"I could've helped. Pretending to be someone else was part of my job." Maya heard past her head phones as she sat upstairs in her bed. She didn't realize anyone was home and she had been working on the last bit of paperwork.
"What are you guys talking about?" Maya asked taking her head phones off and opening her curtain.
"Regina went undercover." Mary Margaret answered.
"Undercover with the new arrivals?" Maya asked looking at them.
"Yes. And she can take care of herself." Mary Margaret said turning back to Emma.
"Okay fine." Emma agreed. "When was she supposed to check in?" She asked with no response. "Mom, Dad? When was Regina supposed to check in?" She restated now a bit more angry.
"An hour ago." David replied with a sigh knowing Emma would get worried.
"Wait I thought they weren't doing anything wrong?" Maya said confused.
"They've resurrected Maleficent." Mary Margaret responded looking to her.
"The dragon?" Maya asked surprised. She didn't think resurrection was even possible. "How do you resurrect the dead?"
"We... don't know, but it's not important. We just know that she's back." David answered looking to them.
Was that not sketchy sounding, Emma thought looking to Maya.
Maybe a little, Maya shrugged looking to her.
"What just happened?" Mary Margaret asked.
"We have to find Regina." Emma stated as she walked towards the door.
"I'll go with you Em." Maya said as she got her papers together and grabbed her phone.
"We'll take the truck." David said as they followed.
Emma kept walking to her car and Emma got in. "Let's check around town starting with town hall." Emma said as she sped off and they started looking.
Emma called Hook to tell him to search around as well and Maya asked Zachariah to search the woods. They had no luck in finding her but they eventually got to Granny's and saw Hook.
"Any luck?" Emma worried as she asked him.
"A burnt table, a lot of empty glasses, and an irate granny." Hook answered as Emma went to walk in.
"She's not in there. Don't worry so much. We don't even know what happened yet." Hook grabbed her hand trying to calm her.
"That's what scares me." Emma replied. "She could be anywhere by now."
"We'll keep looking." Hook smiled to her reassuringly. Emma sighed and Maya got her things out of the car.
"You guys go. I'll keep looking around in the shops." Maya said looking to her. Emma nodded and they drove off. Not long after looking through a few shops David called to tell her they found her and she was doing fine and that they were meeting with her again at the library in an hour.
Maya sighed in relief. She knew they were bad but, she really hoped they were being genuine in the offer to come to town.
She decided to call Zach and tell him the search was off. "Hey we found her. You can stop looking." She said with a exhausting tone.
"That's good. Are you okay?" He asked through the phone.
"Yeah it's just been a rough few days." She responded through the phone.
"So I'm going to assume that means you haven't looked at the ice cream shop sign?" He asked through the phone.
"You hung it up?" She asked as she walked towards it.
"Earlier this morning I got help from Marco." He responded happily.
Maya saw it and smiled. Across the top was a large sign that said Maya's Mix. It had a spoon for the I and a little ice cream cone on the side. "Zach." She said lovingly.
"Do you like it?" He asked.
"I love it." She smiled. "Thank you so much." She said happily.
"Your welcome. I'll come to see you later okay?" He said through the phone.
"Okay. I'll see you then. Love you." She answered happily.
"Love you too." He replied as she hung up and looked at the sign. She went inside and placed down her papers and started putting up the paper signs with the menu on it.
After doing some work she headed to the library. With a blink of her eye she was by the door and she saw Emma walking over with her parents and shook.
"Hey." Emma said as they started to walk in.
"Regina?" Emma asked looking around. "We are here."
"I said we needed to meet covertly and instead you brought the whole charming softball team and their pirate mascot?" Regina said sassily. She sound like she had a rough night.
"We were worried." Mary Margaret replied warily.
"Well worry quickly." Regina retorted. "I can't be seen with you."
"Regina I think this is a bad idea." Emma stated. "This woman, this dragon, she's dangerous, and you don't know the first thing about going undercover."
"I'm a quick a study. And maleficent already told me why they're here. Apparently they are after the author too." She sighed. "I simply want him to change my fate."
"And they want..?" Maya asked.
They want to change the entire balance so villains win and heroes lose." Regina claimed as they all looked to her worried. "They feel the only way to get their happy ending is to destroy yours."
"Do you think they can find the author?" Emma asked looking to them.
"Well they have a lead, and we don't." Regina revealed. "And tonight they want me to help them steal it... whatever it is."
"I'm telling you. These things never end well." Emma warned.
"I understand your concern but I'm in." Regina replied with a small smile.
Emma looked to Mary Margaret who looked down. "Okay well then I'm in too." She said looking to Regina.
"What?" Regina questioned confused.
"How will that work? They know that you are good." Maya wondered looking to her sister.
"Yeah it's way too dangerous." Regina shook her head.
"I said I was a part of operation mongoose. I am a part of it." Emma replied looking to her. "You wanted my help and now you are going to get it no matter what. Whatever she has planned tonight, I'll be there." Regina shook her head. She knew this wasn't a good idea but she also knew she would g be able to convince Emma it was a good idea.
"Fine." Regina replied as they began to make a plan. The rest of them ended up leaving and Maya headed to the beach to take a break. She hadn't gone in a while and she was stressed with everything going on.
"Maya." She heard from behind her. She looked to see Zach.
"Hey." She smiled as he walked over and sat next to her. She leaned her head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arm around her. "Thank you for the sign." She smiled as she stayed on his shoulder.
"Something is bothering you. What is it?" He asked looking at her.
"I just- things have been off lately. It's not just the witches that came into town either." Maya replied as she looked to him.
"What do you mean?" Zachariah questioned.
"My mom and dad. They have been weird lately and I'm not sure why." She responded. "It's been confusing."
"I'm sure they don't mean to worry you. They are just concerned." Zach suggested looking to her.
"You think so?" She asked looking at him.
"I mean they have always been looking out for your well being so I wouldn't doubt it." He smiled.
She smiled back and kissed him on the cheek. "I hope you are right." She said as she put her head back on his shoulder. He leaned his head on hers and they sat there for a while. It was a well needed break.
The next day she went with Zachariah, Emma, Hook, Mary Margaret, and David to go look for Regina.
"I'm sure Pinocchio is fine Emma. Regina will protect him." Mary Margaret assured once again. She had been trying to comfort Emma the whole time.
"I know but I wish I hadn't let her ditch me." Emma complained as they walked.
"Regina just does things on her own. She would've found a way to do it herself otherwise." Maya explained to her sister.
"Swan, you couldn't have known that she would drop the talking device." Hook reassured to her as well.
"Yeah but I let her talk me into thinking kidnapping him was a good idea and that she would let me help. If anything happens to him it's my fault." Emma replied to them.
"The tracks end here. The rain must have washed them away." David observed looking at a print in the ground.
"Would now be a good time for a locator spell?" Hook asked with a smirk.
"J don't think we will need one. Look." Mary Margaret said as they watched a cloud of purple smoke come towards them. It surrounded Mary Margaret and then went away.
"What the hell?" Maya questioned.
"Mary Margaret what happened?" David worried.
"Are you okay?" Emma asked.
"I have to make this quick. I don't have much time." Mary Margaret said but her voice sounded like Regina's.
"What?" Maya asked confused and surprised. Everyone leaned back. She didn't even know that was possible.
"Regina?" David asked calmly.
"Pinocchio' fine. He's back to his old self- well older self." She tilted her head lightly. "But there is something else you need to know. gold is here. Were hold up in his cabin and he's here for more then just the author but he won't tell me why." She spoke quickly. "That means whatever it is- it's bad." Mary Margaret leaned forward and Regina seemed to be gone from her body.
"Are you okay?" David asked holding her up so she didn't fall. She nodded.
"So the dark one's returned?" Hook asked worried.
"Yeah." Emma answered breathily.
"Okay so what does that mean for us? What do we do now?" Maya asked looking to Emma.
"We have to see Belle. She has the dagger still so she can make him leave." Emma replied. They all left for Golds shop where they met up with Belle and explained what was going on.
"So can you give us the dagger?" Emma asked looking to her.
"No, I-I gave it to Killian." She responded confused as they all looked to me.
"I haven't seen the dagger since you took the crocodile to the town line." Killian explained looking to Belle.
"Uh you took it from me last night to hide it so no one could find it." Belle responded confused.
"After the lifetimes I spent searching for that blade I'm pretty sure I'd remember holding it in my hand." He responded looking to her.
"Well then if I didn't give it to you then who did I give it to?" Belle asked frustrated.
"It was Gold. He tricked you." Maya replied sadly.
"He was disguised as Killian." Emma added as she looked to said man. "He's back and so is his power."
"Even when I thought he couldn't deceive me anymore, he found a way." Belle replied defeated.
"We should've put the dagger through his heart when we had the chance." Killian said angrily. He had every reason to be angry since this man practically destroyed his life before he met Emma.
"Then your name would be written across it." Emma explained sensibly.
"It's a small price to pay to ensure the crocodile wouldn't come back again." He replied still angry.
"I know you're angry but we've defeated him before and we can defeat him again." Emma said looking over to the rest.
"The question is how. We don't even know what he's planing." Mary Margaret replied as she thought.
"First we save August." David said looking to Emma.
"You do that. I'll found out the dark ones secret." Killian said looking to them.
"How?" Maya asked her eyebrow raised.
"The sea witch, Ursula." He sighed looking from Maya to Emma. "Remember when I said I had a past with her? Now is the time to use it." He nodded.
"How?" Emma asked curiously.
"By taking a page out of your book Swan. By giving her her happy ending." He replied.
"Can you really do that?" Emma questioned.
"Aye. Because I'm the one who took it in the first place." He replied with a slightly disappointed look before leaving the shop.