As you wish." Mal smirked.
"Don't look at me like that or I'll do something we'll both be very embarrassed about."
"Speak for yourself." Mal replied. She did a quick check on the rest of the family, finding that the children were playing in the little spring in the kitchen that was actually filled with some kind of fish. She entrusted Zelena to monitor them and went to take a shower. The blood had begun to stick long ago and was starting to become annoying. She entered the specified master bedroom and frowned a little seeing so much of the Wicked Witch in it. Having grown up in poverty, she knew that after taking over Oz, Zelena wanted what she never had, even if it wasn't really her. The master bedroom wreaked of finery and an extravagance that was completely unlike the woman she had come to love. The carpets were thick and finely woven, the vanity was sculpted from ebony, the bed itself was molded from gold. She reached out to touch the soft sheets and that brought a smile to her face. She could recognize the stitching and the monogram at the foot of the bed. It was some of Zelena's work. She had taken to sewing over the years and it made her happy to know that even in a dark place that a piece of her Zelena managed to survive amongst the madness and wickedness.
Moving on, Mal entered the shower that was an exact match to the one they had at home and proceeded to scrub herself three times over. Washing her hair alone took half an hour. When she stepped out in one of the robes Zelena left in the bathroom, she smiled at the sight that awaited her. Zelena was passed out on the bed with the kids piled on top of her. She climbed into bed with her family and joined them in dreamland.
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