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CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE
ONLY YOU, PT. 2
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TERESA COULD STILL FEEL THE ELECTRICAL SHOCK FLOWING THROUGH HER VEINS AS SHE WOKE UP WITH A GROAN. She was laying on her stomach, but soon pushed herself onto her knees. Hook, who was right next to her, placed a hand on her shoulder.
"You alright there, lass?" he asked her. Teresa nodded in response before they both helped each other rise to their feet, their bodies weak.
"I guess now we know what that groundsman was so afraid of," David said.
Zelena glanced around them, at the cage that which they were being held in, and waved her hand. Her magic didn't work as she had planned. "This isn't like any dungeon I've ever seen. These bars are enchanted. Magic won't get us out of here."
"What about the wand?" David asked from where he is leaning against the bars.
"Do you still have it?"
Zelena began to feel around on her body, and when she pulled out the two pieces of the wand, she raised a brow. "Should I be offended that he didn't frisk me? Not that this is any use to us in here..."
The sound of chains rattling then caught their attention. They looked over at the door, where there appeared to be a man about to walk in.
"Hide it. Someone's coming."
After the man unlocked the door, he walked in. "There you are. The prisoners who attacked my groundsman."
"We didn't attack anyone. This is just a big misunderstanding. We just want to know where we are."
"All you need to know is that you don't want to be here, and that you're the ones who are going to be answering my questions." With each step he took toward them, his shoes clicked against the floor, causing the sound to bounce off the walls. "Like why are you really here?"
When he was in the light, they were able to get a look at him. Like the other man, he had brown hair, only he bore scars on his face, as the other man did not.
Snow sighed. "We just want to go home"
"You must think me so naive. I know you're lying." Teresa raised a brow. "I know who really sent you. So tell me...what does the Dark One want?"
Is the Dark One ever not involved with something, Teresa thought.
"You know the bloody Crocodile?"
The man began stepping toward them, until he was directly in front of the cage that which they were held captive in. "Who are you? What do you really want? Don't lie to me."
Suddenly, he thrust his hand in through the bars and took Hook by the throat, squeezing tight.
"Hook!"
David rushed forward and tried to peel the man's hand away from the gasping pirate, but to no avail. "He's too strong," David grunted.
"Look, we get it," Teresa snapped stepping forward. "You're powerful. But killing him isn't gonna change the truth, which is that we don't work for Rumplestiltskin."
"He's our enemy," Snow added, stepping up next to Teresa. "He's the whole reason we're here. He tried to steal magic from our town to wake the woman he loves." At the mention of the Dark One being in love with someone, he released Hook, who collapsed to the ground with a gasp. "She's...pregnant."
Teresa and David knelt beside the pirate that was breathing back in the air that had previously been strangled from his lungs.
"You expect me to believe that the Dark One has found love?"
"Yes." David stood, joing his wife. "So whatever grudge you have against him, we have nothing to do with it. Let us go, and you won't have to worry about us ever again."
"In my experience, if you really don't want to worry about something, you lock it into a cage...a strong cage, like this one. It's when you unlock the cage...that's when the trouble starts."
With that being said, the man turned swiftly on his heel and left the room, re-locking the door that which he came in.
➳
After searching his father's apartment for where to go next, Henry and Violet went to the nearest public library, where they would find what they needed in the Rare Reading Room.
The librarian led down the hall, until stopping at a pair of double doors, her expression still one of surpise. "You want to go to the Rare Reading Room? Really?" She pushed open the doors, allowing them to walk in. "Well, here we are."
Henry and Violet glanced around the room, which contained so many books. It was the most books Violet has ever seen.
"No one's been back here in ages," she told the two teenagers. "Most folks just come for the Y.A. stuff." Henry chuckled. "Well, good luck with your term paper."
After the woman left, Henry made his way over to one of the the tables, where he removed his backpack and tossed it down. "My dad's journal said he had an appointment here. Whatever he was looking for to destroy magic must be in this room." Henry collected some books before handing them off to Violet, who stood at another table. "Start with these. Read every page and then re-read it. Because whatever my dad was looking for, he never found it."
"And you really think we can?" Violet asked with a raised brow.
"We have to." Violet gave him a nod and opened a book, beginning to read. Henry then searched for a book read for himself. As he searched the shelves, his eyes caught sight of a certain hard covered book. "That's impossible..."
"Henry, w-what did you find?" Violet asked as she closed her hook and walked over to him.
"These books," he said, lifting several books from the shelves and throwing them down on the table. All of them had the same title: Once Upon a Time. "They all look exactly like my Story Book. They're magic."
"What are they doing in New York?"
Henry opened one of them, and his eyes widened in curiosity and confusion as he stared at the brand new characters on the pages. "I've never seen these characters in my book. Look at this. There are so many stories."
"Wait, Henry, you told me that...that all the stories in your book are real."
Henry nodded. "Yeah."
"So maybe...these are all real, too."
➳
David stood at the cage door, pulling at the chains, as Teresa glanced over at Hook, asking, "You alright?'
Hook rubbed at his slightly aching throat. "Aye. Bloody fantastic. Other than that, even in this hellish land, the bloody Crocodile manages to get in my way."
"What the devil do you think he did to that warden?" Zelena said from where she stood in the corner.
"Well, with him, it could be anything," Snow said.
All eyes then turned to David, as he had stomped his foot through the tiny wood bench that was placed in the cell with them. He turned to them, revealing a piece of wood in the shape of a stake, a perfect weapon to use if the man came back.
Teresa's bead whipped to the right as the rattling of chains met her ears again. "Get ready," she hissed. "Someone's coming."
David stood in front of them, placing the stake behind his back, as they all turned to face whomever was entering. "Okay...let's do this."
The figure walked with slow, cautious steps down the short hall before arriving in the light. They furrowed their eyebrows in confusion when they realised it was the same man from the garden, the one that had been frightened of them.
"There you are," he breathed in relief.
"What are you doing here?" Snow asked in surpise.
"What...what does it look like?" He climbed the steps toward their cage with. "I'm here to help you."
"Help us? Last time, you wouldn't even talk to us," Teresa said.
"That's because the Warden was watching me. I had no choice."
"If you really want to help us, prove it...open those bloody bars," Hook snapped.
"I can't. His orderly, Poole, keeps the key with him at all times. I might be able to get the magic you need...if you'll make a promise to me first."
"Tell us. Anything."
"When you leave this place, promise you'll take me with you back to your home," he pleaded.
David narrowed his eyes at the man. "To Storybrooke? Why?"
"Because I wasn't always the gardener here. I-I-I was a doctor, b-before the Warden took control and ruined everything," he stuttered. "He...he made me a prisoner."
"Look, we need magic so I can fix this wand," Zelena said, walking up to the bars as to get in his face.
The man glanced over his shoulder before turning back to face them. "I-I know exactly where to go. The hospital lab, but...I can't take anything without the Warden knowing that it's missing. You'll have to give the pieces to me so I can fix it there. Then I'll bring them back."
When he struck his hand through the bars to take the pieces from Zelena's hand, Teresa stepped in front of the Wicked Witch, blocking his path from them, and David snatched his wrist.
"Please understand, that wand is our only way home. Okay, so why should we trust you?"
"You've met the Warden. Trust me, I want to get away from him as much as you do."
"This is a bad plan," David muttered.
"I couldn't agree more," Teresa said.
"It's the only one we've got."
➳
Henry let out a frustrated groan as he continued to slip through the pages of a book that was being of absolute no help to him. "Now I see why my dad gave up! There's nothing in here about destroying magic. We came all this way for nothing."
"Not for nothing," Violet said, placing a comforting hand on her friends shoulder. "You'll figure it out."
Henry sighed, still not looking up from the book. Her eye then caught something over Henry's shoulder, and it suddenly hit her. "Henry! Henry, I know why your dad never finished his quest."
She rushed passed him and over to a glass case fill of historical objects. "It's because he never visited Camelot. Back in Camelot, my tutor used to show me paintings of the Holy Grail. He said it was the source of all magic. And it looked just like that." Violet said, gesturing toward the chalice in the case.
Henry had joined her side at this point. "But the Grail turned into Excalibur. That can't be it."
"No, the Grail was always silver, but...this looks kind of like it...it...its twin. And if the Grail really was the beginning of all magic...this might be the end of it."
Slowly, a smile pulled onto Henry's face. "Stand back," he said, as he walked over to the table and grabbed one of the heavy Once Upon a Time books.
Violet obliged and stepped back, but her eyebrows knitted together in confusion as she watched him pick up a book. "Why? What are you gonna..."
She got her answer as Henry slammed the book into the glass with closed eyes, as to should the shards from hitting his eyes.
Henry grabbed the chalice before walking over to the table and placing it next to the Olympians crystal, which instantly began to glow a brighr blue color at the Holy Grails presence. The table then began to rumble.
"You were right," Henry said. "This will destroy magic."
"So what do we do now? What...what happens next?"
Henry grabbed the chalice and stuffed it into his bag. "Whatever it is, it's not safe to do here." After zipping up his bag, he grabbed the Olympians crystal and began making his way toward the door with Violet hot on his heels.
Before they could open the door, to was opened with magic, revealing Gold himself. "Hello, Henry."
Henry stook a step back, his arm going out in front of Violet. "Violet, get behind me." Violet did as instructed and stepped behind her friend for protection. Henry glared at his grandfather "You're not getting this. Not without a fight."
"Too bad you're gonna lose." With a wave of his hand, Henry and Violet collapsed on the floor, unconconcious, and Gold claimed the crystal for himself.
➳
Henry woke up moments later to someone shaking his arm. Through blurry vision, he could make out a figure with blonde hair, and for a moment he thought it was Teresa, until they spoke.
"Henry!" It was his mother, Emma. "Are you okay?"
As Emma helped him into his feet, he looked around for Violet, and was relieved to find that she hadn't been harmed or taken by his grandfather.
"What happened to you? To... to both of you?"
"Grandpa," Henry said. "He has the crystal now."
"Henry, what were you thinking? Why would you try to destroy magic?"
Henry stared at his adopted mother in disbelief. "Do you really have to ask me that? You finally had a chance to be happy, and then magic took it away from you, just like with Daniel and Alice."
"Henry, the Evil Queen is never coming back. You don't have to worry about me."
"I don't, because my other mom is doing that for me," Henry snapped, glancing at Emma. "You thought she was gonna go all Evil Queen again."
"I'm sorry. I should have trusted Regina."
"But you didn't!" Henry exclaimed, growing angry. "Because you know how it goes for us. Every time it looks like we could be happy, magic just comes in and wrecks it."
"Is that what you really think?"
"Yeah!" Henry glanced between them, his anger and frustration growing. "In case you both forgot, magic took away my dad, and Teresa's mom, and Robin and Alice." Henry glanced beside him at Violet. "And it took away Violet's mom. And I don't know what I would do if it took away one of you."
Regina stared at him in sadness. "Henry..."
"Don't!" He snapped, the volume of his voice startling both his mothers and Violet. "Just don't."
"Henry, what were you doing down here?" Regina asked.
"Following my dad's trail to figure out how to destroy magic. But we didn't find anything. It was just a waste of time."
Violet glanced at him, her eyebrows knitting together, but she regained her composure and hid her shocked expression so she wouldn't give away Henry's lie.
"So, what do we do now? 'Cause Henry's grandpa has the crystal."
"Well, we have to find him," Regina said.
They walked over to a table, where Regina then placed a map out on the table. "Give me your hand," she said, looking at her son.
"Is this really gonna help find him?" Henry asked, as his mother gently pricked his finger to draw blood, which she then dripped onto the map.
"This will tell us if he's still in New York." She waved her hand over the map, but unlike it had before when she used Emma's blood to find Emma, it didn't work.
"Why isn't it working?" Emma asked.
"Our magic, it's gone." Regina sighed.
"The crystal. Gold must have done something to it."
"What the hell is he doing?"
"He's not gonna give that magic back to anyone. He's gonna keep it all for himself."