Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot and any unrecognizable characters and dialogue.

"Aunty Mal is here?" Unable to believe what she was hearing, Evie stared at her mother in disbelief. "As in, here in Storybrooke? And you're just mentioning this now?!"

Regina winced as her daughter's voice reached a shrillness it hadn't since the girl was a toddler. "In a manner of speaking, yes. Maleficent is, technically, in Storybrooke."

Emma peered warily at her aunt, inwardly debating if now was the time to mention that she'd in fact killed a dragon just before the Curse was broken. Harry, his arm around Henry's shoulders, grinned at the fierce expression his princess wore.

"Emma... didn't Mr. Gold send you to slay a dragon when I was... asleep?" Despite his carefully chosen wording, everyone in the room flinched at the reminder of the short time he'd spent beneath a sleeping curse. "You had to take that old elevator in the library, right?"

Evie stiffened, dark gaze sliding first to her niece, then to her uncomfortable looking mother. "Aunty Mal was the dragon Emma slayed?!"

"Okay, okay," grabbing hold of her before she could launch herself at the two women, Harry reeled Evie into his arms and refocused the conversation. "What has all this got ta do with my da?"

"It appears Hook has returned to Storybrooke and discovered he didn't succeed in killing Rumpelstiltskin." Sending an apologetic look Harry's way for not telling him sooner, Regina continued. "He showed up at my office first thing this morning, asking to renew our... associated. He claimed that Greg Mendell and some woman kidnapped him from New York and dragged him back to Storybrooke."

At once, Evie, Harry and Emma looked at one another. While her parents tolerated Emma's suspicion for Tamara, Evie and Harry had already shared their own misgivings about Henry's soon-to-be step-mother.

"What woman?"

"Hook didn't say; I honestly doubt he knew who she was." Regina admitted frankly, not unaware of the sudden tension in the air. "He claimed they'd tasked him with double-crossing me."

"He told ya that?" Harry asked dubiously. "Knowing my da, he likely only told you so you'd be lured into a false sense of security."

"I thought as much."

Resigned to the plans she'd set in motion, she informed them about the failsafe she'd built into the Curse. While she didn't intend on ever using the trigger, it was likely no longer safe where she'd hidden it all those years ago. Even with the half-formed lich that was once Maleficent guarding it, it was too risky to rely on that. Especially after Miss Swan had single-handedly defeated Maleficent just before the Curse broke.

"I'd ask why you built in a failsafe for your 'perfect' life, but I'm not sure I'd like the answer." Emma drawled, wrinkling her nose when Regina scowled at her. "So you're going to what, just go along with Hook for now?"

"Yes. If I can find out who Greg Mendell is working with and why they're here then..."

Evie pressed her lips together tightly. "Then we can stop them."

"We should beef up security on the bean fields." Emma announced, pulling out her phone to call David. He was likely already there with Anton and the Dwarves. "Come on, kid. Let's go help your grandpa."

Wriggling away from his uncle's hold, Henry let Evie press a kiss to the top of his head, then his mother, before he raced after Emma. Watching him go, Evie sighed and slumped against Harry. She eyed her mother, noting the older woman looked tired. Though David and Mary Margaret hadn't wanted them to, both Evie and Emma had decided to tell the mayor about the rapidly growing bean crop located near the outskirts of town.

Regina had been upset at first, rightfully assuming that the original plan had been to either leave her behind or bring her back to the Enchanted Forest just to face a jail cell for the rest of her days. Emma, to Evie's surprise, had agreed with her that after everything that happened in the past few weeks, Regina had earned the benefit of the doubt. Once she'd calmed down, Regina had, under the supervision of seven armed Dwarfs and one shrunken giant, been taken to the field to examine the crop. She'd even managed to layer a few more protection spells on top of Mother Superior's work.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Maleficent." Regina's quiet words broke Evie from her musing. Her mother's painted lips quivered for a moment. "I know how much she meant to you, and it was selfish of me to keep it from you."

"Is... is she even alive down there?" Evie asked quietly, half afraid of the answer. Her godmother had been a frequent visitor in her youth, coming to the palace while Leopold and Snow were away on their endless progresses. Evie loved the sorceress and had considered her a second mother. Even as she grew older, and understood just why her beloved aunty was soon banished to a fortress, her affection for her never changed. "Emma... Emma killed her, right?"

Regina swallowed. "There is an enchantment in place, one that stops her from truly dying so long as she remains within the confines of Storybrooke." She looked as though she might cry, and Evie wrapped her arms around her mother before the first tear could fall.

They'd find a way, Evie swore to herself. Even if she had to evoke the darkness magic known to man, she'd find a way to heal her godmother. They broke apart soon after, with Regina leaving to go and meet Hook to keep up appearances that she was working alongside him. The older woman apologized quietly to Harry, who merely waved off her apologies.

"My da has made his choices, Regina." His hand sought out Evie's as he spoke. She felt the tremble in his fingers and pressed herself to his side. "And he'll have to live with them."

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