Chapter 14
Episode - Into The Deep
Flashback - One month earlier
The Death Eater Euphemia Rowle was in her home. She was caring for a young child, Delphini Lestrange. They were about to have dinner, when suddenly there was a knock at their door.
She got up, went to the front door and opened it. There standing on the threshold wearing his black robes was none other than her master. Lord Voldemort.
She gasped in surprise and then fell to her hands and knees.
"My lord!" she humbled herself in reverence.
"Rise." Voldemort commanded.
She got to her feet. Behind the Dark Lord she saw Nathan McAllister.
"Where is my daughter?" asked Voldemort.
"She's here my Lord."
And went to the kitchen.
Voldemort scrutinized her. The little girl looked up at him. She was barely 5 years old. Voldemort felt no affection towards this child. She was merely a means to an end. A failsafe that he hoped he would never need but he was glad that he had her now. She would serve a grand purpose.
"Why does your face look all funny?" she asked with the boldness that could only come from a child.
Voldemort laughed, amused at the child's boldness.
"An unfortunate side effect of some magic that I used on myself." said the dark lord.
"Delphi," said the Death Eater, "this is your father, Lord Vol" she was about to say his name but was then cut off by the dark lord.
"Tom Riddle." Voldemort interjected.
Euphemia Rowle understood the interpretation.
"How would you like to take a trip on an airplane?" the dark lord asked the child. "A trip to a town that is quite literally a fairy tale?"
The Enchanted Forest
"Did you say that you saw a boy named Henry?" asked Emma with excitement and disbelief.
"That's what he said." said Aurora.
Emma reached into her pocket and pulled out a photograph and showed it to Aurora.
"Is this him? Is this the boy that you saw?"
Aurora had never seen a photograph before, though it's purpose was obvious to her. She took it from Emma and scrutinized the picture for a moment.
"Yes." said Aurora. "Yes, this is the boy I saw in my dream."
"How?" said Emma with disbelief. "How could you dream of someone that you've never met?"
"As I mentioned before." said Mary Margaret. "I don't think that it is a dream. I believe the fiery Red Room is a side effect of anyone who's been through a sleeping curse. I've been through it, Aurora's been through it,"
"And Henry's been through it." said Emma with shame and regret. "Because I wouldn't believe him about the poisoned turnover."
"It's okay Emma." said Mary Margaret comfortingly. "You had no idea."
"And as bad as it is that Henry had to go through it," said Hermione, "and as much as we wish that it hadn't happened. We may be able to use this to our advantage. Obviously Aurora and Henry can communicate with each other over realms."
"I agree." said Emma. "Princess, you're going back to sleep."
Aurora was back in bed trying to relax while she closed her eyes.
"Now, remember to tell Henry to tell David and Ron that the three of us are alive and safe, and that we love them, and miss them, and that we will be home soon." said Emma.
"And tell Henry about Cora and that she has a means to create a portal and that she's trying to get to Storybrooke." said Mary Margaret.
"And tell Henry to tell Harry that Lord Voldemort's wand is a horcrux and that he is still alive." said Hermione.
Aurora was a little flustered but she tried to repeat what they said in order to let them know that she remembered the details.
"Tell Ron and David that you are alive and safe, Cora has a means to create a portal and is trying to get the Storybrooke, and Voldemort's wand is a horcrux and is still alive." Aurora said really fast in one quick breath.
"Down pat." said Mary Margaret.
Hermione took out her wand and held it over Aurora.
"I'm going to help you go under by use of a 'Slumber Spell'."
"I've had enough of sleeping curses, thank you very much." said Aurora in protest.
"No," said Hermione, "The Slumber Spell. It's not a curse, it's a charm. What it will do is merely induce light restful REM sleep, and unlike the sleeping curse you'll be fully aware of yourself being asleep while you're under, and you will have the freedom to wake up at will."
"Very well." said Aurora.
Hermione then began to wave her wand around Aurora's face and chest in a slow circular motion. And within seconds Aurora was sound asleep.
Storybrooke
Harry was on break at his job at Granny's where he was working for free. He was looking over some extra spell books to try and find a way to cross realms. He was sitting in the booth behind Belle who was having lunch with Rumpelstiltskin.
"There you go my dear." said Granny as she placed their plates on the table.
"Thank you Granny. It smells delicious." said Belle courteously with a smile.
"Anything for you my dear." said Granny with a smile.
She then looked at Rumpelstiltskin and with a mean face she said, "I charge extra for your pickles."
After Granny had walked away Rumpelstiltskin said to Belle, "she and I have a complicated relationship."
He handed her a red bottle.
"Try the ketchup." said Rumpelstiltskin as Belle was still learning this world. "Condiments are this world's most powerful magic."
'Seriously,' thought Harry, 'that's your way of talking your way into a girl's heart?'
But it was then that Regina came in and walked over to Rumpelstiltskin.
"Gold, we need to talk."
"In case you haven't noticed, your majesty, we're having lunch."
"Everyone, I think it's best that I close down for the rest of the day." said Granny to the room at large as apparently they were under the impression that some kind of fight was going to break out.
Harry stood to his feet and drew his wand.
"Kreacher."
The house self materialized out of thin air ready to fight at Harry's command.
"That will not be necessary Granny." said the evil queen. "We can all be civil."
"Yeah for now." said Rumpelstiltskin with a tone of irritation to his voice. "Belle, you remember the woman who locked you up for 28 years."
Belle then felt awkward, and then started to get up.
"I should probably go."
"No Belle, stay where you are. Anything that her majesty the queen has to say to me will not be kept a secret from you, and whatever she wants, she won't get."
"What if I told you that the thing that I have to tell you might be the one thing that might actually unite you and I?"
"And what in the world could that be, your majesty?" asked Rumpelstiltskin with a tone of that he didn't believe it for one second.
"My mother Cora."
"What?" asked Rumpelstiltskin, only this time he seemed a little bit more interested. "I thought she was dead."
"So did I, but apparently you taught her well." said Regina. "The fiery Red Room in Henry's dream. Apparently it allows people who were formally under the sleeping curse to communicate over realms. In the fiery red room, Henry just had a conversation with Sleeping Beauty. And she is with them. Hermione, Mary Margaret, and Emma are alive. And I need your help to stop Cora."
"You're certain?" said Harry as he lowered his wand.
"Yes Harry Potter. And another thing, apparently one of the Dark Lord's six horcruxes that you destroyed was not a real horcrux."
"What?" said Harry with disbelief.
"The 6th and final horcrux that Lord Voldemort created. It was his wand. Tell me Harry Potter, on your journey, did you find it and destroy it?"
Harry's face turned to a look of dread at the concept.
"No." said Harry matter of factly with disappointment in his voice. "But it doesn't make sense. I saw into his mind. At no point did he think about his wand being a horcrux."
"That may have been because he believed it to be safe."
"After he died in the Great hall, we searched his robes, we found a few meager personal items, but his wand was not there. He had taken up possession of the Elder wand, believing it would make him invincible."
"So what about Cora?" asked Rumpelstiltskin, apparently having a one-track mind. "Where is she?"
"In the Enchanted Forest. And apparently she's found a way to cross realms. She's coming to Storybrooke."
—-
The Enchanted Forest
The group was walking through the woods. Searching for Cora.
"Are you sure it's not time to go back to sleep?" said Emma. "Henry could be in the Netherworld waiting for you right now."
"No." said Sleeping Beauty. "Henry and I agreed to meet at a specific time to synchronize our arrival in the red room."
It was then that they heard a loud roar.
"Was that an ogre?" asked Hermione.
"No." said Mulan. "It's The Wraith."
And then through the trees flying straight at them was the Grim-Reaper-like demon in tattered black robes.
Hermione raised her wand.
"Expecto Patronum!"
The Shining silver otter burst forth from the end of her wand and tried to drive the creature off, but it had no effect.
"Incendio."
The Wraith was hit by fire and recoiled but it kept coming.
Hermione used her new found powers and conjured a basketball sized Fireball in her hand and threw it at The Wraith hitting it Square in the chest. The Wraith was barely phased.
"Expulso!"
A jet of light hits the Wraith in the chest causing a low yield explosion. The Wraith staggered but it still kept coming.
Mary Margaret fired an arrow while Emma unleashed the volley of bullets.
Everyone scattered as the creature continued to attack but it seemed to focus on Hermione whenever it could.
It was then that a widespread stream of blinding White light shone on the creature from a source. It was a man holding a gnarled wooden staff with a crystal on the end and he wore gray robes, a pointy gray hat, a sword in a scabbard on his waist, and his face covered with a long gray beard.
The creature covered its eyes with its hand and staggered back even further.
"Incendio!" Hermione hit the creature with more fire.
"Demon be gone!" shouted the man in a loud deep voice.
He planted his staff into the ground and a pulse-like shockwave rippled out and hit the creature with an invisible blast of kinetic force.
The Wraith then retreated as fast as it could.
They all turned to The Stranger.
"Thank you." said Mary Margaret. "We are grateful for the assist."
"Only too happy to help a group of travelers." said the old man as he bowed in respect.
"I'm Snow White." said Mary Margaret.
"Then allow me to introduce myself. I am Gandalf."
"Gandalf?" said Emma with skeptical wide eyes.
"Gandalf? As in the wizard Gandalf The Gray?" asked Hermione.
"Why yes." said Gandalf, surprised that they knew him. "You heard of me?"
"Heard of." Emma confirmed, but only just.
"Pardon me for asking, but what are you doing here?" asked Hermione.
"I have traveled across the sea all the way to this land of Mist Haven, from the land of Middle Earth." explained Gandalf. "I've been sent here by the Valar to investigate a Dark Curse that was cast over this land. They suspect it is the mischief of Dark Lord Sauron."
"Well, you can put your mind at ease, the curse that was cast over this land was cast by a sorceress known as Regina the Evil Queen."
"I see." said Gandalf
"Perhaps we should all take a breather." said Emma.
They all then sat down while Hermione built a fire.
Gandalf pulled out a pipe, filled it with some dead dry herbs and then lit it with a small flame from the end of his finger and took a puff.
"Hey Gandalf, I don't suppose you know how to cross realms?" asked Emma.
"Unfortunately not." said Gandalf. "Why do you seek this means to cross realms?"
"We're trying to make our way to another universe. A sort of alternate reality. Our loved ones are there."
"I see." said Gandalf.
"Fortunately there is a way to cross realms, we just don't immediately have it." said Emma.
"We're trying to steal some ashes from an enchanted wardrobe. They are currently in the possession of a powerful sorceress who wants to use them for dark reasons."
"Well, perhaps I will assist you." said Gandalf.
"Almost time for bed Aurora." said Hermione.
Storybrooke
They were in Mr. Gold's pawn shop. Henry was stretched out on a bed. Belle fluffed up his pillow. Regina, missing being a mother for the past couple of weeks, had brought his blanket from his room and smoothed it out over him.
Harry could tell, she was so much more than just the villain that her fairy tale story made her out to be; for this boy, she really was a mother through and through. She wanted him to be safe. She liked making sure he was warm and comfortable.
But Belle exercising a motherly instinct as well, plus David, and Granny, and Ruby, and multiple others, this boy had no shortage of love.
"So," said Henry, "this woman, Cora. She's pretty powerful?"
"Yes," said Mr. Gold, "but not as powerful as I am."
He then turned to Harry and David and Ron.
"Your companions are most likely at her mercy."
"Don't underestimate Hermione. She's the most talented witch in our year, she can stand up to one sorceress."
"Talented as she is with wrist movements and the memorization of and pronunciation of incantations, and competent with fairly simple spells, it's not a matter of talent and competence, it's a matter of the power of the magic that she wields." said Rumpelstiltskin.
"I've seen her stand up to very powerful dark Wizards." said Ron. "Trust me, this Cora, will not want to go head to head with Hermione in a Wizard's duel."
"I hope you're right." said Rumpelstiltskin
Prince Charming sat on the edge of the bed and placed his hands on Henry's shoulders.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked with a tone of parental concern.
"I was born to do this." said Henry fearlessly. "I'm done reading about heroes. I want to be one."
"Trust me Henry." said Harry. "Being a hero is not something that you just decide to do because you want to and then you just go out and do it. Being a hero is something you only do if you have no other choice."
"I agree with Henry." said Rumpelstiltskin. "The danger that he faces in the dream is nothing compared to the danger that we all will be in if this Mission fails."
"I'm not afraid." said Henry.
"Very well then." said Ron.
"You'd make a fine Gryffindor." said Harry admiringly.
Rumpelstiltskin then sat down on the edge of the bed and gently placed his hand on Henry's forehead.
"Once I'm in there, what do I tell Aurora?"
"Just listen to my bedtime story." said Rumpelstiltskin. "Once Upon a Time, Snow White and Prince Charming needed to stun a very powerful magician long enough to lock him up in a dark dungeon."
"That was you." said Henry. "They used Cinderella to trap you with a magic quill."
"Yes indeed." said Rumpelstiltskin. "But what they didn't know is that it wasn't the quill itself, but the ink. A very special kind of ink, harvested from the rarest kind 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. And it's kept in the prison cell where Snow White and Prince Charming kept me. This ink is incredibly powerful, and will immobilize and incapacitate the most powerful magical beings."
"You used it on me and Hermione." said Harry.
"Yes indeed." said Rumpelstiltskin.
The Enchanted Forest
The group was sitting around Aurora while she was asleep. She was twitching. Clearly the dream was horrifying as normal.
It was then that they found themselves in an ambush situation. Dozens of people began to attack them.
Gandalf stood up and drew his sword. Hermione drew her wand. Emma pulled her gun. Mary Margaret loaded an arrow into her bow. Mulan and Phillip drew their swords.
The battle was fierce. The people attacked like zombies. There was no stopping them. Aurora was awoken and they tried to get her to safety.
Gandalf cut down with his sword a few of the people and then blew a few others away with a wave of his staff.
Hermione with a few waves of her wand contained and subdued several people.
Arrows and bullets seemed to have little effect against the people.
In the end they were overwhelmed and Aurora was captured.
They tried to go after her and stop them but they couldn't.
Storybrooke
Henry woke up on his bed in excruciating pain. They pulled back the sleeve of his arm and examined that he was severely burned.
"Did you do it?" asked Harry. "Did you deliver the message?"
"No." said Henry as Mr. Gold waved his hand over the burned skin and healed it. "The fire in the Red Room was roaring! I yelled the instructions at her and she couldn't hear me. And then something happened. She was pulled away by some kind of outside force."
"That is what caused the burns." said Mr. Gold. "The conversation was interrupted by something that forcibly pulled Aurora's soul back to her body."
"Well," said Ron, "the next time you go in we'll just make sure that you get the message to her."
But almost simultaneously both David and Regina protested.
"No way!" Screamed Regina.
"Absolutely not!" Said David in a firm tone.
"We need to deliver the message." said Mr. Gold who apparently agreed with Ron. "And the fiery Red Room is the only way to communicate between realms."
"Well I'm in agreement with Regina!" said David. "Henry is not going back in there! As much as I want my wife back, I will not risk my grandson's safety to do it!"
"I agree with David." said Regina.
This was clearly the first time in history that the evil queen and Prince Charming agreed on anything.
"Well, of course you'll agree with David, your majesty." said Belle in a derogatory tone of sarcasm. "That's a happy convenience for you. Without Emma or Mary Margaret, you are the only mother figure in his life for him to focus his attention on."
"That is not true, I care about the success of this Mission." said Regina.
"Then what do you suggest?" asked Mr. Gold.
"Yeah." said Ron who clearly had tunnel vision for getting Hermione back.
"Someone else." said David. "Someone else will need to meet in the fiery Red Room."
"But who will meet with whom, dearie? asked Mr. Gold. "Aurora has been pulled away. It seems unlikely she'll be back."
"Snow." said David. "She was under the sleeping curse once. She will find a way to get into the dream world and meet with Henry. If, of course Henry was going to go in there."
"And who exactly will meet with Snow White in the fiery Red Room?" asked Mr. Gold.
"One of us." said Ron. "Someone else can go under and go into the fiery Red Room."
"Well you seem to not grasp the circumstances of how it works, dearie." said Mr. Gold. "You must first be under a sleeping curse."
"Then put me under one." said David.
Everyone looked at him in surprise.
"Put me under a sleeping curse. And I can meet in the Red Room and deliver the message."
"You are aware your highness," said Mr. Gold, "that the only way to awaken from a sleeping curse is true loves kiss. And your true love is not here."
"Then it can't be him." said Harry interrupting. "It needs to be someone who can be awoken because their true love is here."
"And which one of us qualifies in that category?" asked Regina.
"Me." said Harry.
"You?" asked Mr. Gold.
"I am thinking practicalities. If the mission fails and the girls don't return, perish the thought, then David wouldn't be able to be woken up. Ron wouldn't be able to woken up. But I could. I just need my fiance to come here and give me a kiss."
"But your fiance isn't here." said Regina.
"She will be soon." said Harry. "Kreacher."
The house elf materialized out of thin air in an instant.
"You summoned me master." said the elf.
"Kreacher, I need you to find Ginny Weasley. Tell her that I'm going to be put under a death-like sleeping curse and that the only way for me to wake up is with true love's kiss. And that I need her to get here as quickly as possible to do that. If she's in the middle of a game when you find her, allow her to finish the game."
"Understood master." said the elf.
The elf then vanished into thin air.
Regina then got to work on making Maleficent's sleeping curse.
"How in the world was this allowed to happen?!" said Phillip angrily.
"We were overwhelmed by a force that apparently couldn't be killed." said Gandalf.
"We got to find her." said Emma.
It was then that a crow came flying along and landed on Mary Margaret's shoulder.
"Wait." said Mary Margaret telling everyone to hold on and wait patiently.
The crow cawed a few times. Then flew off.
"It's a message from Cora." said Mary Margaret.
"You can speak bird?" said Hermione with skepticism.
"Couldn't your friend Harry Potter speak snake?" said Mary Margaret.
"I stand corrected." said Hermione.
The bird said that we have 3 hours to bring Cora the compass or else she will kill Aurora.
Phillip and Mulan immediately drew their swords and threatened the rest of them.
"Give us the compass!" They both demanded.
Emma pulled her gun, Mary Margaret drew an arrow while Hermione readied her wand.
"Wait hold on." said Mary Margaret. "We need try and find a way to rescue Aurora and keep the compass."
"Your mission is futile now without Aurora to be able to communicate with Henry."
"We don't need Aurora to communicate with Henry." said Mary Margaret. "I can communicate with Henry. And get the information from Rumpelstiltskin on how to defeat Cora."
"I thought you said your connection to the red fiery room had been closed off a long time ago." said Mulan.
"It may be possible for me to return there." said Mary Margaret. "All I need to do is to fall into a deep enough sleep that my mental defenses shut down enough to let me into the fiery Red Room where Henry will be waiting."
"How do we put you into a deep enough sleep?"
"Got anymore of that sleeping powder."
"No, we use it all on the giant."
"I got something just as good." said Hermione.
She opened up her beaded handbag and with a wave of her wand out came a bottle with a cork in it.
"Sleeping draft. It'll put you into a very deep sleep but only temporarily. It should work the same way as the sleeping powder."
"Then let's get on it."
With everybody standing guard, Mary Margaret was laying down in her sleeping bag. Hermione, poured a carefully measured amount onto a measuring spoon.
"Bottoms up." said Hermione.
Mary Margaret took the spoon, and downed it like a person taking some really bad tasting cough medicine.
Within seconds she was fast asleep.
Storybrooke
Regina had dipped the spindle of the spinning wheel into a glowing magic potion. Then she handed it to Rumpelstiltskin. He then attached it to the end of his spinning wheel. He then started rotating the wheel that was spinning a string at the end of it.
"We're going to have to do this the old fashioned way." said Mr. Gold. "You see, before the innovation of The Poisoned apple or even the apple turnover that young Henry bit into, sleeping curses were cast by use of pricking the finger with the spindle of a spinning wheel."
"Like Sleeping Beauty's fairy tale story?" asked Harry.
"Yes indeed." said Mr. Gold. "Let's begin."
"So all I have to do is just prick my finger on the end of the spindle?" asked Harry.
"That's it." said Mr. Gold.
Harry was about to put his finger when he hesitated.
"Wait, the last time the sleeping curse was cast, which Henry ate the turnover, he died. More than just fell asleep."
'This sleeping curse is modified." said Regina. "You will not die. You will be put into a very deep sleep and your body will go into a state of suspended animation."
Harry, accepting her explanation, was about to prick his finger again but then again he hesitated.
"Okay, so just be clear, when I fall asleep, I'll wake up in the fiery Red Room?"
"No." said Mr. Gold, clarifying. "The fiery Red Room is for people who have already been awoken from the sleeping curse. You will be in the netherworld, yes, but you will be elsewhere. You, will be in the dream world, yes, but you will need to find your way to the Firey Red Room. Once you're in the dream world, how you do that, is up to you."
It was then that Henry took off his necklace and gave it to Harry potter.
"Wear this." said Henry. "It will allow you to control the dream world once you're in there. It may help you find your way to the red room."
"Thank you Henry." said Harry.
Mr. Gold started spinning the spinning wheel with the string going through the spindle one more time.
Harry reached out and he touched the tip of his finger to the point of the spindle for one second. Then he pulled his finger away.
It was about a second later when he became very sleepy and his eyes very heavy lidded, and then he collapsed.
Ron and David grabbed him by the shoulders before he hit the floor and then laid his head down on the pillow and then stretched his legs out on the bed.
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