They reached the camp in the early afternoon. The sun shone bright and warm in the sky above, not a cloud in sight. As they neared, the mud huts appeared in the distance, and, with them, an overwhelming stench. Without speaking the five hurried their step, wanting to get to the camp as quickly as possible.

It was Emma who saw it first. She'd never seen anything quite like it, and she felt the bile rise in her throat at the sight. And the smell. The bodies of the men, women and children that had inhabited the camp were strewn on the muddy ground. The square, which had been filled with life two nights ago, was now covered in death. Emma stopped, and felt the other women come to a halt behind her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Snow cover her mouth and nose with her hand. Emma stood frozen, the scene was straight out of a horror movie. This enchanted forest was not living up to its name.

"Who would do this?" Emma asked, hearing herself speak in third person.

There was no answer for a moment, then Regina stepped into the carnage, looking over the destruction,"Cora," she said, crouching, she turned a man's body over, his lifeless eyes staring up into the clear sky. There was nothing obviously wrong with him, no blood or injuries. Regina looked over him clinically, not a hint of disgust or fear in her eyes, like she'd seen a million and one dead bodies. Emma wondered if she had, and how many had been her doing. She thought back to Henry's storybook, and, not for the first time, she reprimanded herself on not having studied it more thoroughly. There were too many things she didn't understand, people she didn't know…Henry would have known all of it.

"Their hearts are gone," Regina said, her hand on his chest. She looked up at Emma.

"Let's look in her hut,"

"You go" Emma told Regina, her eyes still sweeping over the horrifying sight. Regina nodded then began picking her way slowly through the bodies, Enma watched her step gingerly over them as she made her way to Cora's hut. Once Regina was out of sight, she turned to the others.

"We have to bury them," she said quietly, and Snow nodded.

"It's our fault they're dead," Emma continued,

But her mother stepped forward, her hand going to Emma's arm comfortingly.

"Emma! You can't blame yourself, this was Cora,"

"Hey!" Aurora called suddenly, distracting them from their conversation,

"There's someone here!"

She had wandered away from them, and knelt down a few paces away, her pink dress dragging in the mud. Emma squinted looking for what Aurora meant, then she ran forward as one of the bodies moved.

She and Snow pulled two dead bodies aside, and a man sat up from underneath them. They hauled him up by his arms. He was tall and skinny, with dark hair and one hand. His other hand has been replaced by a hook.

"Thank you!" He said, his one hand going to his chest in a show of gratitude, "I can't thank you enough" he continued, he was stammering slightly.

Emma watched as Snow and Mulan led him to a bench, her eyes narrowed. The man was somehow too grateful, perhaps it was her upbringing in the land without magic, The real world, her subconscious corrected, that made her so suspicious of everyone.

She sat down next to the man, who was still shaking slightly. A little too much. She looked up at Mulan, "Do you know him?"

"I've seen him around, he's a blacksmith I think"

"I don't understand, how did he," Emma stopped and looked at him, "how did you survive?"

"She came in the night" the man said, his voice trembling, "she took their hearts, I hid amongst the bodies, so she wouldn't see me"

"Cora?" Emma asked, her voice low,

"Aye, the witch" he growled softly.

"Somehow I survived," he continued, a trembling smile on his lips.

Emma got up, gesturing for Snow and Mulan to join her.

"I don't believe him" she said when they were far enough that the man wouldn't overhear her.

"Why not?" Snow asked, her eyebrows furrowing,

"Cora might have overlooked him," Mulan said,

"Or he might be working for her," Emma said darkly. Snow cocked her head, and she could hear the soft 'Emma' of disappointment, though she said nothing.

She marched back to the man, "What's your name?" She asked roughly,

He looked up at her, his dark eyes shining, Emma had seen deceit a million times over, and she could see it as clear as day in his eyes. He opened his mouth to speak when Regina interrupted him. "Hook?" her voice came from behind them, and they both turned to look at her. His lips pressed into a thin line for a moment, before melting into a charming smile.

"You two know each other?" Emma looked between them, eyes narrowing again.

"Ah, your majesty," Said Hook, rising and giving Regina a shallow bow.

"What the hell are you doing here, pirate?" Regina spit,

Emma eyed Mulan, "blacksmith, huh?"

"It's not what you think," Hook was saying, stepping towards Regina.

"Isn't it?" She asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "so you're not working for my mother, after failing to kill her?"

He was quiet for a moment, his finger resting on his lips. "Ah, well, I didn't kill her, indeed, but I'm not working for her"

Emma was about to speak when the pirate unsheathed his sword, pointing it at Regina, he circled her for a moment. She glared daggers at him.

"Again?" Emma sighed,

"You promised me you'd take me to the land without magic" Hook said,

"Only If you killed my mother" She said, her anger flaring, "and anyway, the curse should have brought you with us, why didn't it?"

"Because, your majesty" he said, his voice raspy, "you lied to me,"

She cocked her head sideways, a smirk playing on her lips, "did I?"

"You told me I would be able to skin my crocodile in this new land" he growled, nearing Regina, his sword now pressed into her back, "you didn't tell me I wouldn't have my memories to do it"

"Oh" she said, faking surprise, "did I forget to tell you?"

"Regina" Emma warned softly, had she forgotten she didn't have magic? She wouldn't be able to protect herself against Hook.

Regina glanced at her, her lips pressed together.

"Well" she said after a moment, "I suppose we're even then,"

Hook though about this for a moment, before pulling back and sheathing his sword,

"Aye, I suppose we are"

Regina inclined her head graciously.

"And I promise you," Hook said, this time looking at Emma, "I am not working for Cora"

Emma felt her anti lie buzzer go off like a million bells in her head, "Right,"

"Did you find anything?" Emma asked, looking at Regina, who shook her head.

"Unfortunately not, I think I have what I need in Storybrooke, but not here" she eyed Emma carefully, then glanced at the pirate. Emma was well aware that he should not be informed of Regina's current state of magicless-ness.

"Why did she spare you, if you're not working for her?" Snow asked, and Emma noticed she'd drawn her arrow, pointing it at Hook.

"As I said, she didn't realize I wasn't dead,"

"Regina, how do you know him?" Snow asked,

"I hired him to kill my mother before the curse, something he obviously did not do"

"Alright, but I'm not working for her now! She's an evil woman and I've no interest in her, I just want to get to Storybrooke"

Snow lowered the bow, "why do you want to go to Storybrooke?"

"To kill myself a crocodile," said Hook, exasperated, "and I'll do anything it takes to get there, so what do you say we work together?" He grinned at Emma and winked, she turned away and motioned to Regina and Snow to join her. Mulan walked over too.

"I don't trust him," she said, once they were out of earshot,

"And you're right not to," Regina agreed, "but the man would do anything to get to Storybrooke, he might be useful"

Snow nodded, "I agree, and I don't think he's working for Cora, what possible reason would she have to leave him here? The tree is gone"

Emma looked over to where the leather clad man was standing, watching them surreptitiously, and she clenched her jaw,

"Well either way, we need to figure out what he knows. Come with me, Regina"

Emma walked away, grabbing a rope from a nearby table. She unsheathed her sword and pointed it at the pirate, who raised his hands and chortled softly.

"Tell us what you know about Cora's plan,"

"I don't know anything, love, I told you, I'm not working for her"

"Well you're lying," Emma continued, she passed the rope to Regina, who had followed her close behind. "I have a superpower, you see" she said, "I can tell when people are lying"

He quirked an eyebrow, "Is that so? Then you should know, I'm. not. lying" he spit the last words through gritted teeth.

Emma nodded and looked at her feet for a moment, then she pressed forward, sword drawn, forcing the pirate to walk backwards, out of the square and against a nearby tree.

"Regina tie him," she said, not taking her eyes off him.

"What, to the tree?" Regina asked, and Emma heard a certain admiration in her voice,

"Yes, to the tree" said Emma, slightly annoyed. Regina grinned, and slung the rope around Hook's waist, "With pleasure,"

Once the captain was secured to the trunk, Emma pointed her sword at him again, this time the blade resting on his neck.

"So tell us, Hook, what is Cora planning?"

"That's Captain Hook to you, Love"

"Fine, Captain," she said, putting pressure on the blade, "now talk,"

He shook his head, "I told you, I'm not working with her"

Emma and Regina exchanged a glance, the other three had joined them too, and Snow was looking slightly put off by the scene.

"Well then," said Emma, "I guess we'll just have to leave you here" she turned to walk away,

"Wait, what?" He asked, a slight panic in his voice, "You can't just leave me, the ogres'll get me"

"Well it appears, Captain, that you've outlived your usefulness" said Regina, her face inches from his, she flashed him a bright smile.

As they began to walk away, Snow caught up to them, "He's right, we can't just leave him here!"

Emma glared at her mother, "He's working for her,"

"You don't know that!"

"Mary Margaret," She started, then she changed her mind, she walked back to Hook, "fine," Snow looked relieved for a second before Emma began to shout. "HEY!" She screamed in the direction of the forest, Regina's eyes widened and Aurora and Mulan stared at each other in panic, "HEY Ogres!" Emma yelled, her hands cupping her mouth.

"Hey, lass!" Hook said, "Stop that,"

"I will when you tell me about Cora's plans" Emma put her hands to her mouth again, ready to shout, when the sound of giant feet thundering in the distance stopped her. She turned and smiled at Hook, "You ready to talk?"

He stared straight ahead, listening intently to the sounds the ogre was making as it approached, he looked at Emma, "Go on, lass, you're not really going to let me die here, are you?"

"She might not, but you know I will," Regina said, appearing behind Emma and giving the pirate a warm smile. He pressed his head against the tree trunk, they began to walk away again, and a deafening roar had them both jumping slightly.

"Fine," Hook said, "Fine, I was working with Cora, she has almost all the ingredients she needs to get to the land without magic, except for one," Emma and Regina had turned back,

"What is she missing?" Regina asked, but Hook raised his hand, indicating he wanted out of his chains. The two women glanced at each other, before another roar, this one much louder than the first had them both scrambling towards the tree. Regina grabbed her dagger and cut the rope tying Hook, and the three of them ran after Snow, Mulan and Aurora.

—-

"I think we lost them," Snow said breathlessly, she leaned over, her hands on her knees as she fought for air. Emma stopped running beside her, letting herself fall to the grassy ground, they had run for half an hour, the ogre thundering behind them.

"Happy now?" Hook asked, he was out of breath too, but he tried to hide it.

"We will be when you tell us what ingredient my mother is missing" Regna told him, her chest rising and falling quickly.

"Yes, alright" he said, "she needs a compass,"

"What for?" Regina asked

"She has the means to open a portal, but once it's open, the compass is needed to guide us to the land without magic"

"How can she open the portal?"

"She has dust, from the magical tree, or whatever that was"

Regina let her head fall back, her dark hair falling over her shoulders, "of course!"

"Where is this compass?" Emma asked, she had sat up and leaned back against her arms,

"About a day's walk from here," Hook said, then he looked around at them, "Well, in better conditions," he admitted.

Snow sighed, "He's right, we need to rest and eat, we won't get much farther otherwise,"

"We need to get the tree dust from my mother," Regina said, and Emma agreed, wondering how the hell they would do that, considering Regina didn't even have her magic back.

"I can help with that," Hook said, and Emma narrowed her eyes. She wasn't prepared to trust this man as far as she could throw him.

"And why would you do that?" Regina asked, apparently following Emma's train of thought,

"Because, all I want is to get to the land without magic, and you three" he gestured towards them, "seem very keen to get there,"

Emma sighed, it wasn't like they had a choice, Hook was their best chance at getting back to Storybrooke. To Henry. Her heart clenched. She nodded. "Fine, let's rest and find something to eat, then we get the compass"

Regina's dark eyes met hers, "are you sure?"

"It's our only option,"

_—-_—-_

Finding food hadn't been as easy as Emma had imagined. However, Snow and Mulan had managed to hunt down a couple of rabbits while Hook and Aurora had built a fire. Regina had skinned the rabbits, she was surprisingly talented, and Emma watched her slim fingers maneuver the dagger, slicing and cutting with ease. She wrinkled her nose at the acrid smell of blood.

"Are you just going to sit there and watch, Miss. Swan?" Regina asked after a while, her voice sharp as her knife.

"Sorry, I'm not sure what to do" Emma said sheepishly, Regina looked over and sighed,

"Get a couple of thin branches and whittle them to a point" she said, "to cook the rabbits" she added at Emma's raised eyebrows.

"Right,"

The rabbits were quickly skewered and roasted over the open flame, the smell of roasting meat (that wasn't chimera) made Emma's mouth salivate with hunger, she felt like she hadn't eaten in days. The rabbits were small however, and didn't provide more than a bite each, the meat hard and chewy.

Once they'd finished eating, they decided to set out again immediately, though the sun was setting, the food had warmed their stomachs and given them renewed vigor. They set off into the thick forest again, Mulan ahead, her torch lit and held high above her head to guide the others. Emma walked slowly, her limbs felt heavy and painful, she would not have considered herself out of shape before, but now, watching her mother's figure walking resolutely ahead, she wondered just how much harder life was in the enchanted forest than in the real missed the modern conveniences the land without magic offered; showers, toilets, 24/7 convenience stores…

Her mother, her mother Snow White, the princess. Her mother was a princess, as evidenced by her having a castle. The thought sent a shiver down her spine, her mother had a castle! What would it have been like to grow up here? In the world she was meant to be in? Would she have been different? Would she have been a princess? A real princess?

Her eyes fell on long dark hair, her eyes slightly narrowed. She wasn't sure of everything that had gone on between Regina and Snow, but she knew enough to know that if it wasn't for the Queen, Emma would have grown up in this world. A place where she would have had a family, people who cared for her and loved her. Of course she also wouldn't have Henry. As always, when she thought of her son, her heart hurt and tears threatened to spill over her lashes.

They had been walking for a long time, and Emma was relieved when Hook turned to them,

"Over there," he said, pointing ahead of them, "we've nearly arrived,"

She hurried ahead, only to stop at the sight before her. The largest tree trunk she had ever seen stood a hundred thousand miles high, disappearing into the clouds above. As they grew closer she realized it was not a simple tree trunk but a vine, no, a beanstalk.

"Jack and the giant beanstalk," She muttered, realization dawning on her.

"Not exactly," Regina said, "It's not like in the stories in your world,"

Your world? It took Emma a moment to remember that Regina had been born here, somehow, out of all of them, the Queen looked the most out of place in the enchanted forest.

"Jack the giant killer," Snow said, they had gotten to the bottom of the beanstalk, it was wide enough that three people could stand around it and not see each other. Emma stared upwards, where it ended in a tiny pinprick in the sky.

"The giant killer?"

"Aye, Jack killed all of the giants and stole their beans, now only one remains, the most fearsome of them all," The captain said,

"And let me guess, he has our compass?" Emma asked,

The pirate nodded gravely, and Emma made her way to the beanstalk, there was no point sitting around waiting and talking, she needed to get up there, get the compass and get home to her son. But Hook's hand stopped her.

"Not so fast, love" he said, "The beanstalk is protected by a magical spell, Cora gave me these wristbands that will enable me to climb up there" he held up two wristbands, virtually identical to the one Regina had on.

"Then give me one," She said, reaching for it, he pulled away, and Regina stepped forward,

"I think I should go with the Captain," She said, "I know this land, and I want to get home as much as you do"

"Absolutely not," Snow said, "I'm sorry but we don't trust either of you" she added, and Emma had to agree, she barely knew the captain, and Regina? She had every incentive to work with her mother and leave Emma and Snow in the enchanted forest.

"I'm going up," She said as Mulan began to propose herself, "he's my son and it's my fault we're here in the first place,"

"Then I'm coming with you," Regina said, her voice hard.

"What and you'll leave me here?" Hook asked,

Neither responded, Snow grabbed the wristbands off of him and handed them off to Emma and Regina.

"Right," Emma said, turning to look at the vine covered beanstalk.

—-

Regina gasped as her hand almost missed a vine, her foot slipping on the slick surface of the beanstalk. She grabbed onto the closest leaf and pulled herself flush with the giant stalk, her heart racing in her chest. She looked up at Emma, a few feet above her, climbing steadily upwards, and picked up her pace, trying her best not to slip again, it was a long way down. Soon enough she was climbing next to Emma, her long blonde hair in a tight bun, her face a mask of concentration, droplets of sweat running down her forehead. The woman had always been lean, but a couple of days of barely eating and she was starting to look malnourished, her muscles bulged as she climbed, Regina found herself transfixed with them for a moment, before she remembered who this woman was. Her nemesis, the one who'd broken her curse, who was taking her son away from her. She hated Emma, with a passion bordering on obsession. It was so easy to fall into obsession for Regina, hadn't she done exactly that with Snow White?

Yet, with Emma, it was different, for one, her son would kill her if she did anything to his birth mother, and second, though Regina didn't like to dwell on the fact, she enjoyed her spars with the woman. She was smart and devious, it had made Regina work that much harder to hurt her, and, for the first time in twenty eight years, she'd felt alive. She tried to ignore the fact that having a mortal enemy made her feel alive. She was also trying to desperately forget the night they'd spent in the castle kitchens, wrapped up around each other, and the smell of Emma's hair, vanilla and leather, mixed in with her own scent… Regina pressed her eyes shut for a moment, trying to stop her wandering mind.

"Hey, you ok?" Emma called out, the wind whipping at them pulling her voice away.

"Fine," Regina growled, through gritted teeth. What did she care?

"We're pretty high up, huh?" Emma asked,

Great, she's making conversation now.

"Yeah," Regina answered, refusing to look down and see just how high up they were.

"Do you think we'll be able to get the tree dust off your mother?"

Regina sighed softly, pulling herself up to another branch, her limbs were beginning to burn, and her hands were on fire. She did not want to talk about her mother. Her mother, who was supposed to be dead. Whose body she had seen lying in her family mausoleum.

"No," She said finally, Emma stopped and stared at her, inclining her head slightly,

"What do you mean no?"

"What I said, my mother is the most powerful sorceress in the world, after the dark one. I don't even have my magic, we don't stand a chance against her. And that captain, he knows how powerful she is. He'll betray us,"

"Then why are we even going up there?" Emma said, her anger bleeding into her words,

"Seriously, why are we doing this?" She asked again, when Regina didn't answer.

"Because we have to!" Regina finally cried, "What other choice do we have? We have to try and get back to Henry!"

"And maybe we'll die on this stupid beanstalk, and all our problems will be over" Regina added,

"Don't say that, Henry needs us"

"Oh, he needs us, does he? Where was that when you were stealing him from me?"

"I wasn't stealing anything! He wanted to break your stupid curse!"

"Yeah, well, you did it. Congratulations" Regina said coldly, pulling herself into the beanstalk as a gust of wind threatened to push her off.

"You really don't care about what he wants, do you?" Said Emma,

"He's a ten year old boy! What he wants doesn't matter!"

Emma was quiet for a long time, they'd nearly gotten halfway up the beanstalk before she spoke again,

"You really are an evil bitch, you know that right?"

Regina said nothing, she'd been called much worse, by much better. She focused on climbing. The rest of the way neither woman spoke a word.

Sorry for the late update! FFN was down friday and I forgot yesterday! I'm hoping to upload the next chapter sooner this week because it was all supposed to be one big chapter but it just got way too long. I hope you like it!