A/N: hey look! another update so soon. don't get used to it. :/ anyway. i did a little bit of time skipping here because I really want to get back to Emma and Gold interacting, as those who have reviewed clearly do as well. Still not quite there, but I promise it's coming. Unfortunately the damn show kept them apart for half a season and there are some parts that while not together are still very important and relevant to the Gold/Emma relationship, so that's mostly what this chapter is. I'll probably skip a little more in the next chapter and that will most likely finally have Gold and Emma interaction again. As always, read, review and ENJOY!
Of all the strange things Emma had encountered in the Enchanted Forest, the place that was supposed to have been her home all these years, this was by far the strangest. She'd faced ogres, a giant, that damn pirate and yet, this woman, Aurora, having a dream about her son definitely topped the list of strange things.
Emma couldn't fathom how it was even possible. Aurora had never even seen Henry before. Yet when Emma held up the wallet picture of Henry she happened to have with her, Aurora said that was the boy she had seen in her dream.
"That's impossible; it was a dream. How could you dream of my son?" Emma asked as she knelt before Aurora.
"I have no idea. I th—"
But whatever Aurora thought, Emma never got to find out. From behind her, Mary Margaret had piped up, cutting her off.
"Maybe it wasn't a dream…"
Emma whipped around, moving to her feet in one fluid motion to look at Mary Margaret with confusion.
"What?!"
"That room…I've been there."
"When I told you about it you didn't say anything," Aurora recalled.
"You were terrified. I didn't want to make things worse by telling you it might be real."
"A room in a dream is real?" Mulan asked from behind Mary Margaret.
"The sleeping curse," she replied. A look of understanding quickly spread across Mulan's features. "It has to be," Mary Margaret went on. "I went through it, Aurora went through it—"
"Henry went through it because I wouldn't believe him."
"Emma…"
"What else did you lie about?" Aurora chimed in again angrily from behind Emma.
"I was—I wasn't lying. I was protecting you."
"What did he say? Henry. In—In the dream?"
"He just said his name and then I woke up and it was over."
"Emma!" Again, Mary Margaret interjected and Emma turned to face her again. "It's going to be okay."
"We are so far from okay," Emma replied, not seeing the same silver lining she appeared to be seeing.
"No, we have a way home now," she said with a hopeful, cheery voice. She certainly seemed sure of herself and Emma was starting to get frustrated with her.
"We have a compass! And the wardrobe ashes are still with Cora."
"Any attempt to steal from her would be suicide," Mulan chimed again, siding with Emma on this one.
"Not anymore," Mary Margaret replied confidently.
Emma furrowed her brows in confusion. What was she talking about? Where was all of this newfound optimism coming from? She wondered if she had some sort of plan and if she did, Emma hoped she'd get to the point soon because they could really use a good plan right about now.
"We can stop her," she continued.
"How?" Mulan asked.
"I don't know. But I know someone who does," she said again, still with that same hopeful, optimistic tone of voice as she turned to face Emma. And Emma got a sinking feeling in her stomach as she looked at her. She had a good feeling where this was going now. "Rumpelstiltskin."
And there it was. She couldn't believe it. Even in when she was stuck in another land, she had to go to Gold for help. It was never ending. He had a goddamn solution to everything and it seemed it didn't matter where she was, she couldn't escape dealing with him in some way.
"He'll know a way."
For a second Emma wasn't sure how they were going to talk to him when he was back in Storybrooke, but then it hit her.
"Henry…"
Mary Margaret nodded, having come to the same conclusion Emma finally had.
"We can talk to him; now we can communicate."
"Wait…" Aurora said, stepping forward. She, too, had connected the dots and realized they intended to send her back to that fiery room.
"Oh yeah, Princess, you're going back to sleep," Emma said, turning back to her, a look of fierce determination in her eyes. This was it. They actually had a way they could find out how to get back home.
Aurora wasn't entirely thrilled to be going back into that room, but if it helped she would do it. And she did. When she fell asleep, going back to that room, Henry was there just as she had expected him to be and she told him what the others had told her to say. She told him to go to Rumpelstiltskin and get him to tell them how they could defeat Cora so that they could come back home.
Things in Storybrooke had been nearly as hectic as what the others were facing in the Enchanted Forest. Sure, they weren't facing any ogres or giants but they did have a werewolf to contend with for a while until David helped sort it out. And Gold had to deal with the fiasco of Belle's father trying to send her over the town line.
But unlike in the Enchanted Forest, things had calmed down a lot quicker and things were much easier to deal with in a small town versus a huge forest completely overrun by ogres after twenty-eight years being left to their own devices. So despite the chaos, there was a bit of down time, enough for Gold to take some time out of his day to go to lunch with Belle at the Diner.
In the wake of everything that had been going on, his focus had been quite far from Ms. Swan, admittedly. Other than at least one notable occasion while he was awake, when dealing with Charming, the only time he allowed his mind to wander to thoughts of her was at night. It usually kept him up, the guilt.
He felt guilty about everything. Obviously he felt guilty about what had happened to Henry, and he knew he was quite to blame for her ending up in the Enchanted Forest as well. Had he not summoned the beast to Storyrbooke to kill Regina, they'd never have needed to get rid of it and she wouldn't have fallen through that portal.
But above all else, he felt guilty for being with Belle at all. Unsurprisingly, that didn't stop him from being with her. He loved Belle and he truly wanted to be with her. Though he also loved Emma. He did. But being with Belle was easier. That wasn't his only reason for wanting her, but it was his primary reason for trying to forget about Emma. That never would have worked. And in some moments, like now when he was out with Belle, he could forget about her. If only just a little.
"They smell delicious, Granny," Belle said brightly as the elderly woman placed their meals in front of them.
"They are delicious. Didn't take any dark magic either," she replied, looking pointedly at Gold. He had to strongly resist the urge to roll his eyes at her. "Oh and uh, I charge extra for the pickles."
"Em hm," Gold replied, close-lipped. "I have a complicated relationship with her," he explained to Belle as Granny walked away. "As I do with most people," he said in an attempt at making light of his rather poor reputation.
Whether she thought it was funny or not, Belle chuckled either way. Perhaps it was more laughing at his effort than anything else. "Well, it uh, it did take me a little time to get to know you," she replied, tone just as teasing as his was. "They will."
All he did was smile at her in return. And then change the subject.
"You know, you should try it with ketchup. Condiments are this world's most powerful magic."
She flashed him an amused smile with a small shake of his head. It was that side of him that she wished everyone else would see. Then they would all know why she loved him as much as she did. Though he sadly never chose to show that side to anyone else. Not as far as she knew.
It was then that the door of the diner opened, Regina stepping through. Neither one of them had really been paying attention and didn't bother looking to see who had come in. But of course, their ignorance didn't last long as Regina made her way straight to Gold the second she walked into the diner.
"Gold," she said, approaching his table, "we need to talk."
"Do we?" He said, leaning back in his seat and not even sparing her a glance. Though he had seen her one other time to help Henry, he hadn't spoken to her since that afternoon in his shop when she had blackmailed him, revealing that she knew about him and Emma. Due to that, he wasn't too keen on having another conversation with her.
"Folks I think I may need to close early—Uh, everybody out," Granny announced, motioning towards the door. The idea of the Evil Queen and Rumpelstiltskin having a little spat in her diner was not something she was looking forward to. If they wanted to fight and kill each other, they could do it out on the street, so long as she didn't have to clean up the mess.
"No, it's okay," Regina stated, hands held at her side signaling for everyone to stay put. She just needed to talk to him, she wouldn't even have to say much if he was smart. "We're civil."
"Yeah for now," Gold bit out through clenched teeth. She might be civil but he was still feeling quite murderous in regards to her for a number of reasons. "Belle, you remember the woman who locked you up for twenty-eight years."
Belle looked around nervously for her things. She didn't want to be brought into the middle of any of this. It was no secret that Rumpel was still upset with Regina about all of that, and so was she, but she had no interest in being pulled into this fight. ""I—I should probably just—"
"No, no, please stay where you are. She can say whatever she wants, she won't be getting anything from me."
"Have you forgotten what we talked about, Rumpel?" She asked, a voice full of malicious intent.
Jaw clenched tightly, he turned to her, glaring at her. He knew she would continue to use that against him for as long as she could. All he did was glare at her, he had no words. If he said anything at all it would be threats on her life, and that wasn't something he wanted Belle to hear either.
"That's what I thought. Besides, I'm actually coming about the one thing that might unite us."
"And what on earth can that be?"
Regina leaned down closer to him, knowing all she had to do was say one word and he'd be on her side.
"Cora."
At the mention of that name, his jaw tightened even more. Memories flew to the forefront of his mind of his time with Cora. It had been so long ago, but he hadn't forgotten her. Oh, no. How could he have ever forgotten her of all people. After what she'd done to him. No. He could never forget her. But he'd never thought he'd have to deal with her again. He thought she was gone. For good.
"She's coming from our land; I need your help to stop her."
"She was dead. You told me you saw the body."
"Apparently you taught her well," Regina replied. "She's not, and she's on her way and I don't think I need to remind you how most unpleasant that would be for both of us."
"For you," Gold said, finally turning to look at Regina for the first time since she'd arrived. "I can handle Cora."
"That's not how she tells the story."
"I won in the end."
"Maybe, but there's a big difference this time." Two actually, she added in her head, but she knew he'd understand whether she said it or not. "This time you have someone you care about," she went on, eyes turning to Belle. "This time you have a weakness."
Gold clenched his teeth, chewing on the inside of his lip slightly. He could tell by the way Regina looked at him that she wasn't just talking about keeping Belle. That wasn't his only weakness. His other weakness was that ace up Regina's sleeve. She didn't have to say it out loud for him to know that if he didn't agree, she would tell Belle about Emma. That was the very last thing he wanted, next to having Cora back in his life.
"Wh—Who is this woman?" Belle chimed in again. She'd been silent though confused throughout the entire interaction and she was exceptionally curious as to who this Cora woman was and why both Rumpel and Regina seemed to fear her. Despite the words coming from him, Belle could see in his expression that he did not want this woman in Storybrooke.
"Someone you'll never meet," Rumpel answered with a terse smile. Nobody knew the exact details of his past with Cora and if he didn't want Belle to know about Emma, it was nothing compared to how much he didn't want Belle to know about Cora.
"So you say she's coming." He spoke again to Regina. "Where is she now?"
"With them."
Them?
His head spun around to look at her again, nearly causing a crick in his neck he'd spun so fast.
"Them?"
"Yes, them. Ms. Swan and Mary Margaret."
Things really weren't looking good for him. But his fears of Cora being with Emma had nothing to do with his past with either woman. No, he feared for Emma's life. He wasn't entirely heartless. And while he may be here with Belle, trying to forget about Emma, it wasn't that easy to do. The last fate he wanted her to suffer after everything he'd put her through was having to deal with Cora. There was no telling what Cora might do if she knew who Emma was, which she suspected she'd find out quick enough. She'd always been one step ahead of everyone else.
He sighed heavily, eyes returning to meet Belle's. "I—I'm sorry, Belle, but I have to go. I promise we'll have time again for this later."
Regina rolled her eyes from where she stood beside them, but neither of them were paying enough attention to notice.
"Oh—Okay, sure. Yeah."
Then he stood, leaving his meal untouched to go with Regina. Belle stayed behind to finish her lunch. She'd see him later, and whatever it was exactly that he was off to do, it seemed important. Belle might not know exactly what there was to fear from Cora, but if they were both scared then she didn't mind if they tried to find a way to stop her from coming to Storybrooke.
"So what is I need to do?" Gold asked Regina the minute they were outside of the diner.
"That burning room Henry goes to, there's someone else there, someone from there."
"Mary Margaret?" He guessed, having known she had once been placed under the same sleeping curse that Henry had undertaken.
"No, some other woman. Must have been the girl Maleficent cursed."
"Ah, yes, that one," he said sarcastically. But as it happened he knew who she spoke of.
"So, we're going to send Henry back in to talk to her, and you're going to tell him how to defeat Cora. Once he's in, he'll tell her and she'll tell the others. I'll go get Henry and David and meet you at your shop?"
"Yes, yes, I'll set up somewhere for Henry sleep and prepare a little spell to make sure he falls asleep."
"It won't—not another curse, right?"
"No, no. Nothing like that. Think of it like a sleeping pill, only it acts faster. It won't harm him at all."
"Okay then, we'll see you in a bit."
Then they parted ways. Regina went off to get David and Henry and Gold headed back to his shop. He gathered a pillow and some blankets to lay on the small cot in the back of his shop. Then he just waited for the others to arrive. It wasn't long before Henry was lying down ready to go.
"So, Cora, she's pretty powerful?" Henry asked from the small bed.
"Yes but ah, not as powerful as I am," Gold replied. Regina scoffed as she took off her jacket.
"Debatable."
"Actually, no, it's not."
David stepped forward giving them a somewhat chastising look and they cut off their bickering before it could even really get started. He then moved to sit on the edge of the bed beside Henry.
"You sure you're okay to do this, kid?"
"I was born to do this. I'm done reading about heroes; I wanna be one."
"Well sometimes being one is knowing when not to run into the fire."
"I'll be okay."
"Look," Gold chimed in from behind them, "whatever he faces in there will be far less dangerous than what he'll face if we fail." That wasn't just him trying to cover his own ass either. Cora was a force to be reckoned with, especially if she still didn't have her heart.
"I can do this," Henry spoke up, trying to reassure them all that he could be a hero too.
David nodded down at him before standing and turning back to Gold. "Get on with it. Fast." He was still very anxious to get his family back and keep Cora out of town.
"All right, Henry," Gold said, stepping forward to take a seat next to Henry's bed. "Just relax. Soon, you're gonna drift off."
"What do I tell them?" He asked.
"Just listen to my bedtime story and all will be clear," Gold said, as cryptic as ever.
Then he took his hand and lightly placed it on top of Henry's head.
"Once upon a time, Snow White and Prince Charming needed to stun a very powerful magician long enough to lock him up in the dark dungeon—"
"That was you, they used Cinderella to help trap you with the magic quill," Henry said as Gold ran his hand over Henry's face, hovering barely an inch above his skin. He was putting him to sleep.
"Yes, indeed," Gold went on with his tale, "the quill. And yet, it wasn't the quill itself, but the ink that captured the Dark One, harvested from the rarest species of squid from the bottom of a bottomless ocean, impossible to find unless you're a mermaid. Or me. I happen to have a private supply."
Once more Gold ran his hand over the young boy's face. "In my jail cell. That is where they will find it."
Back in the Enchanted Forest, the other waited while Aurora slept, hoping that their plan would work.
"Hey," Mary Margaret said, walking over to where Emma had wandered off to on her own. She took her daughter's hand in hers in a comforting gesture. "It'll be okay, you'll see Henry again. This'll work."
"We don't know that—"
"Henry can do it, I know he can."
"I'm not worried about Henry. I'm worried about him. If he doesn't tell Henry how to defeat Cora, this plan was for nothing."
"You mean Gold?"
"Who else."
"Oh, Emma. You don't think he wouldn't try to help do you?"
"After everything he's done, why would he help? Why would I put my faith in him to help us?"
"Emma—"
"No, don't give me that look. With me stuck here, he gets off scot-free. He doesn't have to worry about me getting back at him for what he did."
"Well you did punch him already—"
"Right, like that's enough to get my point across."
"Emma, look," she turned more to face her and grabbed up her other hand in hers, looking at her earnestly. "I know this isn't what you want to hear, and I know you probably won't believe me but—"
"If you're about to tell me—"
"That he cares about you, yeah, that's what I'm going to tell you. Maybe, he really does. I don't know. All I know is what you've told me and what I've seen. He's told you things he's never told anyone before—"
"He was working me over, Mary Margaret. He was using me and manipulating him. That's all it was."
"That may be true, too, but you don't know. I can't believe I'm arguing on his behalf but…you don't know. He could be worried about you. I find it a little hard to believe that after what I saw of him in our apartment that night, that he doesn't care about you at all. But either way, I know he doesn't want Cora in Storybooke either. He can be an idiot, obviously, but he's not that stupid. He knows having Cora around in Storybrooke can't be good. He's going to help, I know he is."
After her miniature speech, she moved one of her hands to cup Emma's cheek, caressing it lightly, like any good mother would do when their child was upset. To Emma's credit, she didn't flinch away from the touch. In fact, she almost sort of welcomed it. She wasn't sure she believed any of what Mary Margaret said about Gold caring about her at all, but she did at least agree with that last bit. If Gold knew anything about Cora, he wouldn't want her there and he knew about everyone.
"Fine. Whatever you say."
Just as Emma finished speaking, they heard a noise from within the forest. Someone was out there. Both of them looked over at Aurora and Mulan. Milan had obviously heard it too, her hand was resting on the hilt of her sword, ready for action. They stayed silent like that for a moment, waiting, listening. And then it happened.
It wasn't just one person, but several, though that wasn't what took them by surprise the most. The people coming into their clearing to attack them, were dead people. They'd seen them back at the camp after Cora had run through it and killed all those refugees. Each one of them had a spot on their chest where Cora had ripped their hearts from. Taking down all of them was a pretty daunting task on it's own, but add in that they couldn't be killed, they had a serious problem on their hands. There was no way they could take them all.
And they were right. By the time they had run a few of them off, the others had started leaving on their own. It wasn't until then that they realized Aurora was gone. They had taken her. And she had never gotten the chance to wake up and tell them what Henry had said. Even if she had the information they needed, she was gone and that was just one more thing they had to do, track her down again. Without what she might know, they'd never be able to defeat Cora.
Back in Storybrooke, Henry awoke with a jolt, breathing heavily. Gold leaned in closer from where he sat beside him.
"Did you see her? Did you tell her?" He tried to hide the sense of urgency he felt, but he needed to know. Not just because he didn't want Cora in Storybrooke, but he was worried for Emma. Again, the last thing she needed after everything he'd put her through was to be stuck in the Enchanted Forest with Cora and away from her son.
"No—No, I didn't get the chance. Something—Something happened. She—She got sucked out of there."
Gold's face fell at this news. If she got sucked out, then she was probably woken up forcefully, meaning they certainly hadn't gotten time to make arrangements to meet again at a more convenient time. The only way they could try again was to send him back and hope someone would be there to receive him. There was no guarantee.
Suddenly Henry groaned as he tried to sit up. Regina immediately sprang forth to see what was happening.
"Something's wrong."
Henry was holding his arm in pain and Regina lightly pulled back the sleeve revealing an armful of burn marks. It had to have been from that room. The same thing had happened to him before, it just hadn't been as bad.
"Please, let me fix that," Gold said. And he stood, moving to sit on the edge of the bed beside Henry. With Henry's sleeve pulled back, he waved his hand over the boy's arm, a purple glow encompassing his hand as he did. And just like that, it was healed. No more scars.
"What caused this?" Regina asked him once he was finished.
"When you venture deeper into the Netherworld instead of away, there are risks," he answered simply. That's really all there was too it. Though he didn't mean to sound so crass as he said it. He wished no harm to come to Henry at all, definitely not. That's why he'd so readily offered to heal him. It was as much for his own fondness for the boy as it was on Emma's behalf that he didn't want to see Henry hurt.
"Someone woke Aurora before her soul was ready to return," he continued. "The violence of that act tore her away and injured Henry. We're lucky it wasn't worse. He's going to need some time to recover before he can be sent back at."
As soon as the words left his lips both Regina and Charming were shouting protests at the thought of sending Henry back in. It wasn't as if he did not understand where they were coming from, but did they not see that they didn't have any other options? Henry was their only way to communicate with others. If they truly wanted to make sure Cora couldn't get to Storybrooke, Henry was the only way. It wasn't ideal of course, but what choice did they have?
"We'd be monsters to even consider risking his life again," Charming said, standing, a show of his outrage at the idea.
"Careful with your tone, Charming," Gold said, also standing. He hadn't particularly cared for his use of the word 'monster', given he'd just been considering sending Henry back to the Netherworld. "I understand your concern for the boy, but I know Cora. Without our help, Snow and Emma will soon be dead."
"Oh like you care," Charming fired back. He knew about what happened between him and Emma. It wouldn't surprise him at all if Gold was secretly hoping his wife and daughter would die at the hands of Cora.
Gold clenched his jaw tightly, but he refused to be baited by Charming. He didn't have to explain himself to Charming or tell him that he was wrong. Even if he did, Charming had already made up his mind about him.
"Then," Gold went on, pointedly ignoring Charming, "a true monster will be on her way to Storybrooke."
"Aurora is gone," Regina pointed out, her now standing as well. "Why do we need to send Henry back to that fiery inferno with no one there to receive our message."
That was the very same question he had already asked him self several minutes ago, the minute Henry had said Aurora had been pulled from her slumber. He was no closer to an answer now than he had been then. All they could do was hope that it was some sort of fluke and that she'd be there again if they sent Henry back.
After a moment of silence as they all thought, it was Charming who spoke up first.
"Because someone will be there."
"Who?" Regina asked, tone laced with skepticism. She'd never really thought Charming was the brains of the operation in his and Snow's relationship, so she was very hesitant to believe that he had a good idea. Plus, she was remembering how witless he had been as David Nolan and wondering how much of that had stuck around with the Prince.
"Snow."
"That's an awfully big assumption." Just more proof for her later if she ever felt the need to call him an idiot.
"No it's not. She was there once before, she can go back, she can find a way. She will, I know it. And I'll be waiting," he said, turning to Gold.
"You're going to this Netherworld?" Regina asked, looking at him like he really was an idiot. At this point she was convinced she was right.
"I faced you, how bad could it be?"
"It's not as simple as that," Gold chimed in. "You can't get there. You haven't been under a sleeping curse."
"Well then put me under one."
"If we do that there's a chance you might never waken up."
"Sure I will," he replied, looking hopeful. He and his wife were two of a kind. "When I see her, she'll kiss me and I'll be fine. Now put me under. I've spent far too much time looking for my wife; it is time to bring her home!"
Carlet: it'S COMING SOON I PROMISE. I WANT THEM INTERACTING AGAIN AS MUCH AS YOU DO!
Twyla Mercedes: that's what a smart, normal person would do. unfortunately gold is sometimes neither of those things. :/ his go-to is always deceit and hiding things, so naturally he just wants to hide his involvement with emma. probably won't go well for him.