Deals With The Devil

“Hey Emma.”

“Hey kid, what's up?” Emma replied, looking up momentarily from her paperwork to smile at him.

Somehow bounty hunting had seemed far less time consuming, or maybe boredom was making time move more slowly. She'd never had a boring job before so she couldn't draw on experience of how not to fall asleep at your desk. At least she had Henry now. He and his storybook usually had the ability to keep her awake.

“I figured out who Mr Gold is.”

“Oh yeah? Who?” She sat back and looked up eagerly.

Her unusual encounter with Jefferson hadn’t done anything to change her opinion about the significance of Henry’s stories. It was admittedly odd that he, and the girl he believed was his daughter, bore a striking resemblance to the picture in Henry’s book. It was the strangest version of the Mad Hatter story she’d ever read, and she’d thought it curious that he was called Jefferson. However, when she returned home after reading the story and had a stiff drink, she’d realised it was more likely he’d seen Henry’s storybook at some point, seen the resemblance and, being mad, decided that it was him.

She never told Henry about her meeting with Jefferson. It wasn’t worth the argument. Honestly, she worried about her son sometimes. His beliefs didn’t really seem to be doing any harm though, so she had long since decided it was better to wait for him to grow out of it.

“Rumpelstilzchen.”

“The imp who makes gold with a spinning wheel? Huh, you know that actually makes sense,” Emma laughed out loud at the image of the man who threatened everyone, shrunk and bouncing around in straw made of gold.

“It’s not funny Emma.”

“Why?” Emma really didn’t see the serious side, but Henry’s face strongly disagreed with her.

“Emma don’t you remember what I told you about him. He’s different in this book. He’s dangerous!” her son insisted, very sure of himself as usual.

“Okay, okay, he’s dangerous, but you know I can’t arrest him for being in a storybook?”

“I know, I just wanted you to be careful.”

“I’ll be careful, but if you’re right it doesn't make me feel great about still owing him that favour,” she added, immediately regretting reminding Henry of that.

"You still owe him that!? You should never have done that! Making deals with Rumpelstilzchen never turns out good. It's like making a deal with the devil!" her son told her seriously with real fear in his eyes.

“Henry calm down! I made a deal with Mr Gold, who doesn't know who he is right?” she decided to play Henry’s game if it made him feel better.

“Actually, he might,” he said bluntly, looking worried.

“Go on,” Emma moaned, rolling her eyes.

“It's possible his magic was too powerful for the curse to erase his memory, or he made a deal with my mom to make sure he kept his memory. It has to be one of them, because there's the chipped cup you said he was holding after we went out for ice cream. Look."

He opened the very familiar book to a page showing a beautiful girl in a golden dress, kneeling on the floor and holding a chipped cup. The cup was identical to the one she’d seen Mr Gold clutching when she'd come back that day, as though his life had depended on it.

“Who's that?”

“Belle. As in 'Beauty and the Beast',” Henry added.

“So Rumpelstilzchen is the beast?” Emma tried to follow Henry’s train of thought.

“That's right.”

“Well that's disappointing. I was expecting some big monster,” she sighed.

“Believe me,” Henry corrected, “there is no one more dangerous or more evil than Rumpelstilzchen.”

“So what happened to Belle? I suppose she'll be around here some place?” Emma willingly changed the subject back to the girl, beginning to feel a little uncomfortable.

“That's a little complicated.”

“Henry!” They both jumped as they heard Madam Mayor's sharp voice from the station door. “What did I tell you about seeing her!? Did you tell him to come?”

“Lady if he wants to see me, I’m not going to stop him,” Emma retorted defensively. “He showed up about five minutes ago to tell me about school last week,” she lied effortlessly.

"And why should I believe that?" she challenged pointlessly.

"Don't really care but I have a lot of paperwork to do so if you could just, you know, scat. That'd be great.” She turned spitefully back to the papers on her desk as if to ignore her rival.

“Bye Emma,” Henry called over sweetly as his mom dragged him out of the door.

“See ya Henry.” Emma looked up again just once to smile at her son with a wink.

She waited for Regina to close the door before she sat back again and sighed. Her source of amusement abducted by his mother, she had no choice but to go back to organising the shocking filing system that she’d inherited.

“Chief Swan?”

Emma looked up to find the source of the sweet voice. It was Ava, one of the twins she’d united with their father. She looked dubious.

“Ava? What’s wrong?”

“It’s Nicholas…”

“Is he okay?” Emma stood up, hoping Ava wasn’t about to give her a reason to run out of the station.

“The thing is…”

“It’s alright, just tell me what’s wrong.” Emma was still getting used to the tactful part of the job.

“We've been seeing Mr Gold go out into the forest and Nicholas is convinced he's hiding something. We decided to look for what it might be but it got misty and we got separated. I ended up back in town but now I don’t know where he is!” The story poured out of her so fast Emma had to focus to pick up the individual words.

“Right, I’m gonna find your brother, but I need you to go home, tell your dad what happened and sit tight. Everything’s gonna be fine,” Emma explained carefully. “Do you have any idea where you were when you got separated?”

“Near the old mine,” Ava said with certainty.

“Thanks, now go home.”

Ava nodded once and ran out of the station. Emma ran out a few seconds later with a torch, her phone, her radio and her car keys.

The world was silent and peaceful as Emma got out of her bug at the old mine. Health and safety had taken a while to sanction heavy vehicles to work there, what with all those collapses in a single day, so they were only just beginning to pave it. She hoped that Nicholas really was lost in the woods and hadn't gotten hurt by one of the diggers. Thankfully, there was no sign of that kind of tragedy.

A solitary crack from the forest echoed through the empty construction site and Emma turned immediately. It had sounded like a twig being stepped on, but everyone had gone home. Her eyes scoured the trees. She couldn't see anybody.

“Nicholas?”

Only silence replied. Not a good sign, but she tried to bury her worry.

Must be an animal, she thought, heading into the forest and praying she found the kid before it got dark.

***

“Hasn’t your dad explained that you shouldn’t go wandering off the path in the middle of the woods?” Emma tried to sound stern, but her relief came through.

She’d found Nicholas sat against a tree, waiting to be rescued. He’d run into her arms when he’d seen her and she’d instinctively wrapped her arms around him. He still hadn’t let go.

“Yes, but…”

“No buts! You could have been really hurt out here.”

“I'm sorry.”

“It's not me you need to apologize to kid. Your dad is probably worried sick!” He didn’t reply so Emma pulled away from him to take his shoulders. “Don’t worry, he’ll probably just be glad you weren’t…”

She was stopped short and they both screamed when the ground rumbled and fell out from underneath their feet. Emma threw her arms around Nicholas so he'd land on her and not whatever was at the bottom of the hole. Emma's back slammed down onto the new ground and the soil and rocks showered down around them.

“…hurt,” she finished her sentence, looking up into the dust and sky, damning the irony in between a fit of coughs. “You alright kid? Kid?”

He didn't answer, he just stared, dumbstruck at something behind her. Emma slowly turned her head and when her eyes met it, her usually confident expression fell away.

***

Mary-Margaret was getting worried that Emma hadn't called. She usually called when she was going to be home late. She must have forgotten, but then she wasn’t usually the forgetful type. Mary-Margaret drummed her fingers on the kitchen counter and took a sip of her cocoa, but almost spat it out again. She’d forgotten the cinnamon, too busy thinking about Emma.

Why should she even call? I'm not her mother, Mary-Margaret thought, wondering why she'd become so protective.

The phone rang and she leapt up to get it but before she could ask who was calling Emma's frantic voice cut her off.

"Mary-Margaret thank God!"

"Emma? Are you okay?"

"No I'm not. Oh my God I'm really not,” Emma sounded on the verge of a panic attack, not something Mary-Margaret was used to hearing.

"Why what's happening?"

She tried to stay calm. It wouldn’t be any use them both panicking. Emma took a quick breath before speaking again, probably realising that her tone wasn’t doing her roommate a lot of good.

“Nicholas went missing so I was out in the forest looking for him and the ground collapsed underneath us. We're both fine but the thing is…Oh God I must be crazy."

"I'll call the fire department!" she said, getting up to find her mobile so she didn't have to hang up on Emma.

"No don't do that!” Mary-Margaret froze for a moment, unsure of whether or not she’d ignore Emma’s request. “It's err…it's a little more complicated than that. Listen, I need you to bring a rope and make sure you're not followed."

"Emma what's going on!?" Mary-Margaret demanded, bringing out a side of her she’d only seen once, when Jefferson had threatened to shoot Emma.

"Thing is. There's something down here. You'll think I'm crazy. I think I'm crazy,” Emma checked herself.

"Tell me what's down there," Mary-Margaret asked seriously.

Emma hesitated but gave in quickly. “A glass coffin."

"That’s not funny," she replied dryly.

"Do I sound like I’m kidding!? Are you coming or not!?"

"Okay, okay I'm coming, but I think you might have a concussion."

"I really hope I do," Emma added, before Mary-Margaret hung up the phone.

***

Emma held Nicholas tight to her as he started shivering from the cold, and took a long breath of relief when she heard Mary-Margaret’s car. No matter how complicated that glass coffin would make the situation, at least Nicholas would be safe.

"See kid. I told you we'd be okay,” she smiled confidently.

"Emma?" Mary-Margaret called.

"We're down here.”

"Oh my God, you weren’t kidding," she whispered, consumed by the sight of it.

The world disappeared around her and she was pulled into her lost memories, feeling every moment. The pain of losing her parents, the regret for betraying Regina’s confidence as a child, the anger as Regina took her hatred out on her entire kingdom, the joy of meeting David, marrying him and discovering she was pregnant and the agony of losing her beautiful daughter the moment she was born. She felt all of it at once.

“Emma.” Tears fell from Snow’s eyes as she felt the full force of the name, her daughter’s name. “I remember. Emma, it’s all true. I’ll get the rope,” Snow added, quickly shaking herself free of tears. “Regina.”

The Evil Queen herself stood before Snow White, who was wondering how much Regina knew. Helpless in the cave-in, Emma could only listen to what sounded like a truly insane conversation.

“So you remember who you are? Well this is inconvenient,” Regina spoke sarcastically.

“Regina, this has gone far enough. We can’t keep fighting each other like this, it only hurts everyone around us. Think about Henry,” Snow tried to reason, hoping only that she could get her daughter and Nicholas out.

“Henry will be just fine,” Regina retorted. “I raised him myself! He didn’t need Emma or you, and he’ll move on in time.”

“Regina NO!” Snow screamed as her enemy pushed her over the edge.

Emma managed to catch her roommate, who for some reason was now under the impression that they were mother and daughter, to prevent her head slamming into any rocks.

“Are you okay? What the hell is going on!?”

Snow ignored her, having more urgent matters to deal with.

“Regina! Please just let Emma and Nicholas go. I understand why you hate me, but they don’t have to pay for that! Please!”

“Shut up,” Regina ordered maliciously. “I don’t want your understanding, I want your terror. I had to watch Daniel die, so now you have to watch your daughter die. Sorry Nicholas. Wrong place, wrong time,” she added to the crying child in Emma’s arms, with no hint of mercy in her voice. “Goodbye Snow White, Chief Swan.”

“No! REGINA!” Snow screamed, before the sound of a digger engine revved up and her expression changed to one of determination. “Emma, Nicholas, get in the coffin and call for help.”

“Kid, here’s my phone, call for help,” Emma ordered and he started trying numbers.

“Emma listen, you have to…”

“Have you lost your mind!?” Emma yelled, entirely overwhelmed by the situation.

“Don’t argue with me, just get in the coffin! You might still stand a chance.”

“Mary-Margaret…”

“That’s not my name Emma. I wish there was time to explain. Please, you have to do as I say,” she begged, as tears began running from her eyes again, but this time from pain rather than joy. “I love you so much and I can’t stand the thought of you dying, or Nicholas, so please, do as I say.”

“You’ll die.”

“It’s okay,” Snow held her daughter’s face in her hands and gently kissed her forehead. “Please do as I say.”

Finally, Emma moved to get into the glass coffin with Nicholas. Just as Snow pushed the top closed earth crashed down on her, crushing her to the ground. She closed her eyes, ready to die, as she listened to her daughter scream.

***

All was calm and quiet in Mr Gold's shop, though he could sense, as he polished the picture frames behind the glass desk, that elsewhere there was hell. He could also sense that the chaos was about to descend upon him when Henry Mills arrived. Sure enough, just as he looked up, little Henry barged into his shop.

"Careful Henry, you'll break my little bell," he smiled.

"Rumpelstilzchen I wanna make a deal with you," the boy blurted out.

"What a very odd thing to say," Mr Gold grinned widely, unable to resist a little playing.

"My mom is trying to bury Emma, Snow White and Hansel alive, if you help them I can give you vital information about my mom that you really need to know."

"I don't make deals with children," he said, thinking back to the first and only deal he'd ever made with a child, the only deal he’d ever broken.

"You have to accept! Please save them and I'll tell you what you need to know."

"How do you know I need this information?"

"Believe me. You need it."

Mr Gold considered this. Henry seemed determined, and it was viable that he’d know something about his mother that he himself did not. And of course he did need Emma to break the curse, but he still wanted something useful out of saving Snow White and the boy.

"Do we have a deal?"

"We do."

"So save them!" Henry yelled.

Mr Gold calmly put his polishing cloth down on the glass top and clicked his fingers. Emma, Mary-Margaret and Nicholas appeared on the floor in a wisp of purple smoke, looking very confused, except for Snow who was busy coughing up soil.

Mr Gold grinned and leaned over the desk with his eyes fixed upon Henry’s. “My information now Henry, and it had better be worth it.”

"Henry what have you done?" Snow managed to sound authoritative through the coughing, quite unlike the shy teacher he’d grown up knowing, and more like the freedom fighter she used to be.

"I made a deal with him. I'm sorry, she was killing you and I didn't know what else to do."

"Henry, I’m waiting.”

Emma looked around in shock as Mr Gold’s voice took on a musical quality, very unlike the reserved man she’d come to despise. Somehow, this playful tone was even more unnerving.

"My mom lied about Belle's death. She’s keeping her prisoner but I don't know where."

My Gold's smug and amused expression dropped instantly, to be replaced with burning fury.

"That's a lie,” he seethed through his teeth.

"It isn't."

He left his cane standing by the desk, no longer caring for the charade, and strolled easily and quickly over to Emma. Without hesitation, and before she could stop him, he’d picked her up off the floor by her hair and held her there, turning once again to Henry.

"Say it again.”

"Belle is still alive. My mom's keeping her prisoner but I don't know where."

"Is he lying?"

"No," Emma said shortly, straining her voice against the pain on her head.

He dropped her immediately and vanished into a cloud of purple smoke, leaving Emma, Snow and the boy confused on the floor. Henry stood very still, frozen with uncertainty. His mom was in real trouble now, but what was he supposed to do? He couldn’t just let his birth mom, his grandma and his school friend be buried alive and there was no other way to save them.

***

Rumpelstilzchen appeared in a cloud of purple smoke in front of Regina's office door at the town hall. It was nothing for him to unlock the door with a flick of his hand, and stroll through it without once touching it.

Regina turned instantly away from her mirror where she was touching up her hair, ready to go home. The Queen was in a good mood. She’d killed two people she hated, and managed to use her magic to get back to her office in time to have an alibi. It had been almost thirty years since she’d used magic, and she glad she was still good at it. Regina looked at him for a moment.

"No cane today Rumpel? You'll break your cover,” she smiled, calm, confident and oblivious to his fury.

Rumpelstilzchen could quickly feel the reserved Mr Gold slipping away from his mind, as he became gripped by his famed insanity. With no sense of uncertainly he rushed forward, grasped Regina’s hair and slammed her head into the mirror. The Queen barely had time to scream before she fell to the floor in a shower of broken glass, unconscious.

***

Still dazed, Regina’s only consuming feeling was of sharp pain in the side of her head. Her eyes struggled to open in her dizziness and she remained confused about what had happened. The blood drying on the side of her face felt cold and didn’t help with her attempted recollection.

Finally managing to open her eyes, she realised she was tied tightly to her desk chair, which had been brought out into the centre of the room. Rumpelstilzchen was leaning against her desk, taking the first bite from one of her flawless red apples. He was collected, cool and powerful, as usual, but why had he lashed out?

"Good evening dearie," he spoke in his old high-pitched tone.

The Queen flinched. It was odd and frightening to hear that manic voice from the cool and calm exterior of Mr Gold.

“Evening Rumpel, to what do I owe this pleasure?” Regina regained her confidence quickly.

His insanity broke free again in the form of the laugh which had made many beg for mercy. Regina had never been one of them.

“And there I was thinking you were clever. Well, clever enough to hide something from me but stupid enough to think you could get away with it.”

“What are you talking about?” Regina lied very naturally, a skill he’d taught her.

She wasn’t sure how long it would be feasible to lie though. The only reason she could think of why he’d lash out was Belle, but how could he know? Depending on how much he knew, or where the information had come from, Regina thought she might get away with it by pure denial.

She received the answer to that mental query when he put the apple down on the desk beside him and took a knife from his inside jacket pocket, and he was no longer laughing.

“Let me be a little clearer dearie,” he spoke in a deeper, more evil tone. “If you tell me what I want to know, I’ll hurt you. If you don’t tell me what I want to know, I’ll hurt you and then I’ll kill you. Do we understand one another?”

Regina nodded. Denial wasn’t going to work. He was too certain, and too angry.

"Is Belle still alive?"

Her only choice now was honesty, and then to hope for mercy.

“Yes.”

“Good, now we’re making progress. Does she remember?”

“Yes.”

"Where is she?"

"There's a secret ward underneath the hospital,” Regina’s voice shook as she answered what she expected to be last question, knowing she was no longer of any use to him.

"The asylum?"

"Yes. It's the farthest door on the left hand corridor," the Queen whimpered.

Rumpelstilzchen didn’t put the knife away. Instead, he held it comfortably in his hand as he walked casually around her. He put his hands gently on her shoulders from behind.

“You made a very bad decision when you took her from me,” he whispered in Regina’s ear and then immediately plunged the knife into her right shoulder.

Regina screamed as the blade severed her flesh. It was instinct to breathe faster, but every intake of air caused her to move and made agony radiate throughout her torso. She couldn’t help but cry out at the sight of the knife handle sticking out of her shoulder, the entire blade buried under her skin.

“This isn’t over,” Rumpelstilzchen whispered in her ear again, before she sensed him vanishing.