Hidden Truths

Arrivals

In the cave nestled in the woods, Yzma and her companions began chanting. The Dark Princess looked over at her mother and Yzma for guidance, Yzma nodded. Violet-Marie took a step back until she was a good five feet from where she had been standing, everyone else following her lead. Their chanting grew in volume as a wolf's howl was heard in the distance, but none of them payed it any mind. As they continued chanting, a grey light began to swirl at their feet, causing the group to move even farther back. 

The light continued to swirl, until it was a column towering over their heads, glowing so much that it almost outshone the full moon floating in the cloudless, star studded abyss above their heads. The smoky light shone its brightest as the group ceased their chanting to let out a cry that pierced the night. As the smoke faded, it was obvious they weren't alone. 

Standing in the centre of the circle was a small pack of lions. "Well now, it's about time!" The main lion proclaimed, sitting down and raising one paw to his temple in mock exasperation. "I was wondering if we should have left the rendezvous point and gone hunting instead!" he turned to the rest of the pride. "Didn't you think so?" The other lions laughed and agreed with their leader. Yzma sighed. "Enough banter, old friend, where is the rest of your crew?" The male lion simple grinned. "They are right here," he said. Out of the shadows, a pack of hyenas came into view, their teeth glinting in the moonlight. "Shenzi," Yzma growled. "Yzma," the female leader replied. Violet-Marie sighed and stepped between the lion and Yzma. "Now now, we have to stick together, so play nice. My dear uncle, why don't you and your esteemed colleagues shift into a shape that may be more manageable?" The lion nodded. "Anything for you my dear," he shifted his gaze towards the rest of the pride. The pride sighed but complied to their leaders decision. 

Soon, standing before the group was a group of beautiful human beings, their chocolate brown skin reflecting the moonlight above them, and the single polished stone in the leader's headdress. "Better?" he asked, smirking at Aimee who had not said a word since they had arrived. "Much," Violet-Marie replied. "Now we wait until morning," Killian said, frowning at their new recruits. "And then?" The leader asked. Violet-Marie grinned wickedly in the dark, with a malicious glint in her eye she responded, "We unleash hell," The laughter of the mismatched group filled the forest for miles, piercing the night and echoing through the woods.

Ruby's POV

Oh my god, I have to tell Snow, oh my god! I ran towards the town, not even bothering to try and be quiet. I willed my feet to go faster as I raced across the uneven ground. Come on, come on! 

I burst into the town square and nearly headed to Emma's house since it's the biggest, until I remembered what had happened. I raced towards the main castle and burst over the drawbridge. I howled through the halls as I ran to Regina's room. "Ah, wolf!" Regina said, stumbling sleepily out of her room. "Oh, it's just you, Ruby, good to see you," I rolled my eyes and nipped at her nightgown. "All right, all right!" She said. "What do you want?" I rolled my eyes again. Regina's mouth dropped open as she realized what I needed. She conjured up my cloak and draped it over my shoulders. "We need to get to Snow!" I gasped, as soon as I was back in a human form. "What's wrong?" Regina asked, instantly alert. "I don't have the energy to do this twice, can we just go and wake them up?" Regina nodded and waved her hand, instantly transporting us to Snow and David's farmhouse. 

"WAKE UP!" Regina yelled, pounding on their door, "WE HAVE TO TALK TO YOU!" I yelled in return. "Oh what the hell," Regina muttered after a few minutes. She waved her hand again and poofed us into the house. "Snow!" I called. I ran into the master bedroom, not finding anyone there. "I found them," Regina muttered, brushing past me. I frowned and followed Regina to the guest room. 

Regina opened the door to the sky-blue room. Emma lay under the light blue bedspread, still sleeping, but I noticed that someone had taken out her harsh hairstyle, so he white hair was loose and spread on the pillow. Then I noticed why Snow and David hadn't answered our call. Snow was curled up on her side, facing Emma with her hand clasped in hers, breathing softly. David lay half on the chair in the corner and half on the bed, Emma's other hand in his. Regina smiled softly at the adorable scene before her. I gasped in mock shock, staring at Regina. She shook her head. "Not a word," she warned, I raised my hands in surrender as Regina whipped out her phone and took a quick picture.

I walked over to the side of the bed and shook Snow's shoulder gently. "Hey, it's just me," I whispered as Snow jerked up. She sighed when she saw Regina and I, then looked down at Emma. "David!" she whispered, shaking him gently. David startle awake, nearly falling out of the chair. Regina stifled a chuckle. "Oh my god, Neal," Snow said, standing up and running to Neal's room. "We'll meet you downstairs," Regina said, smiling. "No need," Snow replied, coming back into the room. "Neal is still asleep," Regina shook her head. "Wow, we were really yelling," I slapped her arm. "They don't need to know that," Snow shook her head and took her place beside Emma again. "So, what did you need to wake us up for?" she asked, yawning. "Yeah, you came howling into my room too," Regina said. "What's up?"

"I was on my run as usual, since you know, full moon and all, and I came across a clearing I hadn't noticed before. In that clearing, was Killian, Yzma, Aimee, and Faith. They were doing some sort of chant or spell or whatever, and then they brought some others, they looked like lions and hyenas, and Faith said that they would 'unleash hell' in the morning. I just figured you would want to know," I finished. Snow closed her eyes for a moment. "Oh what I wouldn't give to have Emma back with us," she muttered. "David?" she asked. "We have to do something," he said. Regina nodded. "This can't be good," 

Emma's POV

"Nothing! Absolutely nothing!" I yelled, swiping the books off of the table in front of me. "Woah!" Faith said. "Are you alright?" "No, I'm not, I just want to get out of this damn limbo!" "Ha! You used my word!" I glared at the young girl. "How are you so chill about this?" I asked. Faith shrugged. "If I'm stuck here, I deserve it," she said with a shrug. "I know that you want to leave, but I've done so many terrible things in my life, and curses are supposed to put you somewhere terrible, right? So if I'm here, I'm stuck, and I guess this is my ending, my place," she finished. "I'll help you continue to research, but I'm okay with living out my days here, I can't hurt anyone else, if you are able to leave, I won't be going with you," 

I sat down in a chair and put my head in my hands. What if she's right, what if this is the price I have to pay, what if I never get home?

Oof, poor Emma! Is Faith right? You will have to see! 
I'm actually really excited for the upcoming chapters because my plans are finally coming together! *cue stroking a cat and grinning maliciously* No actually, I'm not that mean, but these new villains, do you recognize them? are some of my favorite villains of all time, so I'm really excited to write them! See you later!

~Val