Prologue
Portal

For the second time third time that night, the gateway came to life.

As the dark magic poured through the carved markings on the stone slab on the floor inside the barn, the completion of the sigil prompted the appearance of the fiery vortex from earlier in the day. As the portal opened, like an eye blinking once, a column of flame exploded outwards, consuming the barn in a fireball that expanded outwards. The structure disintegrated and as the energy spread out in a dome that laid waste to the surrounding trees and grass.

The blast, however, devastating was somewhat localised, destroying only the terrain in the immediate area. The fireball spread out and flattened everything for half a mile out and then it paused. The fury of the discharge evaporated like a gust of wind going as far it could before its breath gave out. The amber glow that had illuminated the night diminished and the cool twilight settled over the landscape and attempted to soothe the burnt land.

Only the stone slab remained and the man that stood on it swept his gaze over the stars and recognised some of the constellations but not all. He stood over six feet tall, with intense blue eyes and long dark hair that was pulled back and held together with a clasp. He was dressed in armour, intricately designed and the helmet was ornate but protected his face well enough to take the blow from a sword. His own weapon, Narthail sat in its scabbard on his hip. To any who saw him, they would have found him handsome, regal even. He exuded power though whether it was good or bad, only those under his command could say for certain.

 This world had changed but this was his world. Long ago when Arda was created, magic had been part of its design. Why this was not so now, he could not say. He only knew that he had given himself an escape. He was the greatest sorcerer of his time, a child created by Eru himself and there was not any magic known to exist that he could not in some way use to his own advantage. There was always the possibility that the One Ring could be destroyed. He knew that even when he created it. One simply did not pour all of one’s power into an object and then allow any fool to simply destroy it without some precautions.

No, he had considered the possibility and the spell he placed upon it had ensured that should the One Ring ever enter Mount Doom without him, it would be spirited to a distant time beyond the reach of his enemies. To them, they would think he was destroyed too but he, in fact, was taken to the same realm as his ring, given a flesh blood form so that he could find it again.

 And when he took possession of the One Ring, Arda’s destiny would be rewritten when he returned home.

 Back to Middle Earth.

Chapter One
The Morning After

Someone was knocking at her front door.

Go away, she thought, buried under her pillow.

The knocking continued and Regina Mills, current Mayor of Storybrooke, wondered if it would be such a bad thing if she slipped into Evil Queen mode and did some honest to God smiting. Why couldn’t they leave her alone? Wasn’t it bad enough that she had her heart broken in front of the entire town? Now they wouldn’t even let her suffer her humiliation in peace?

Even now, it hurt to remember how happy Robin had been to see his wife and as soon as he’d seen her, he’d forgotten Regina was standing there watching the whole thing. It hadn’t even registered when she walked out of the place. He didn’t come after, didn’t try to apologise or explain. She wanted to hate him, wanted to scream at him but in the cold light of day, she knew she couldn’t blame him either. If Daniel came through the door, Regina couldn’t be sure how she’d react. All this was just pure bad luck. 

The knocking continued and Regina uttered a low growl of frustration before flinging her pillow at the bedroom door. Dropping her head down on her remaining pillow, she slammed her hand on the mattress before giving in to the incessant noise and getting out of bed. Grabbing the silk robe hanging on the bed frame, Regina stormed down the sweeping staircase, telling herself that whoever it was had better have a good reason for this intrusion or look forward to living life as a cockroach. 

“What?” She demanded angrily when she swung the door open and found herself staring at Robin. 

Just perfect, Regina thought. Why was he here? Did he need to see that her eyes were puffy from crying all night? That she had lain in bed because she was moping? Why did he need to be here now? Couldn’t he leave her be to wallow in her own misery? 

“Can we talk?” His expression was one of concern and it was not lost upon the former man of Loxley that she’d been crying. His heart shrivelled up in his chest from anguish. Last night, he’d been so overjoyed to see Marian, he hadn’t even thought of Regina, hadn’t realised what it must have been like for her to see them together. When he did remember her, it was like a splash of cold water on his face and he felt like the worst scum there was. 

“No,” she said pointedly. “Shouldn’t you be with your wife?” 

“Regina please,” he moved to halt the door when she attempted to close it on him. “Let me explain. I’m sorry about last night. Marian showing up suddenly, I didn’t think and I behaved badly, I know that...” 

“There’s nothing to explain,” Regina said coldly, using all the strength she could muster to not start crying again. She’d really cared for him, really believed that he’d be the one to share her heart. What a fool she’d been. “Your wife is back and I’m happy for you but it's over. You know that and so do I.”

And there it was, the irrefutable truth to which he had no argument. He loved Marian, having her back was like a dream come true but he wasn’t blind to what he’d felt for Regina. That hadn’t been an apparition. He’d cared for her a great deal and he’d enjoyed unlocking the person she was beneath all that rage and magic. It stung knowing what Marian’s return was doing to her, to them. 

“I’m sorry Regina,” he finally said. “I never meant to hurt you but Marian...” 

“I know,” she cut him off before he could say anything further. “Its okay Robin, I understand.”

But it wasn’t okay, not with him and not with her. Unfortunately, as she closed the door, there was nothing Robin could do to make it better for her and knowing that only made it worse.

*******

For the tenth time that morning, David glanced at the door to Granny’s looking to see if Emma was in sight.

She’d taken off the evening before, following the fallout with Regina, with Hook in tow asking him and Snow to take Henry home and he hadn’t seen her since. He told himself for the hundredth time that he was being stupid. Emma was an adult, she’d had a child for God sake, she was entitled to spend her nights with whomever she pleased and frankly, after last night, perhaps she needed it. But he was still her father and the fact that she hadn’t come home didn’t so much as worry him, as it made him want to grab Hook by his scruffy neck and march the both of them to a church.

“Grandpa,” Henry asked, “are you okay?”

David blinked and remembered Henry was sitting across him having breakfast so that his grandfather would take him to school. 

“Yeah,” he said quickly, covering his discomfiture. “I’m fine. Why?” 

“You seem kind of distracted,” Henry pointed out as David raised his coffee to his lips. “Are you upset that Emma’s having a sleepover with Captain Hook?” 

David almost did a spit take.

“What?” He stared at his grandson. “What makes you think that they’re having a sleepover?” He stuttered. 

Henry shrugged, giving his grandfather that look of impatience that only fourteen-year-olds who knew everything could do, “I know she likes him and they left together. I guessed that they were having a sleepover. Isn’t that what adults do?”

David stared at Henry, wondering if the Emma had given Henry the talk. Thanks to the curse, he and Snow had never given Emma the talk, although David was secretly grateful for that. However, now that their second child was a boy, he supposed he was going to have to deliver it at some point. Still, Henry’s question made him decidedly uncomfortable and he wondered if he should broach the subject with his grandson since his father was gone and no boy wanted to get the talk from their mother. Ever.

“Relax grandpa,” Henry winked, perfectly aware that his grandfather was having a moment. He knew about the birds and the bees by now. They’d learned about it in school and while he didn’t know all the details, he knew his mother liked Killian which was a relief since Henry liked him too. Still, it was funny to see his grandpa squirm. “You don’t have to explain.”

“Oh thank God,” David said with obvious relief when suddenly, his eyes drifted out the window and he saw a man walking down the middle of the street looking lost and dazed, particularly when he was wearing armour. “What the hell....”

David jumped out of his seat and hurried outside, noticing the man was drawing attention to himself. As a Prince of the kingdom, he’d thought he’d seen the armour of most of the nations in their land but what this man was wearing, was completely new to him. It was ornate, the craftsmanship exquisite and made the wearer appeared graceful and yet still formidable.

"Where am I?” The man spoke in perfect English as all who came from their land tended to do. “What is this place? How have I come to be here? Am I dead, is this abyss?” 

A car drove past him and he jumped, totally unnerved by the speeding vehicle even though it continued on its way, oblivious to him. 

“It's okay,” David said quickly, trying to calm the man and diffuse the situation. He could see people peering through their windows and those who were on the street, had stopped to look. Strangers didn’t come to Storybrooke and when they did it was usually by magical means and never ended well for anyone. Still, this new arrival appeared more bewildered and frightened than dangerous. “You’re safe. Can you tell me how you got here?” 

The man looked at him, clearly anxious. “I..I...woke up in the woods last night and all my company were gone. I walked until I saw this dark road and then I followed it here. Please Sir, tell me where I am.” 

“You’re in Storybrooke,” David tried to explain, gesturing the man to step off the street and on to the sidewalk. He looked like some kind of knight if the armour and the sword were any indications. However, the design was nothing David recognised. “I think you’ve been brought here because of a curse. Tell me what land do you come from?” 

“I am a Ranger of the North. I served the King of Gondor.” The man explained. 

That made utterly no sense to David because he knew of no kingdom with that name and wondered if Snow might recognise it. She had a better education than him as a princess, she might know of distant lands beyond their own. Then again, he may not have come from their land at all. Hadn’t it been proven that the portals lead to other realms, Wonderland, Neverland and Agrabah to name a few, and now this strange place the man was describing? “What’s your name?” He asked. 

“I am Stephen,” he answered. “Can you tell me where I am?” He asked again as the two men stepped onto the sidewalk. 

David winced. This man had no exposure to the curse at all and worse yet, he was from no land that David recognised. How to explain that he’d been transported to a land without magic, that there was no way to get home and he’d never see any of his loved ones again if he had them.

“Its a little difficult to explain,” David said and decided they needed either Regina or Rumpelstilskin to understand how this man had arrived in Storybrooke. Emma and Hook had closed Zelena’s portal when they’d come through. “Why don’t you come with me and I’ll take you somewhere we can talk and get you some food. You walked all the way here from the woods?” He asked, grateful the man hadn’t suffered exposure of some kind in the cold Maine night. David had to admit the one thing he missed when they returned to the Enchanted Forest, other than Emma and Henry, of course, was his pick up.

“I will come with you,” Stephen finally agreed and reached for the helmet on his head. He removed it as the two men walked towards the diner, with Stephen looking around him, very aware of the attention he was garnering. His audience was obviously making him self conscious.

After what happened with Zelena, David didn’t want to give people another reason to worry. Still, as he observed the man, David was struck by how different he appeared from the people of their land. Where the hell was this guy from?

****** 

“Oh my God,” Emma Swan groaned after she opened her eyes. 

“I hear my name being called...” Killian Jones muttered, his face buried in her golden hair as they spooned beneath a tangle of sheets on his bunk bed. She couldn’t see the satisfied smile that stole across his lips as he recalled how often she’d used that very same phrase during their lovemaking the night before.

“Ego much?” She turned her head slightly but not enough to move out of his embrace. She could feel him breathing on the back of her neck, his arm wrapped possessively around her waist as they lay there in his bed. The sun was pouring through the porthole, allowing the dust to do a glittering dance for them. “It's my head, pirate. All that rum.”

“Hair of the dog, Luv. Hair of the dog,” he said making no effort to move.

“I’m not drinking again,” she grumbled but didn’t want to move from his embrace. They’d spent most of the night screwing like rabbits and Emma had to admit, it had been a long time since she’d had a marathon session of sex so she allowed herself to really enjoy it. It seemed like the sweetest conclusion to the pent up tensions that had been building between her and Killian since they strayed into each other’s orbit.

My boyfriend is Captain Hook, she thought absurdly. Didn’t see that one coming. Ever. 

She had no idea how any of this was going to play once they left this boat but Emma knew that he loved her, he’d said it for the first time and she was smart enough to recognise that it was more than just the product of great sex. It had come from the heart. So in the spirit of her promise to stop running, Emma decided that she’d see where this went because inside, she knew she may love him too. However Emma being Emma, it was going to take a bit of time for her to admit it.

“Well is there anything I can do to make you feel better?” he nuzzled her hair, relishing the scent not to mention the heavy aroma of sex still in the air.

“Maybe,” she rolled around and found herself facing him. He was less awake than she but he opened his eyes when she turned around and repositioned his arm over her once she was settled.

“Maybe?” He raised a brow. “I don’t know if I have it in me, Swan, I dare say you’ve worn me out. Been a while has it?”

“Real funny,” she snorted and then started sliding down the bed. She knew just how to wipe that smug smile off his face.

Killian lifted his head in interest to see where she’d gone and had only a second to process before he felt something warm wake him up most delightfully. Letting out a wistful sigh as a shudder of pleasure ran through him, he spoke with a decidedly contrite tone, “I stand corrected.”

******

An hour later, they were walking to the diner, following two sessions of morning sex, one in bed and the other in what passed for his shower. Even though Killian tried to convince her to stay in bed all day with him, Emma knew that reality beckoned and as lovely as the night and the morning had been, she had to get back to her responsibilities. Still, being with him was nice and he’d taken away for a night at least, her guilt at what she’d done to Regina. 

“You think I should go over to Regina’s and try to apologise again?” Emma asked, walking towards Granny’s, his hand in hers.

Somehow Killian didn’t think Regina was the forgiving type. This was the woman who had banished an entire kingdom to a new land because of revenge. Not to mention that for the second time in her life, true love had been taken from her again. “I don’t know Luv,” he answered honestly, “I think you should give her some distance. She’s probably still rather upset at you.” 

“Yeah but we can’t leave her alone,” Emma protested. They’d made progress in their relationship and even though they weren’t friends, they were allies and they shared an equally fierce love for Henry, Emma couldn’t stand to let Regina suffer alone. “I mean maybe what she needs is a bottle of wine, couple of quarts of Häagen-Dazs and a Sex in the City marathon. I don’t know...” 

The wine he got, everything else was complete gibberish to him. “Look Luv,” he said seriously, “she’s mighty pissed at you and I’d strongly advise you give her a day or two to deal with this before attempting any strange female bonding rituals. If you want to make her feel better, perhaps get the lad to go see how she is. He’s probably the only one who can talk to her right now.”

He had a point there, she decided although Emma didn’t relish telling Henry the full story either. Henry had been so excited that his mom was dating Robin Hood. How could Emma tell him that she brought Maid Marian back to screw all that up? This isn’t about me, Emma told herself resolutely, this is about helping Regina. Nothing would make Regina happier than to have Henry spend some time with her. If that’s what it took, then so be it. Emma would talk to the kid when she saw him next.

“Okay,” she shrugged “that might be a good idea.” She admitted giving him a sly smile. 

“I do have them you know,” he said feigning mock hut as they approached the diner. “Not just a pretty face and an extraordinary lover.” 

“Extraordinary!” Emma exclaimed, unable to believe the stones on the guy and then again, she’d experienced them first hand so she couldn’t completely discount his statement. “Try to get over yourself,” she said laughing as she opened the door to the diner.

Stepping through, she knew immediately something was up. For starters, it was unusually quiet and everyone appeared to be focussed on the second thing she noticed; David seated in a booth with a man that she had never seen before. He was dressed right out the Middle Ages, with flashy armour and looking a little like that Magneto guy from the last X-men movie. She was sure she’d never seen him in Storybrooke before, even during the original curse. He was a stranger and strangers who looked like him did not just wander into Storybrooke.

“Emma!” Henry called out and slid out of his seat next to David to meet her. “You got here just in time.”

David looked over his shoulder at his daughter’s arrival and narrowed his eyes when he saw that she was still wearing the same clothes she’d worn when she left with Hook the night before. Shifting his gaze towards the pirate, he wasn’t sure how to react and saw Hook catching the look and realising exactly what was on David’s mind. The pirate made an attempt to appear nonchalant, instead of looking like someone who got to fourth base with his daughter.

“What’s going on?” Emma asked, oblivious to the signals being exchanged by her father and Killian. “Hello,” she said to the stranger who was prodding at his scrambled eggs with a mixture of puzzlement and caution.

“Hello,” he raised his eyes to her and studied her momentarily before returning to his food.

 “This is Stephen,” David introduced them, “Stephen this is Emma, my daughter and Hook,” he paused looking at Hook, and decided against using the phrase ‘pirate scumbag whose taking advantage of my daughter’ to describe his relationship to them. “He’s a friend of the family.” 

“Close friends,” Killian couldn’t resist, patting David on the back.

“Excuse us for a minute,” Emma said to Stephen and swatted Killian on the shoulder as they stepped away from the table. She gestured at David to follow. Henry remained behind in the booth, trying to be helpful by occupying their guest while the grown-ups talked. Giving her son a grateful wink, Emma waited by the counter for the two men to join her. 

“Who is he?” She asked as soon as they were out of earshot of the man. “How did he get here?’

“I don’t know,” David answered quickly, keeping his voice down. “He says he woke up in the woods and followed the road into town. He has no idea about the curse, about where he is and the land he comes from, I’ve never heard of it. Ever.”

“What land?” Killian asked. “I’ve sailed a fair distance, I might have come across it.”

“Middle Earth,” David answered, “specifically from a kingdom called Gondor.”

“Have you heard of it, Killian?” Emma looked at Killian who was rubbing his chin, his brow furrowed in concentration.

“Of the top of my head, I’d have to say no. I’ve never heard of it before.” He tilted his head and studied the man closely. Henry had managed to coax Stephen into trying his food who was now devouring the meal rather ravenously.

 “I hate to ask this but could he have come through the portal?” Emma asked, remembering what Regina had said about what else might have come through it when she and Killian had returned the night before. 

“I think he could have,” David answered, willing to admit the possibility that he’d already been entertaining himself. “He doesn’t know anything about our land. I mean at the very least, he would know about our kingdoms, even if he didn’t know about the Curse.” 

“But how?” Killian declared. “The only people who were there when the portal opened was us and the Crocodile and we know he didn’t come back.” 

“Maybe this is part of Zelana’s time portal,” Emma suggested. “Maybe he came from a different time in the kingdom.” 

“It doesn’t make sense though,” Killian pointed out. “To get anywhere in the portal, you have to want to get somewhere. You took us back to your parent’s first meeting because that’s was what was in your head. This poor soul here would have had to have thought about this place to be brought here.”

“You’re right...” Emma frowned. 

“Of course I am, remember pretty and...”

“ Don’t,” Emma silenced him with a glare. David did not need to hear about Killian’s extraordinary skills.

Killian flashed her a grin that made David want to march the jerk to a church just to teach him a lesson. Forcing himself to remember that there was a bigger problem at hand than his daughter’s choice in suitors, David decided to go with the most logical suggestion. “We need either Gold or Regina to explain this. Why don’t you and Hook go find Gold and I’ll take Regina.” 

Emma sighed, astute enough to know why he had made the division. “Good idea. Dad, take Henry with you. She’ll be more inclined to listen if he’s there.”

David nodded and returned to the table as Killian followed Emma out. Only when they were out the door did he speak. “I don’t know how good an idea it is for me to show up on the Crocodile’s doorstep the day after his wedding.” 

Emma gave him a look and said, “Just don’t make a pass at his wife.

Chapter Two
Welcome to Storybrooke

Knock. Knock. Knock.

What the hell? This again? Regina lifted her head from her pillow and glared in the direction of the window that was allowing the offending sound into her bedroom. She knew she ought to get up. The position of the sun gave away what time it was and that damned knocking was not stopping. She contemplated using magic to toss a bucket of water over her front stoop so that it would chase away her intruder who was most likely Robin trying to apologise some more. Of course, you didn’t use white magic for that sort of thing.

So for the second time that morning, Regina grabbed her robe and swung her legs off her bed to go answer the door. If it was Robin down there, she was going to turn him into some kind of animal. Something that would squish underfoot. Stomping down the stairs, Regina’s anger gave away to fear that it really was Robin pounding on her door and if it was, how could she deal with seeing him again? This morning, she had retreated to bed after his visit and sobbed fresh tears at the unfair turn her life had taken, again. Didn’t he realise she was trying to do the right thing? That she didn’t want to succumb to anger and hatred? That something like this could send her straight back to dark magic? 

“GO BACK TO YOUR WIFE!” She snarled when she swung the door open.

“Mom?” Henry stared at her.

It was perhaps the only time that Regina wasn’t delighted to see her son standing there on her stoop. In fact, she was rather dismayed that he had seen her this way Regina shot David a look of pure ice as he stood behind Henry, grimacing as if he was in physical pain over the whole scene. He wished, Regina thought darkly.

“Henry,” Regina softened immediately, unable to ever show him anger even if his grandfather was an idiot. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m sorry to bother you Regina but we need your help,” David spoke up for Henry, trying to get past the awkwardness of the situation.

However, Henry was having none of that yet. Yes, this was the Evil Queen and yes, he’d brought Emma here to Storybrooke because she was his mother but Regina was a mom and she always would be. David had explained that Robin’s wife Marian had come back to Storybrooke with Emma and because of that he and Regina couldn’t be together anymore. Henry ached to hear this because he’d seen how happy she was with the famous outlaw and now seeing her standing here, told him how equally hurt she was.

“I wanted to see if you’re okay mom,” Henry said coming to her and opening his arms to give her a hug.

“Oh, Henry,” Regina’s voice choked up with emotion as she accepted the embrace and knew that whatever pain she was feeling, whatever effort she was making to hold back her anger, it was worth it for this precious boy who loved her despite her flaws.

“I’m sorry mom,” he softly. “I wish you weren’t sad.”

It didn’t lessen the pain at all but it certainly helped to have him near. “Thank you, Henry,” she said managing a smile. Straightening up after she let go of him, she noticed that he was still holding her hand like he was a little boy not like an almost fourteen-year-old teenager. She couldn't have loved him more for that.

“Alright,” Regina exhaled, dispelling her hostility before she turned her attention to David, her free hand pulling her robe more modestly around her body. “What’s happened?”

“We’re not sure,” David let out a sigh, grateful that she hadn’t decided to react violently. “Someone’s arrived in town from a land I’ve never heard of before. He doesn’t know anything about the curse or the Enchanted Forest and he doesn’t describe coming through a portal. We thought that maybe you and Gold might be able to figure it out.”

That was concerning. After Emma and Hook had returned to Storybrooke, bringing Marian, she thought with gritted teeth, nothing else should have come through. True, she had accused Emma of bringing something back as a consequence of what she’d done but those words were said in anger, not because Regina actually believed it. It seemed that once again, fate was proving that anything that she had to say was something to be dismissed as wishful thinking. 

“Where is he?” She asked, loathed to leave home right now but she was still the Mayor of Storybrooke and she'd better go see to this sooner rather than later. After the whole mess with Zelena, she wanted some peace and quiet so that she could resume her brooding. 

“At Granny’s diner,” David answered promptly, thinking it was a good sign that she appeared willing to help. Emma’s call to bring Henry along was a good idea, he thought silently. 

“I’ll meet you there,” she retorted. 

Henry hesitated for a moment, glancing at his mom before turning to his grandfather “Grandpa, can I stay with mom? She can drop me off at school before she meets you at the diner.” He suggested, knowing full well she’d like that and that David wouldn't refuse. His mom needed him right now and he knew instinctively that he was the only person who could make her feel better. 

“Sure,” David replied with a nod, guessing Henry's motivations and was secretly proud at the boy's insight. Besides, anything that put Regina in a better mood before she fronted at Granny’s was a good thing. “I’ll see you there,” he said before heading off. 

Pleasantly surprised at the thought of Henry staying behind for a bit, Regina headed back to the house and looked down at Henry and asked, “If I didn’t know any better, I would say you were handling me,” she smiled, ruffling his hair. 

“Maybe a little,” Henry smirked following her inside. 

******* 

“Luv, maybe on second thought this isn’t such a good idea,” Killian said as they walked towards the landing of Rumplestilskin’s American style house a short time after leaving the diner. 

“Don’t be such a wuss,” Emma retorted, aware that after meeting the version of the Dark One that did not remember he had reached an understanding with Captain Hook, Killian was a little nervous about invading the man’s home, especially the day after his wedding. 

“I am not afraid of the Crocodile,” Killian insisted with dignity as she led the way up the stairs, somewhat offended by the suggestion. "Cautious maybe. I’m just saying that it’s probably not the best time to interrupt a man, you know when he’s honeymooning with his new bride.” 

“I know,” Emma agreed, remembering Belle in this equation. With all the stuff the poor girl had to go through with Gold, thinking he was dead and then watching under the power of Zelena, she deserved to have a happy ending or at least a good morning after. Oh man, Emma winced as the visual flashed in her head immediately after she went there and she automatically blamed Killian because it was the memory of great sex the night before that had sent her there. 

“But this is serious," she insisted a moment later, "I mean if that guy came out of the portal, we could be looking at a whole other evil something coming to kick our ass.” 

“Alright, alright,” he threw up his hands in defeat, guessing that there was no convincing her. “I shall say no more and stand clear of the door but if he gets mad, I did warn you." He winked. 

Emma rolled her eyes and walked up to Gold’s front door before retorting, “wuss.” 

Killian opened his mouth to defend his honour but she cut him off by rapping on the door, hoping that she wasn’t interrupting anything...indelicate. Suddenly the visual flashed in her mind again of the Dark one and Belle in flagrante delicto appeared in her mind and Emma made a face. Great, now she was going to need to have her eyes put out.

When a few minutes passed and it looked like no one was coming to the door, Emma glanced at Killian who had decided to wait out on the front steps, only to see him wearing that smug look of 'I told you so' that made her wanted to deck him or screw him into the middle of next week. They had a complicated relationship. 

It was Killian who finally made the move to leave, springing to his feet, “Well it looks like they’re not receiving callers, let’s push off shall we?” 

Emma frowned, not wanting to give up and was about to knock again when the door swung open and appearing at the door was Belle. She had morning-after hair and was wearing a robe, Emma was convinced belong to Gold. Furthermore, it was fairly obvious that Belle was naked under there. Killian's words returned to haunt her and the words in flagrante delicto flashed in her thoughts again. Fortunately, Belle didn't seem upset by the intrusion. If anything, she appeared more surprised than upset to see Emma and craned her neck to see past the saviour’s shoulder to note Killian’s presence as well. 

“Emma? What are you doing here?” She asked puzzled and pulling her robe closer around herself. 

“Belle I am so sorry to intrude," Emma apologised, feeling awkward and guilty at intruding on the girl's honeymoon of all things. “But something’s come up and we need Gold at Granny’s diner.” 

Belle instinctively glanced in the direction of the staircase past the foyer before returning her attention to Emma, “What’s happened?” She asked, genuinely concerned. 

“A stranger has come to town, someone that didn't come from the Enchanted Forest,” Emma explained. “We can’t figure out how he got here although the popular theory seems to be the portal.”

“Oh no!” Belle exclaimed dismayed recalling who had created the portal in the first place, “you’d better come in. Rumple and I were just ...”

“It's okay!" Emma quickly stopped her before she went into too much detail. She didn't want to know. She didn't want to think of it either. It fell squarely into too much information territory. "You don't need to explain, I know what you were doing. I mean not exactly what you were doing but generally what you were doing..." Emma was starting to babble and even without looking at Killian, she knew he was trying not to laugh. "Look," she cleared her throat and focussed, "if you could get Gold to meet us at Granny’s we'd really appreciate it. Hopefully, it won't take too long, we don’t want to intrude on your...”

“Honeymoon,” Killian said helpfully.

Emma glared at him. “We’ll catch up with you two later. Have a nice...breakfast.” She said choosing the most politic word she could find before turning on her heels as Belle stared after her as if she'd grown a second head or something.

“Sure Emma,” the girl said wearing a bemused expression on her face, shaking her head before retreating into the house to pass on the message to her new husband.

Emma hurried down the steps, thoroughly embarrassed to join Killian who was still smirking at her.

“You handled that well,” he couldn't resist saying.

“Oh shut up,” Emma retorted shoving him.

*******

Sauron or Stephen as he called himself at present, sat in the diner, taking a sip of the concoction called coffee as he waited for the man David to return. He drew curious glances from all the other patrons in the establishment and he presented them with a nervous smile because that was what was required from a man seeming displaced and trying not to stand out. It had been a long time since he'd had to play supplicant. Not since he had called himself Annatar and presented himself to the elves of Eregion.

In a way, it was refreshing, returning to his roots where he was forced to use his wits and skills beyond the power he possessed. While diminished, it was still a force to be reckoned and when he found the One Ring, he would be unstoppable. That being said, the magic here was rather puzzling. He could feel the cloak of it around him when he'd walked here from the portal, reminiscent of the Valar and the Blessed Realm where the elves were retreating but there was also tinier fragments that were scattered across this land like the stars in the night sky.

And what was this Curse they spoke of? He knew that he had ridden the maelstrom of time in pursuit of the One Ring but how had it come to be here? Had it been drawn to the last refuge of magic in Arda? It seemed he would have to play the part of the lost Gondorian ranger in order to get his answers. Fortunately, the elves were gone from this realm and only men had been left behind. That suited him perfectly since Sauron had always found men more pliable to his will than any of the other races.

As it stood, he waited for the return of the one called David who had gone to summon others to help explain his situation. Even though he feigned ignorance, he'd paid attention to the fact that the people he was bringing back might have magic at their disposal. In any case, it served his purpose that he met those who practised the craft in this realm. It would provide him of a view of what kind of opposition he might be facing in his pursuit of the One Ring.

When the maid in the red walked past him, he studied her momentarily and noted the scent of a shifter. He himself was capable of such transformation when he was in possession of the ring and recognised the wolf inside her. She appeared to be oblivious to his awareness of her and continued to the end of the counter where she sat down on a stool with another young woman, a pretty thing with golden hair. There was middling magic resonating from her and he wondered what creature she was. She was not an elf but she was no human either. Another mystery to be solved he decided.

"....well he was supposed to be her soul mate," she said to the shifter.

"Well, he can't have two soul mates, Tink. That's just weird." The shifter replied. "You can have only one true love. There's a reason its the most powerful spell breaker there is."

Sauron almost snorted but held his tongue.

"We don't know that Marian is his soul mate," the one named Tink insisted. "Just because she's his wife doesn't mean anything. I know I wasn't mistaken. He was the man with a lion tattoo that I showed him to her."

Out of curiosity, Sauron spied the image in her mind when she thought of it. The contact was brief, enough for him to see its like before he withdrew to avoid notice. Despite this, however, the girl called Tink stiffened as if mildly startled. She looked over her shoulder to see if anything was there and lingered a moment as she tried to decide what that odd sensation was. When there was no repeat of it, she shrugged and faced front again.

"What is it Tink?" The shifter asked.

"Its nothing. I thought for a minute....nevermind." She dismissed the lingering thought and then smiled at her friend. "I'm just worried that having her heart broken like this is going to push Regina back to being the evil queen."

"Yeah," the shifter sighed in apparent agreement. "We finally got rid of Zelena, the last thing this town needs is Regina wanting to destroy everyone and everything again."

Destroy everything. That indicated power and Sauron was always eager to exploit those who had it for his own ends. It appeared this Regina had a dark past she was trying to suppress and that presented an opportunity. Sauron had always found that it was the darker impulses that were easiest to manipulate and these two women had inadvertently given him something he could use, something to sway this former evil queen if she proved she could be of value to him.

Inconspicuously lowering his gauntleted hand beneath the table, he closed his eyes with concentration. It required but a fraction of his diminished power to feel the burn against his skin. His expression showed no reaction to the brief pain. To everyone, he remained the bewildered stranger who had stumbled into their midst from lands unknown. Once the pain subsided, he pulled the gauntlet off his hands by the fingers and examined the results of his handiwork.

The lion tattoo on his skin was the exact likeness of what he had pulled from the girl’s mind. Satisfied at the results, he replaced the gauntlet, concealing the tattoo until he met the person for whom it was intended. If the two were correct then the tattoo would have a profound effect on her, especially if she believed it was the mark of her true love.

Women, Sauron frowned, so easily ruled by sentimental nonsense.

*******

The possibility that something else could have come through the portal or manipulate it enough that a hapless stranger was thrust in the world was enough for Rumpelstilskin to interrupt their honeymoon. After Emma’s rather awkward visit to their front door, she’d retreated back to their bedroom and found Rumple who was still sleeping soundly after a night of tender consummation and woke him up with the news he was needed.

Rumpelstiltskin hadn’t been too pleased to leave her alone the morning after their wedding but she’d told him she understood. If Storybrooke was in danger, he needed to go, not just for his sake and hers but everybody in the town. Belle was proud of him course, that he was willing to help Storybrooke without attaching a price to his assistance. He was trying to be a good man for her and Belle appreciated the effort even though she knew that as the Dark One, he was the most powerful of them all, save perhaps Emma whose potential was still untapped at this moment. He’d showed, kissed her and gotten dressed before heading out, with promises that he’d be back as soon as he could.

Besides, they had more honeymooning to catch up on, he’d said with a grin before leaving for town.

When he’d gone, Belle thought she might go back to bed but the truth was, it felt rather empty without him. She’d gone to him as a virgin and he’d spent the last night showing her how beautiful the act could be between two people who loved each other. It was everything she’d ever dreamed of and nothing she would have expected from someone who was known throughout their land as the most dangerous sorcerer there was. Belle felt saddened that Rumple’s first wife, Milah had found it so easy to discard him for a pirate with an ego the size of the ocean he sailed.

Deciding to do something productive because she was not used to lazing about, Belle got up and grabbed a shower before making herself a simple breakfast of cereal and tea. She hadn’t quite gotten accustomed to the taste of coffee after all the time here and by the selection of different teas in Rumple’s kitchen, it appeared neither had he. The other thing which she also realised, a thing that had escaped her before this day was that Rumple didn’t like mugs. Oh they were there in the shelf but judging from their positioning, it was cup and saucer that he most often used to drink his beverages.

Belle smiled at that, remembering the chipped cup that he’d cherished so lovingly during the years that they were apart.

Wandering about the house, Belle also realised that this was now her home too. It would be the second time she shared a place with Rumple except this time she was the lady of the house. Oddly enough, despite the fact that his current address was a well maintained American style house on a quiet street instead of an enormous gothic mansion she was required to clean, Rumple’s tastes remained consistent. He liked the finer things for certain but he also liked objects with history. When she was cleaning his castle as a maid, she’d noticed that. Even with all his malevolence, he was never quite evil, that there was still enough sentiment in him to appreciate things of value.

She was walking past a display cabinet when she saw it.

It sat against the satin of a velvet box, gleaming in the afternoon light. It was a simple gold band and at first, she thought it was a wedding ring. Perhaps even Rumple’s from his first marriage. However, she quickly realised that this could not be the case because Rumple had been an ordinary villager before accepting the mantle of the ‘Dark One’. He could not have been able to afford something like this. This ring made from gold, may not have been encrusted with jewels but Belle had been a princess long enough to recognise the exquisite work of a master craftsman.

Whoever made this ring had skills far beyond most of the jewellers she knew in their land. Opening the cabinet, she reached for the thing and picked it up with her thumb and index finger. Examining it more closely now, Belle once again found herself marvelling at the craft that went into its forging. It was perfectly smooth like it had been recently polished but that wasn’t it. It was how flawless the metalwork had been. It was slightly bigger than her fingers so she didn’t try to put it on but she couldn’t deny it was beautiful and she wanted it.

Rumple’s proposal had taken place so suddenly that there hadn’t been time to do anything other than slap together a quick wedding in the woods. They hadn’t gotten around to exchanging rings because the most important thing in the wedding at the time was their vows to each other. Belle had felt that exchange was far more precious than any that could be signified by jewellery. Still, Rumple had said they’d get around to it and he’d get her the biggest ring in Storybrooke.

Now as she had found this ring, perhaps he’d let her have this instead. It was simple in its beauty and so pleasing against her skin. All he had to do was have it resized and she was certain that it would fit her perfectly. Belle had a sixth sense about these things and as she sensed there was something special about this ring, something she couldn’t define.

Something precious.

Chapter Three
The Man with the Lion Tattoo

"I swear, if you don't shut about that, I'll never have sex with you again," Emma threatened as she and Killian returned to the diner after leaving Gold’s.

"Oh that's hitting below the belt Luv," Killian protested with mock horror even though he felt no repentance at having fun at her expense. He couldn’t deny being thoroughly amused by Emma’s discomfort at barging in on the Crocodile’s honeymoon. It was so rare to see her completely flustered that the bloom of embarrassment that ran across her cheeks was utterly adorable. Still, the threat of no sex with Emma was a risk he was unprepared to take so he decided this particular bit of amusement had exceeded its life.

"Or not below it," Emma looked over her blond hair and gave him a little wink of mischief.

Who was she kidding? She thought to herself. After last night, Emma could no more stay away from Killian then he could from her. Besides, even though he could a total ass clown at times, Killian was a lot of fun to be with. Once she’d let down her walls and let him in, Emma had realised how great it was just being with Killian.

In his eyes, she wasn’t just the saviour who had all the answers and could save everyone. To him, she was just Emma, flawed, a little unsure of herself and more vulnerable than she’d like people to think. The woman he'd loved enough to give up his ship so he could find her and bring her home. Killian's gesture with the Jolly Roger, even with that dumb ass play to remove Henry from Storybrooke to save him from Zelena proved Killian was willing to do anything for her.

It was very different from Neil. She loved Neil and always would but she suspected their feelings for each other would never rival the passion or purity of their first months together. Besides, she suspected his love for her could not stand up to the possibility of having to face his father in Storybrooke. When August told him of her destiny, Emma always felt that he could found a better solution to set her on the path other than abandoning her jail, alone and pregnant. Later on, it was really Henry that brought him to Storybrooke and only after that had his love for her been rekindled then. It was warm and familiar and felt like nothing than this chaos she felt for Killian.

One minute she was to dropkick Killian to the other side of the planet and other times, she just wanted him to tell her everything would be okay in that sultry accent of his. When she needed it, he’d been there to give her a boost, to remind her that she was strong and capable. That he’d fallen in love with a woman who dared to climb up a beanstalk and face a giant with him. For whom he was willing to sail away from Storybrooke to save. And the other times when he knew she was afraid and needed him to step in or make a point.

It struck her the relationship was very much like that of her own parents. David was there to defend Snow whenever she needed it but also knew when to step back and let her rule. He was there to remind her of how strong she could be when her hope faltered. Emma decided she would never voice that comparison to either David or Killian for that matter.

There would just be no living with him.

Stepping into the diner, Emma spied David seated across the table from Stephen in the same booth they’d left him when they’d split up to go get Regina and Gold. The new arrival still looked rather overwhelmed by everything around him and his eyes darted this way and that at every new thing that came into his view, as if he was trying to absorb everything. Upon making eye contact with her, Stephen held her gaze and Emma supposed it was probably because he was trying to remember her name. God knows he’d probably be introduced to a dozen people already since his arrival in Storybrooke.

"Dad, Stephen," she greeted as she approached them

"Emma," David glanced over his shoulder to see her and automatically slid across the seat to make room for her while Killian grabbed a chair from one of the empty tables and sat down, back facing his chest.

"Gold is on his way here," Emma announced once everyone was settled. "Did you find Regina?" She asked almost cautiously. In truth, Emma was burning with curiosity to know how the Evil Queen was faring. She still felt an overwhelming sense of guilt at what had happened to Regina because of her. Unfortunately, she knew she couldn’t let it get in the way of her obligations to this town and its people. They needed Regina here to figure out where Stephen had come from and together with Gold, maybe their combined powers could find some way to send him home again.

"She's on her way," David replied and guessed by the look in Emma's eyes, she wanted a little more than that. "She seems fine," he lied, seeing no reason to tell everyone at the table that Regina was in classic post-breakup depression. "Henry asked her to drop him off at school first and then she'll meet us here. I think it was his way of putting her in a better mood."

"Smart lad," Killian complimented before Emma could. "I gamble he's the one person in Storybrooke that could keep her from returning to her former ways." Despite this, however, Killian understood the reality of the situation. When Regina saw Emma again, whatever softness Henry had managed to inspire this morning would be banished for the memory that it was Emma who had been the reason for her grief. One trip to school was going to change that, no matter what they'd hoped.

Emma remained pensive, wanting to hug Henry for his insight and his good intentions. While she knew Henry inherited much from her, the truth was; for an evil queen, Regina had raised a pretty decent kid. She needed to start remembering that. He could have been raised to be a little terror as the Mayor's son but Regina had only spoilt him with love and encouragement, not overindulgence. The kid had wanted so much for her and Regina to get along because no matter what, Regina had been his mother first. Emma couldn't fault him for thinking that. She'd given him up and Regina had wanted him for the sole purpose of loving him. She'd tried to be a better person for Henry and Emma hated to think that saving Marian had undone all that.

"Is the lady unwell?" Stephen asked suddenly, apparently noticing all the tension that had settled over the table on the subject of Regina.

"Don't look at me," Killian shrugged as he shifted back in his chair, not about to touch the subject. He was leaving that up to Emma and David to explain.

Emma exchanged a glance with David, uncertain whether or not they should be disclosing the situation with Regina to a stranger. After all, Regina’s heartbreak was a deeply private affair and the woman was already on the warpath, exposing her hurt to a new arrival may not encourage her to help them. Then again, once she arrived, it was going to be obvious as hell that not all was right between them with everyone walking on eggshells. Perhaps some context would allow Stephen to navigate the situation and not say anything to make things worse.

As if they weren’t already.

Choosing to spare his daughter, David spoke up. "Regina lost a loved one very recently," he explained without going into too much detail. Seeing the guilt in her eyes returning with a vengeance, David reached for his daughter’s hand and squeezed. This was one of the times he wished she wasn’t a woman grown. If she was a little girl, it would be perfectly acceptable to take her up in his arms and chase away her demons.

"Aye," Killian added deciding to give the Prince some assistance for Emma’s sake. "The lady's had her heartbroken and she's still a little fragile in the wake of that, best not to mention it when she gets here.” He advised.

"I see," Stephen replied, saying the words like he was drawing breath, mulling it over in his mind. He responded after a moment, his eyes soft and the sadness in them profound as if he connected with Regina’s pain on a very personal level. "The loss is not easy to overcome when it cuts so close to the heart. I know what it is like to lose the people we love. In my last battle, many of my friends and loved ones were lost. I sympathise with her sorrow."

The melancholic mood settled over the table like a fog which always made Killian uncomfortable so, in an effort to dispel it, he decided that a change of subject was in order. “Did you just come off the line mate?” Killian asked indicating the armour that Stephen was wearing. “It looks like it’s for heavy infantry. Is that how you found yourself here?" Perhaps if they knew something of this war that he was engaged in, they might be able to venture a guess where this stranger had originated.

Lost in thoughts for a moment, Stephen blinked when he realised he was being addressed. "Yes," he said returning to the present. "We were keeping watch for the remnants of the enemy in the woods. We'd driven away the orcs and trolls but we took heavy damage to the city walls, it would be easy for them to slip through so needed to see how many of them still remained in the area. We were establishing a temporary watchtower when we chose to camp for the night."

Emma flashed a smile at Killian, somewhat impressed by all these hidden talents he kept surprising her with. From the ability to lead her in a waltz to being able to recognise military equipment, she reminded herself that he had been given an officer's education before serving on the Jewel of the Realm. The Captain in Captain Hook wasn't just a name he'd taken for himself, he'd actually served in the King's navy to earn it.

"So the city was saved?" She asked because to her, the city meant women and children and the fighting he described seemed especially bloody. The trolls she had seen in the Enchanted Forest were bad enough. An army of them made her shudder.

"Yes," Stephen answered with a nod, "but with heavy casualties. They were numbered twenty thousand and they had cavalry but we turned the tide."

"That sounds like a hell of a battle," David declared and he was accustomed to battles when they fought Regina to get the kingdom back. "Its a credit to you and your people that you managed to mount a strong defence."

"A strong one that cost us many lives," Stephen shrugged obviously thinking that the compliment was underserved "Every able-bodied man in the city stood up to fight. It was their home after all."

"I'm assuming that means the young and old as well?" Killian asked. He had fought in a few naval skirmishes in the service of the king where Jewel of the Realm had been dispatched to put down a rebellion or two. The people that he had to fight were often ordinary citizens who had never picked up a weapon in their lives and were driven to it by desperation. It was odd how being a pirate was less taxing on his conscience than being a soldier in the service of an undeserving king.

"Your assumption is true," Stephen answered, "boys as young as ten and men who were well past combat were enlisted to fight. We had no choice if we wanted to protect the women and children. The orcs do not take prisoners."

"I'm sorry," Emma said kindly. She'd never lived through such times but she'd encountered soldiers who had PTSD and Stephen looked like he might have a case of it. If anything proved that he was who he claimed to be, she supposed it was that haunted look in his eyes.

"It is in the past," he offered her a sad smile, grateful for her sympathy. "And now I find myself in a new place in a land that is most vexing." He swept his gaze across the diner with its ceiling fans, vinyl booths and linoleum floors. "I know nothing of the land you speak and that fills me with fear."

"Oh a little fear is always a good thing," a new voice interrupted. Rumpelstiltskin aka Mr Gold walked towards them, clad in his customary dark suit and holding his walking cane, wearing an expression that spoke to the gravity of their situation. His dark eyes studied the occupants at the table before fixating on the stranger. "Fear keeps you alive, makes you smarter."

"Indeed," Stephen retorted, "then I must be a scholar by now."

"Stephen, this s Mr Gold," Emma introduced the wizard, preferring a less colourful moniker than the traditional title of Rumpelstilskin.

Killian got off the chair and sat next to Stephen who slid further along as Gold took the seat he had previously occupied. In truth, Killian would never entirely trust Rumpelstilskin who would always be the Crocodile to him. While they were allies, it was a tenuous relationship at best. There was too much history between them to discount.

"I am grateful to meet you, Mr. Gold," Stephen said politely, eyeing the new arrival closely.

"I'm glad to hear that," Gold retorted sitting down and waving at Ruby to bring him a cup of fee, considering these two, " he eyed Emma and Killian darkly, "interrupted me and my bride the day after our wedding."

"Look we're really sorry about that," David quickly rose to Emma's defence. "But you have to admit this is important."

"Too right," Killian added, "Stephen arriving here almost the same time as Emma and I returning through the portal, that's too much of a bloody coincidence. Something foul is at work here."

"Well that may be so but I can tell you now, “ he eyed Stephen, “I have been to no land where I have seen anyone dressed as you. What is that meant to be? A plant?" He gestured to the design on the leather of Stephen's tunic. It was the shape of a tree.

"This is the White Tree of Gondor," Stephen retorted with some clear annoyance. "It grows in the Court of the Fountain in Minas Tirith, the capital of Gondor."

These names, they sounded nothing like the names she'd heard in the Enchanted Forest. There was such beauty to them and she immediately pictured a place that seemed idyllic in comparison to the land so fraught with danger in her parents' kingdom. "You don't recognise any of the places he's talking about Gold?" Emma asked.

"No Dearie, I’m afraid not," Gold answered simply but his eyes were still fixed on Stephen as if he were trying to decide if Stephen was lying or not.

"Then our lands must be separated by some distance," Stephen declared with some anxiety, "I may never return home."

"Hey look," Emma assured him, "don't give up. We've still gotta figure out how you got here. Once we do, we'll get you home."

Gold said nothing, allowing Saviour, the Prince and the Pirate free reign to make the man promises they couldn't possibly keep. Instead, he studied Stephen and kept silent about the incredible power he could feel emanating from the stranger. Before Gold stepped into the diner, he had assumed it was coming from Emma. Since she’d begun learning to use her magic, he’d been able to sense her. Emma radiated power. More than she could possibly imagine. Gold knew her potential was an untapped wellspring and no matter where she was in Storybrooke, he always had a sense of it. White magic was the purest magic there was and it eclipsed everything in proximity.

Until now.

What he was sensing from this Stephen was like nothing he had ever encountered. The only thing that gave him pause was whether Stephen was a pawn or the architect of his own arrival in Storybrooke. Source or conduit? Gold couldn’t say for certain but he knew for the sake of everyone, it was necessary to play along with the stranger’s claim of being an unwilling visitor to Storybrooke. If the power radiating from him was any indication, then exposing him would be like setting off a nuclear bomb in the middle of town.

It was far simpler to wait and see. Gold would let others know when the time was right.

*****

Dropping off Henry at school after a quick cup of coffee was exactly what Regina needed to finally get moving again. Even though she was still angry and hurt, Henry’s presence had salved her battered heart even if it was a temporary salve. They talked about inconsequential things, never broaching the subject of Emma, instead, he talked about the baby and asked her if he had been so much trouble as an infant. It had been felt like old times. She missed him terribly and would have asked if she could pick him after school to spend the day with her if not for the fact, she’d have to go to Emma as the supplicant.

Right now, her pride would not allow her to ask anything of Emma Swan.

Stepping into the diner, Regina saw the distinct mane of blond hair that belonged to Emma Swan, holding court with Gold, Hook and David. Obviously she and Killian must have had some kind of moment because she could feel Emma’s power radiating like twin suns. Maybe if she got laid more often, she wouldn’t be ruining other people’s chance of happiness, Regina thought bitterly.

The man who was seated at the booth with them made her stare, he was certainly very attractive but his clothes...she hadn’t seen the like before. Camelot perhaps? It was the closest she could come to identifying its origins. Was that where he was from? With a sigh, Regina walked towards them, wishing to be anywhere else but deciding the only way to make that happen was to get this over and done with.

“I’m here.” She said coolly, announcing herself.

“Regina,” Emma stood up from the booth and faced the former queen. “How are you?”

“Spare me,” Regina said icily, “I’m here because if there’s something going on that could endanger Henry, I want to help. I’m not here for anyone else.”

“Alright then,” Emma sighed, guessing that it was too soon to expect any kind of forgiveness from Regina. She drifted away from the table to stand next to Killian suddenly wanting to be near him and as far away as she could from Regina. Killian stood up and offered her his seat, casting Regina a glare of disdain that evaporated when he remembered what was at the heart of it.

“Lovely to see you too Regina,” Gold retorted, indifferent to the whole scene.

“Regina,” David sighed, once again, trying to smooth things over between the warring factions. “This is Stephen. We don’t know how he got here but we were hoping you might have some idea of what land he’s from.”

“Don’t look at me,” Gold shrugged when she glanced at him. “I’ve never encountered the place.”

“My lady,” Stephen rose to his feet, pulling off a gauntlet and extending a hand towards her
.
Regina reached out, expecting a handshake but instead, Stephen took her hand in his, raised it to his lips and bowed his head to plant a soft, chaste kiss against the smooth skin. She was about to ask him what the hell he thought he was doing when she caught sight of his exposed hand.

Oh, God. The tattoo.

It couldn’t possibly be! She blinked, staring at the thing on his hand. It was exactly the same as the one Robin was wearing. Even down to the colour. How could this be? Tinkerbell had shown her Robin, not this stranger. Then again, Regina had never actually seen his face, so was it possible that both she and Tinkerbell had been wrong? A thousand furious thoughts rushed through her head at that moment and for the first time since yesterday, Regina’s thoughts were occupied by something other than her rage at Emma Swan.

“Regina, are you alright?” David asked, noticing the woman’s sudden change of colour. She almost looked pale.

“I am sorry your Majesty,” Stephen let go of his hand and took a step back. “I had heard talk that you are a queen and in my realm, this is the proper way to greet someone of nobility.”

“I’m a princess...” Emma muttered in Killian’s ear. “He didn’t greet me that way.”

“Well you hide it well Swan,” Killian retorted with a smile and turned his attention back to the curious scene unfolding between Regina and the stranger. He got a jab in the ribs for his trouble.

“I’m fine,” Regina swallowed thickly, staring at him like he was something that had just climbed out of a Petrie dish. “I’m fine.” She needed to sit down and sank next to David in the booth without much argument. “What is this land that you’ve come from?” She asked, unable to shift her gaze from him. She was trying to focus but a glance at the tattoo on his hand and her thoughts became scrambled again.

Stephen sat down and replied, “I am Ranger of the North, I serve the king of Gondor in Middle Earth.”

“Middle Earth?” Regina crooked a brow and then stared at Gold again. “You’ve never...”

“Not a whisper,” Gold said quickly. “He must have come through the portal but beyond that, I can’t imagine what could have happened.”

“Maybe he didn’t come alone,” David suggested. “You said you set up camp in the woods with your men, someone could have entered this world and swept you up inadvertently.”

“It happens,” Emma pointed out.

Regina shot her another look of accusation before turning back to him, to the man with the lion tattoo, the one who wasn’t Robin. “And you haven’t been to our land? The Enchanted Forest?”

“I am afraid not, your Majesty,” Stephen replied, staring at her intently.

“You can just call her Regina,” David replied.

“Speak for yourself,” Regina snorted. “Go on.”

“There is little to tell, I have had scarce chance to travel anywhere,” Stephen explained. “My lands have been at war for many years and I’ve been a soldier for most that time, defending the realm.”

“This doesn’t make any sense,” Regina grumbled staring at Gold, “at the very least one of us would have heard to this place he’s from.”

“I can consult my books,” Gold offered, “perhaps there’s something in there that might explain this.”

“I could tell you more about Middle Earth, your Majesty.” Stephen offered meeting Regina’s gaze with more than passing interest. “Perhaps something may give you recognition.”

“That’s not necessary...” she stared to say when Emma suddenly interrupted.

“Well, actually I think its a good idea.”

Regina shot Emma a look of pure death. “We’re aware of what happens when you think something is a good idea.”

Emma was about to bite back when Killian dropped a hand on her shoulder, “Alright ladies, no need to fight. We’re all in the same boat so to speak.”

“Please,” Stephen looked at Regina, “I just wish to go home. I will do anything I can to be of help in my own deliverance.”

“Regina,” Gold spoke up, “I think it is an avenue worth pursuing. Stephen is our only clue to what’s happened here. If there are dark forces at work, it is best that he is in the company of someone who has formidable magic to protect him.”

Regina opened her mouth to protest because she wanted nothing more than to be away from this man and his tattoo. However, the refusal wouldn’t come because Rumpelstilskin was correct. This man was their only link to what was going on and keeping an eye on him served everyone well.

“I promise your Majesty,” Stephen said earnestly. “I’ll promise I’ll be no trouble.”

Somehow, Regina doubted that.

Chapter Four
My Precious

Now that he had been introduced to the real power in Storybrooke, Sauron playing the part of Stephen was better able to determine how he ought to proceed next. Of the three people at the table, he quickly identified Gold as the most powerful even though it was of a strength he could easily match. The girl Emma had power but it was unrealised. He suspected that she had no real understanding of the craft, that much of her power was driven to emerge when the need became desperate not because she had any real discipline. Still, her magic was reminiscent of the Noldor elf, Galadriel and that was nothing to underestimate. However, it was Regina that most interested him. 

He could sense the magic in her, a curious mix of light and dark. He could sense the conflict in her, even without using his powers. There was anger and pain, at the loss of her lover but also a deep struggle to keep those darker impulses away, lest it tainted the purity of the light magic she had managed to tap because of her nobler intentions. He could sense the rage and despair that frayed at the edges of her spirit, seeking entry into the fabric of her to take charge. The opportunity to sway the woman to his purpose was there and thanks to the tattoo he had placed on his hand, she was now in a state that would allow easy exploitation. 

Of course, it did not hurt that she was exceedingly beautiful. 

Sauron had forgotten what it was like to be flesh. Three thousand years without a physical form had made him forget the sensation of blood rushing through his veins, to feel his heart beating inside his chest or to be moved by a lovely face. Her eyes, which were the most expressive thing about her, were full of sorrow and it bothered him somewhat that she was wounded at all. With the power at her disposal, she should have had anything she wanted and yet she was held back by the desire to do good when it was nothing but a hindrance. 

He would have to teach her how to overcome that.

For now, however, he would play the part of Stephen, the lost ranger of Gondor, rankling a little because he was forced to talk of his enemy’s land like it was someplace to be revered. Gondor, Minas Tirith and worst of all, the king. Aragorn. If there was any comfort to be had in all this, it was the knowledge that Middle Earth as it was, was no more. Arda had changed, the kingdoms of those who had stood against him were withered into dust. They weren’t even remembered. It was as if they never existed at all.

When he returned to Mordor, he would ensure their demise happened even sooner.

******

“I do not understand my lady,” Stephen frowned as he stepped out of the changing room in one of Storybrooke’s clothing stores. “Why this is necessary?”

Regina sighed as she waited for him outside the fitting room area of the department store they’d visited after leaving the diner. The others had left Stephen in her charge believing that he should be watched and protected in case what force brought him here, returned to inflict more mischief. Emma and Killian were going to the farm where Zelena’s portal had been since David couldn’t stray too far from home because of the baby. Rumpelstiltskin on the other hand wanted to get home to his wife since it was after all his honeymoon. All of which left Regina to see to their guests. Regina had a sneaking suspicion that she again being ‘handled’.

Give the broken heart former queen something to do so she doesn’t turn evil again, Regina snorted.

At first, the ham-fisted attempts to distract her from her pain annoyed her, especially when Emma was involved. However in retrospect, perhaps it wasn’t such an outlandish idea after all. Stephen was completely astonished by this world and it made Regina somewhat grateful that the Curse had given people some idea of how to function in the 20th century. Had they all arrived here without any idea of the world they stepped into, the results could have chaos. Trying to explain the modern world to Stephen was also keeping her mind off Robin and his wife. Still, she thought defiantly, nothing was going to overcome the pain of heartbreak. It was raw and its twist in her gut, constant.

“Because you can’t go walking around town looking like you just stepped out of the Crusades,” she retorted, standing up from the large velvet ottoman as he stepped out from behind the curtain.

“Crusades?” Stephen asked puzzled as he emerged with the older male store clerk named Peter, who was once known to have fashioned clothes for an emperor.

When she saw him, Regina found herself temporarily lost for words.

With Peter’s help, she’d selected a pair of charcoal coloured denim jeans, a white shirt, a dark casual jacket and a pair of boots for him to wear immediately. She was used to buying clothes for men since she’d done that for years with Henry and needed only minor assistance to do the same for an adult. However, even Regina hadn’t expected just how good Stephen would look actually wearing them.

The jacket showed how broad his shoulders were, the shirt barely concealed the well-developed muscles of his chest while the jeans accentuated the strong muscles of his legs. He stood almost a half a head taller than her and except for the hair which he still wore tied back, appeared as if he could have been on the page of a magazine. Certainly, no one would have suspected that a short time ago, he looked like he’d stepped out of a storybook, no pun intended.

“The clothes fit well, yes?” Peter said smiling, taking her reaction to being one of approval.

“Uh yes,” Regina cleared her throat and nodded. “Thank you.” She said regaining her composure. “Have the rest of what we selected, including the clothes he came here with sent to my house.” Regina didn’t know what his living arrangements were going to be yet but that seemed to be the safer choice for the moment.

“Certainly Mayor Mills,” Peter said with a nod before leaving Regina to Stephen, an infuriatingly knowing smirk on his face as he walked past.

Stephen tugged at the collar he’d buttoned up all the way, his expression one of uncertainty as he examined himself.

“You look good,” Regina assured him, shaking away her jaw-dropping reaction. “We don’t know how long you’re going to be here,” she explained as she approached him and undid the first two buttons on his shirt so that he didn’t feel too restricted by the collar. “You need to blend in so that you don’t stop traffic every time you go out in public.”

Then again, the way he wore these clothes, that might be a foregone conclusion anyway.

“And you think these clothes will do that sufficiently?” He questioned, head bowing so that his blue eyes locked onto hers as she fussed over him, making him smile because there was intimacy in the gesture. Stephen held her gaze, soaking in the soft, shades of liquid brown in her eyes.

“I do,” Regina replied, her voice dropping an octave in surprise by how the closeness was affecting her. It was only yesterday that Robin had broken her heart and she’d lost him forever. Hours since she’d last seen him last but this man and his damn tattoo had shattered her belief that she and Robin were meant to be together. That her feelings for Robin had been based on the fallacy that he was her soul mate and that maybe she had been mistaken all along. “Trust me,” she said finding it hard to pull away from those incredible blue eyes.

“I trust you, my lady,” he returned, his voice husky, as he reached for her wrist and gently pressed her hand to his chest. “I am your servant.”

Regina cursed inwardly, wondering if fate was screwing with her. Seeing the tattoo scrambled her thoughts and the touch of his hand against hers, felt warm and tender. He looked at her like a lover and even though she was nursing a broken heart, she found herself mesmerized by his eyes, like a moth to the flame. Regina swallowed thickly and abruptly pulled back, breaking the contact. She was still the queen, not some lovesick and confused teenager.

“Come on, we’ll go to my office and try and figure out where you came from or rather how you got here,” She said not wanting him to see that her cheeks were blooming with colour although she suspected that it was too late by the satisfied smile he was wearing on his face. The one all men seemed to have when they knew they’d gotten under the skin of a woman. It was infuriating.

“As you wish my lady,” Stephen replied, bowing his head slightly, still wearing that damn smirk.

She felt his voice against the back of her neck like a warm breath and Regina wondered how it was possible that being good, was making her life feel a lot more complicated. “You can call me Regina,” she replied as she walked to the cashier where the girl behind the counter was staring at Stephen with an expression of dreamy longing.

“I do not know if that is proper my lady,” he returned as they both paused at the counter. Stephen gave the girl whose name tag read ‘Rose’ a little smile of greeting.

Handing over her credit card to ‘Rose’ who seemed to be mooning over Stephen, the girl finally remembered herself and went back to work ringing up the purchases while Regina stared at Stephen in puzzlement. “I beg your pardon? Proper? What do you mean?”

“A lady of your nobility should never be addressed so informally by a man beneath her station,” he spoke smoothly, almost as if he were instructing a child in the finer points of court etiquette. “At least not unless he becomes a suitor for her hand.” The tiniest fraction of a smile teased his lips and Regina suddenly noticed that Rose had stopped what she was doing and was back to staring at Stephen dreamily.

“Shouldn’t you be ringing that up?” Regina asked her pointedly, ignoring the tug of jealousy that had come out of nowhere. She wondered if he had this effect on women where he came from. “Were you a suitor for some lady’s hand back home?”

His smile became one of mischief, “I never found a lady that could quite capture my imagination for me to formally begin a courtship,” Stephen answered. “Although I am starting to think it was simply because I hadn’t been looking in the right place.”

Once again, those blue eyes locked on hers and Regina felt the air leaving her lungs wondering what the hell was going on with her life. It was definitely less complicated when she was evil.

********

“You know,” Killian said staring out the window of the VW as they drove along the road to Zelena’s farm. “I was watching television and apparently these contraptions do come larger.”

Emma narrowed her eyes and gave him a brief glance, catching Killian examining the interior of her car as if he were seeing it for the first time. He’d complained about legroom when they’d driven here from New York but she’d ignored him then mostly because she was pissed off she had almost married a monkey. A fucking flying monkey. Not to mention the fact that she was also heading back to God only knows what in Storybrooke and that her memories had been nothing more than a dream. 

“Are you dissin’ my car?” She exclaimed, facing the road once more. The outrage in her voice clear. 

“No, but it's not built for three,” Killian replied quickly, sensing that he might have made a blunder on par with someone calling the Jolly Roger a dung heap of termite infested decks. “I was thinking I’d like to learn how to helm one of these things.” 

Emma’s expression indicated she knew he was lying. “Yeah right,” she grumbled. “That’s what you were thinking.” 

“Swan!” He looked at her with mock hurt, “would I lie to you?” 

She answered with a snort. “Well, you can get David to teach you how to helm a car.” 

“Why not you?” He asked and this time the hurt was genuine. 

Jesus, she rolled her eyes, those eyes looked like they belonged to a puppy that someone had just kicked and Emma felt immediately guilty. This must be love, she thought to herself. “Trust me on this one, the rule about driving is never to get your significant other to teach you how to do it. I’ve seen more divorces happen that way than adultery.” 

He looked puzzled and the settled into deep thought as if he were pondering what she said. “So,” he said after a moment, “you’ve thought about us getting married then?” 

Ass clown, Emma thought to herself, shooting him a look that said as much and noted the smirk he was wearing on his face to indicate he was once again amusing himself at her expense. 

“Why am I putting up with you?” She shot back as the bug turned the corner, shaking her head at his teasing. She loved it though, loved how he could be her Rock of Gibraltar one minute and teasing her like the pirate he was the next. He could make her laugh and that was something the Saviour needed when everyone around her expected her to be the one to solve all their crises. 

“Because I do things with my tongue that can make you blush like a virgin on her wedding night.” He said without skipping a beat, with a perfectly serious expression on her face.

Emma’s jaw dropped, unable to believe he went there and then remembered, oh yeah pirate.  

Anything else she was going to say was halted by her sudden reaction to what was ahead. Her foot slammed on the brakes hard, feeling the air with the smell of burnt rubber and screeching tyres. Next to her, Killian jostled back and forth in the seats and only belatedly did Emma realise that she didn’t know if he’d been wearing his seatbelt. Thankfully he had. 

“Swan, what the..!” Killian demanded when he felt silenced himself, realising what had precipitated this reaction. “Bloody hell....” he mused. 

They hadn’t even gotten to the farm yet but Emma knew it was gone. The land looked like it had been through the aftermath of a firestorm. She’d stopped the car in the middle of the road and emerged from it, still stunned by what was in front of it. Where the farm had been was nothing but a burnt, scorched landscape. The only reason she knew where the house had been was the burnt-out remains of the well that Killian had almost been drowned in and a blackened pump sticking out of the ground. Everything else was gone. The trees, the house and the barn, even the grass was burnt away, leaving behind only brittle dirt and ash. 

“Oh my God,” Emma exclaimed because nothing else would do really. 

“What the hell happened here Swan?” Killian asked as he half emerged from the car, one foot still inside. His eyes scanned the landscape, unable to take in the completeness of the destruction. 

“I don’t know,” she whispered, shaking her head in horror and shock. “Maybe something happened with the portal when Stephen came through.” 

“Swan, a lot of power did this. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of the Crocodile managing this on his worst day.” Killian retorted, suddenly anxious that what had brought Stephen here was more powerful than any one of them had ever seen because chances were; Emma would have to face it. 

“No,” she shook her head in agreement. Gold was powerful all right but even he had limits. So did Regina. Perhaps Zelena could have managed this destruction but she was dead. The last bit of her power had been used to power the portal that took her and Killian to the Enchanted Forest. 

“Come on,” she recovered herself. “Get in the car. I want to see if the portal slab is still there.” 

“Right,” he answered and lowered himself back into the vehicle. This time there was no trace of the snark or teasing in his voice. He was back to being the guy who had her back, who was willing to let himself be sucked into a portal to keep her from going through alone. 

They cut across the burnt field to reach the house, once again, the only landmark to give Emma any indication where it and the barn had been was the well. As Emma parked next to it, she took a deep breath, knowing only a day ago, she thought she’d lost Killian for good when Zelena tried to drown him in it. As it stood, the water in the well was almost completely evaporated ensuring that danger would never inflict another person again. The heat that must have swept across it must have been incredible, she decided. 

Killian wasn’t looking at the well. He had enough memories of drowning to last him a lifetime now but what he saw was not much better. In the field where there had been grazing animals only yesterday, there was now only burnt, charred carcasses. It was a terrible way to die and no creature deserved such a fate. However, his own worry for Emma was escalating. This was power on a scale he’d never seen and he wasn’t eager for her to face whatever it was that had done it. Not when she had now let him into her heart. 

“Whatever it was, it was quick,” he observed out loud. “The animals didn’t even have time to run. It looks like they died where they stood.” 

“God,” Emma flinched when she saw what he was looking at. Refusing to let her gaze linger, she started walking away, her boots crunching on the ashy covered ground as she made an approximate guess as to where the barn was located. She didn’t wait to see if Killian was following, she could hear his footsteps behind her as she hurried forward. 

The slab was where they left it even though the barn that had stood around it was totally gone. There were no traces of any of it. It looked as if it had been blown apart and Emma guessed that if they really wanted to find its remains, the pieces would probably be scattered all across the farm area. The slab remained though, it had not been damaged at all. In fact, there was not a mark on it. While everything around it had burned, this had remained unspoiled. 

Killian dropped to his haunches and ran his fingers across the slab. It was burnt smooth but there was no other ill effect. “Whatever dark craft did all this,” he looked up at Emma and said firmly, “It started from here and then expanded outward, destroying the barn,” his eyes lifted up as if he could still see the structure, “and kept going ravaging the rest of the land.” 

“But Stephen said he came from the woods,” Emma pointed out. 

“You couldn’t tell if he was lying?” He asked, knowing that they’d used that ability of hers to good effect in the past. She certainly could tell when he was lying. 

“No,” she frowned unhappily. “Since coming to Storybrooke, I’ve found it doesn’t always work as it used to. Like with Gold, I can’t always tell when he’s lying to me.” 

“So he could have arrived here as he said, lost and wandering in the woods.” Killian declared, hating to think that they’d been taken in so easily. Then again, he had given them quite the tale about being separated from his people, the soldier who had seen so much blood now disconnected from everything he knew.

“Yeah,” she nodded, “but you and I both know things aren’t ever that simple,” Emma replied, guessing that he had his own suspicions about Stephen. 

“Aye,” he had to concede that point to her. “Well at least he’s with Regina, she can keep her eye on him. If he’s anything more than he says, we can at least count on her to deal with him and take care of herself at the same time. Especially if he did all this.” 

“I hope so,” Emma agreed, staring at the scorched landscape again. “Because like you said, this is a lot of damage.” 

******** 

It had been a long time since Gold aka Rumpelstilskin had opened the door to his house to be greeted by the aroma of food coming from his kitchen. In the old days, before Storybrooke and even before becoming the Dark One, he’d returned home to such scents when he was still married to Milah. After she’d left him for Hook, one of the worst things about her departure was the absence of the meals she cooked at their hearth.

Until yesterday, like most bachelors in town, Gold preferred tot take his meals at Granny’s diner since it was on the way home from the store. Furthermore, it allowed him to keep on eye on what was going on in Storybrooke since the diner was an unofficial centre of gossip in the whole town. Besides, it seemed like pointless of going to all the trouble of cooking at home when he was alone. However as he closed the door behind him and stepped into his house now, he had only to take a deep breath to recognise the tasty smell of sizzling bacon. He supposed he was going to have to get used to all this again. 

“Rumple!” He heard Belle call out from the kitchen. “I’m in here!” 

Smiling happily, he followed the sound of her voice and walked up the hallway before reaching his kitchen. Pausing at the doorway, he leaned against the polished wood and watched Belle flitting away in his kitchen, cooking up a storm and looking as if she had gone to a lot of trouble. It was so reminiscent of the days she used to clean his castle, behaving as she belonged there instead of being a prisoner. Without knowing it, Belle had brought light into his world, little by little each day until his world was never the same again. 

“Hello Belle,” he said standing in place, basking in the sight of her. 

“Rumpel,” Belle’s said upon seeing him, her eyes lighting up as she saw him. What was it she saw that made him so deserving of her love? Til this day Gold did not know and he thanked fate every day for it. “What are you doing there? Come on in.” She waved him over. 

“I was just watching you,” he said giving her an affectionate smile. “You’re beautiful.”

Belle beamed at the compliment and over to him, setting down a plate at the kitchen table before continuing forward. It was full of the bacon he’d scented earlier. Crossing the floor, Gold met her partway, wrapping his arms around her waist. In turn, Belle coiled her arms around his neck and drew him to her in a kiss that rekindled some of the heat shared the night before. Her touch made him remember the pleasure the night before, the tender exploration and final consummation of a love that had waited far too long for its time.

“I missed you,” she replied when she pulled away.

“Me too,” Gold admitted readily, still relishing how good it felt to hold her. After everything that had happened with Zelena, he couldn’t imagine how he’d have endured the loss of Bae without her standing by him. Losing Bae wasn’t so terrible with Belle at his side. 

“Was everything alright?” She asked, remembering why he had been called away today in the first place. 

“We have another mystery,” he confessed deciding not to give her all the details just yet. Well, there wasn’t that much to tell really. “But there’s nothing to be done for the moment. Not until we learn more. We’ll just have to wait and see.” 

“So you don’t have to rush back?” Belle asked hopefully, still wanting to have that honeymoon which had been so abruptly interrupted this morning. 

“Not immediately,” Gold grinned, guessing what was in her mind as he leaned forward for another kiss. “I’m all yours.” 

“Good,” Belle declared and kissed him once more, lightly on the lips this time before she broke away. “Then we can have some lunch and who knows what else?” She winked at him with a little hint of mischief that made him laugh. 

Belle didn’t do wicked but she was adorable when she tried. 

She retreated to the table, gesturing at him to sit down when he caught sight of the ring lying against the table cloth. “Belle, what’s this?” He gestured to the gold band on the table. 

“Oh I hope you don’t mind,” Belle said looking at him as she went to get some plates. “I found it in one of your display cabinets and I wanted a closer look.” 

Gold started at it puzzled. “One of my display cabinets?” He couldn’t honestly remember when he had acquired the thing. He was not especially predisposed to jewellery and the memory of when this one came into his possession was lost on him. Of course over the centuries, there had been so many things he’d collected. People were always willing to trade when they needed favours and when the need was especially desperate, they traded with anything they had. This ring certainly could be one of those. 

“Yes,” she nodded. “It's so beautiful Rumpel. I thought that since we haven’t exchanged rings yet,” she returned the plates and set out two place settings. “That I could have this one instead.” 

“Well I had wanted to get you something a little more lavish Dearie,” he said to her however, he couldn’t deny her if this was what she wanted. 

“Oh I rather this if you don’t mind,” she picked up the ring and thumbed between her fingers, once again astonished by the flawlessness of the craftsmanship. “It needs resizing but other than I think it's perfect.” 

“Well if that’s what you want,” Gold agreed, seeing no reason why she couldn’t have the ring. After all, if it was in one of his display cabinets, it was most likely a harmless but valuable trinket. He tended to keep the objects endowed with magic at the shop any and the especially dangerous stuff in his vault. 

“Thank you Rumpel,” she smiled again and impulsively slipped the ring onto her finger. 

Before disappearing.

Chapter Five
The One Ring

Sauron sat in the room Regina called her office, admiring the contours of her long legs folded across each other while she sat at her desk. The length of women’s skirts in this time allowed him an ample view of them and he admired their perfection. Not only had she a lovely face and expressive eyes, but she also cut a fine figure even in the odd garments of this age. She gave no indication whether or not she noticed his gaze on her, feigning work as she studied old, spell books that might answer the puzzle that was he.

After they’d left the clothing store, she’d tried to maintain a formal tone with him even if he knew he’d gotten under her skin. The bloom of roses on her cheeks allowed him to reach no other conclusion. Playing this game with her was more amusing than Sauron had thought possible. Indeed, he had never indulged in the ritual of courtship between the sexes. While he did confess to being in awe of Melian and somewhat swayed by the loveliness of Luthien when she sang her song, Sauron’s course in Middle Earth gave him little thought of anything but conquest. There was too much to do to be distracted by the pleasure of the flesh.

Perhaps it was until he lost his corporeal form did he find out just how much he missed the simple pleasures of life. Returning back to the world, in the shell of a human with all its functions had been distracting at first but now he was starting to realise it could have its own uses as well. Such as watching her reactions, how she twisted this way and that to deny her obvious attraction to him. Perhaps indulging in games of the flesh in this instance was not terrible at all.

Until he heard the One Ring's call.

Its cry was like a scream for help and Sauron saw the room around him melt into grey translucence, like watercolours bleeding away on the canvas. What was before him in vivid colours, so close he could almost touch her, was a dark hair maid who had pure panic in her eyes when she saw him. He wondered briefly if she saw his present physical form or what that miserable hobbit had seen; an eye breathed in flame. Her fear indicated the later and he used her frantic emotions to ride straight into her mind and draw everything he could from it to learn where she was.

Belle...her name was Belle.

He heard a voice that was not his own reaching out to her. Someone with power was calling her and it someone capable of penetrating their link.

"Belle! Belle! Where are you? Show yourself!"

Sauron recognised the voice immediately. Gold. This was the sorcerer Gold. The man David had summoned to help explain where Stephen had originated. Belle was the bride he'd left behind to join them at the diner. Through some quirk of fate, she had somehow discovered what he was in such desperate need to find. She had stumbled upon the One Ring and like all the others who came into its presence throughout the ages, was enthralled enough to put it on.

Now that the Ring of Power had exposed itself, Sauron would have to act quickly. While Gold might not be able to discern its true nature, the power it radiated would be hard to ignore. Now that someone had brought it to life by putting it on, that power would be even more potent. The Ring would be searching for him, trying to answer its master’s call. If Gold did not see this, he soon would.

Regina had bee purposefully ignoring Stephen's flirtatious for most of the time they’d been in his office, even though she was well and truly ruffled by his manner. There was something terribly compelling about him that was difficult to ignore and she hated herself for feeling the attraction so soon after things had ended with Robin. She should have been heartbroken and yet it was only taking a day for her to be interested in someone else? It made no sense.

She’d glanced up at him and saw that instead of the charming smile and amorous gaze he was throwing her away, his expression was now like granite, his blue eyes looking flinty. It immediately sent Regina into the offensive.

"Stephen, what's wrong?" She demanded, getting out from behind her desk and hurrying over to him at the sofa.

He didn’t answer her, appeared trapped in a daze, his blue eyes staring into nothingness which made Regina even more concerned. “Stephen!” She repeated herself and grabbed him by the shoulders when she was greeted with continuing silence. “Talk to me!”

Her sharp demand snapped him out of the fugue he’d been under and when he blinked, Regina finally saw recognition flooding his eyes. His blank expression became one of anxiety and urgency. What had he seen? Regina wondered.

“Regina,” he gripped her shoulders, “Something cold and terrible struck my heart and faces I do not recognise filled my memory. I fear I may have experienced a vision.” He said the words like it was distasteful. 

Regina frowned unhappily because he looked horrified by the experience and also because she’d sensed nothing of the sort going on. Whatever psychic turbulence had torn through his psyche had concealed itself quite adeptly. She questioned whether or not he could be a very good liar and this was a ruse but the genuine fear in his eyes twisted the thought in her gut and refused to let her believe it.

"It’s alright Stephen, “ Regina said trying to calm him down from his agitated state. “You’re okay now. Just calm down and take a breath,” she instructed, a hand resting against his cheek. “Everything’s going to be okay.” When he was a little more composed, she’d question him about what he had seen.

Fortunately, she didn’t have long to wait.

"No. All is not well Regina,” he declared, slipping his palm over her hand and squeezing it tight, making sure she was not mistaken about how he felt about her. “I think your friend, Mr Gold and his bride may be in trouble. I saw them in my vision. She was crying out in fear.”

"Belle? Are you sure?" Regina exclaimed, already on her feet and hurrying to her phone. “What else did you see?” She asked as she dialled Gold’s number.

"I think I heard her screaming," Stephen answered standing up himself, ready to leave at a moment’s notice, his voice full of dread. "Regina, we must go to them. If they are in trouble, we must help them." He implored her.

Regina stared at the display on her phone and muttered under her breath when she saw Gold wasn’t picking up his phone. Damn it. He was right, they had to get going now. Because that’s what heroes do, Regina thought, hearing the words she'd told Gold during their final confrontation with Zelena.

“He’s not answering,” Regina replied, realising belatedly that he probably had no idea what she was talking about. They probably didn’t have a lot of phones from where he came from. Grabbing her car keys, she headed for the door. “I’m pretty sure Gold can handle himself but just in case he can’t, we better get there to help him. Besides, I want a look at whatever this thing is.”

Sauron followed her out saying nothing.

******

When Belle slipped on the ring it was like the world had gone suddenly mad.

The room vanished about her, drained of all its life. The smell of sizzling bacon, the aroma of warm coffee, the sunlight pouring through the kitchen window, all of it had been reduced to a dull, surreal monochrome. The only thing that remained coloured was the eye and there was no doubt in her mind that it was an eye. It eclipsed everything else, with angry lashes of flame flicking at her like a serpent's tongue. The heat made her skin prickle until all she could do was turn away or risk burning. She uttered a single terrified cry before she heard another voice in the maelstrom.

"Belle! Belle! Where are you? Show yourself!"

Rumple! Belle recognised the voice and felt flushed with relief. That was Rumple!

Hearing his frantic call was all she needed to anchor herself and give her the will to turn away from that terrible eye. As her gaze was torn away, Belle caught a glimpse of the only other thing in colour and that was the ring on her finger. The ring!

Without thinking twice, she snatched it off her finger and suddenly found herself in the kitchen again, with everything back to normal except she was lying on a heap across the floor. Rumple was at her side in an instant, helping her off the ground before he bundled her up in his arms in a comforting embrace. The fear in his eyes probably matched hers and she drew comfort in hearing his heart pound against hers.

"Belle! Are you alright? You disappeared, Belle! I saw you disappear!" Gold exclaimed, needing to hear from her lips that she was alright.

He had good reason to fear. When she had slipped on the ring, the surge of power that radiated off the thing was like a being bathed in the flames of a blast furnace. Not to mention the fact that Belle had simply disappeared in front of him. It wasn't just that he could see her, he couldn’t feel her either. Invisibility spells were nothing new but for an instant, it felt like she'd stepped out of the world into someplace beyond reach.

"Oh Rumple," she sobbed, distraught. "It was terrible, so terrible!"

"You're safe my love," he assured her, bundling her to him in a tight embrace. He loved this girl more than he'd ever believed possible and she was the only light in his life now that Bae was gone. He couldn't lose her and he wouldn't let anything harm her either. "Nothing is going to hurt you. I won't let it." He promised.

Gold held her close, letting Belle cry herself out against his shoulder, patiently waiting for her tears to exhaust themselves before he would ask his questions. He had no idea how this ring that had mysteriously come into his possession but it was one of the powerful objects he'd encountered in centuries. It both fascinated and terrified him at the same time. The magic he felt was old, ancient in fact. Furthermore, there was a purity to it that was almost elemental, like it was a force nature like a storm or an earthquake.

"Belle," he coaxed her gently, "can you tell me what you saw?”

She was still trembling even though he was holding her close. They were both still on the floor of his kitchen and Gold made no move to leave it, not until she was ready. However, he had to know what had terrified her so much that she was reduced to this. There were dark forces moving through Storybrooke, maybe even unleashed by the fact that she’d slipped on the ring. Whatever it was, they needed every bit of knowledge she had to understand what they were dealing with.

Belle drew in a deep breath and it ran through her like a shudder. Her face was still pressed against his shoulder and her cheeks were wet with tears but she composed herself enough to speak. "It was so cold,” she spoke, her voice shaking like a leaf, “Like the world had drained of all colour. Everything felt so far away except for it."

"It?" Gold asked, listening closely as he stroked her back gently, the way one would soothe a skittish colt.

"It was an eye. A flaming eye! I’m sure of it! It stared at me! It could read my mind Rumple, I could feel it crawling around my brain. Rumpel, it knows my name!” She burst out before descending into fresh tears.

“It’s alright, it’s alright,” he tried to settle her down again, deciding that was enough. She'd broken down into tears again and her sobs cut through him like a knife. There was a deeper fear too, one he'd never considered until he'd lost Bae. His son had been the only weakness that could have been exploited by his enemies. Until Storybrooke that is, when Gold discovered what Regina had done to Belle. Only then he understood that he was vulnerable as long as he cared about someone. While he hardly considered Regina a threat, after what happened to Bae with Zelena, he could never he as assured again about the people he loved.

Rumpelstiltskin knew that if he didn't take steps, Belle could be placed in similar danger. There were terrors out there not even he could imagine and to see Belle reduced this wreckage, made him wonder what was coming at them. In the past, what he admired most about her was her courage and her ability to see beyond the worst of any creature. She'd loved him when he was a beast and now she was his wife. He was not going to lose her to another Captain Hook.

Whatever this thing was that now knew Belle's name and was coming for her, Mr Gold aka Rumpelstilskin swore he would do more than just take its hand, he'd have its head too.

*******

This time when Emma drove back to Storybrooke with Killian, the catastrophic destruction they'd found had killed any desire on either of their parts for playful banter.

"Try David again," Emma ordered Killian who had her phone on his lap.

"Right," the Pirate nodded, picking up the device and this time managed to dial Emma's father without any difficulty. When she first handed him the thing after they'd left the farm, he'd had some trouble mastering the 'phone' which was more troublesome than trying to tie a constrictor knot. Unfortunately, his newly acquired skill resulted in that annoying beeping tone that told him that David was not answering his own device.

"He isn't picking it up," he replied.

"Damn it!" Emma cursed. "Where the hell is he?"

Her eyes were fixed ahead when the little car drove into town limits and Killian could tell that she was worried as hell that something had come to Storybrooke that neither she nor the others could defeat. Zelena had so thoroughly proved how inadequate they were to defend themselves until the very end and even then, it had been so close. He knew she was thinking about Henry, about her son in this town and the danger to him. While he was confident that she wouldn't think of running as she had in the wake of Zelena's defeat, the fear for her child was still strong.

"Swan, talk to me. Are you alright?"

Emma sucked in her breath as they drove past Granny's and neared the apartment where David's pick up was parked against the kerb.

"We shouldn't be here," Emma bit back. "We shouldn't be in Storybrooke."

Apparently he was wrong.

Killian had no idea what to say to that. He was taken completely by surprise having believed that Emma had gotten past her fears about remaining Storybrooke with Henry. Was she thinking about leaving for New York? The thought made his stomach hollow and his chest constricted with hurt. Was it so easy for her to discard him after what they shared last night? The anguished lanced through him before he had a chance to rein it in. The pain moved so quickly through his heart, he didn't even realise it was reflected in his eyes.

When he didn't say a word, Emma glanced at him and saw the disappointment in his eyes, even though he was trying not to show it. However, by now, she’d learned to see straight through Killian and his silence puzzled her. For a moment, she couldn’t imagine what had brought on his sudden shift in demeanour until she went over what she had just said to him and realised how completely wrong he had taken her words. Uncertain whether or not she ought to be furious or flattered by how deeply hew as affected at the thought that she might take Henry and leave Storybrooke, Emma opted for the former.

"Oh for crying out loud Killian!" She exclaimed exasperated, swatting him across the bicep with one hand while the other steered the car into a parking spot behind David’s truck. "I don't mean me and Henry, you ass! I mean all of us! We should be back in the Enchanted Forest, back in the Kingdom! Being here makes us a target for every badass thing that wants to roll into town!"

Killian winced at the realisation that he had completely misunderstood her. Clearing his throat, he tried to regain some measure of dignity and cocky self-assurance and replied, “Well, of course, I knew that.” He said, lying his pirate arse off.

Once again, Emma saw right through the facade.

"Sure you did," she rolled her eyes and got out of the car.

Sometimes, she had no idea what was going through his head or for that matter, how little she thought of him. Of course, as soon as the thought crossed her mind, Emma had to remember that her relationship with Killian had been acrimonious from the start. God only knew how he’d fallen in love with her but he had and after he had, Killian suddenly became the guy who always had her back. If he wasn’t telling her she was strong, he was calling her out when she was being weak. It was Killian who told her she and Henry belonged with Snow and David in Storybrooke, long before Emma had realised it herself.

Last night, Emma had learned just how much he loved her and she also learned how much she really cared about him. When Zelena drowned him, all Emma could think of was him being gone from her life and that moment had struck cold terror into her heart. When she kissed Killian to revive him, Emma knew exactly what she was sacrificing and yet letting him die was unimaginable. She admitted in between their lovemaking that she could love him but Emma supposed he still didn’t quite believe it.

“Hey Killian,” Emma cursed under her breath and stared at him over the roof of the car. “Just get it into your head that you and me are a thing now okay? I’m not going to run off to New York or leave Storybrooke. This is my home. Mine and Henry’s. Stop freaking out already! There’s too much going on right now and I don’t want to have to keep trying to convince you that I care about! Alright?”

Her declaration, applied with the subtlety of a truncheon, had the desired effect because Killian listened to her annoyance and realised she wouldn’t be any other way if she didn’t really care. The earlier disappointment was superseded by a swell of happiness so intense he could scarcely contain it.

“I love you too Swan,” he found himself saying.

“Well duh!” She rolled her eyes and shut the car before heading towards the building the Charming called home.

Killian followed her grinning.

*******

Several terrible scenarios had built up in Emma’s head about why her father wasn’t answering his phone. The most obvious was what danger had decimated Zelena’s farm had somehow reached her parents and they were in mortal danger. The other was far more insidious and Emma knocked on the door, praying it wasn’t that because seeing them in the middle of sex once already, had been enough.

“Swan, don’t you have a key?” Killian asked puzzled by why she was standing outside her own home, waiting to be let in.

“Trust me,” Emma said shortly, “let’s try it this way first.”

When the door swung open and Emma found herself facing her father (thankfully clothed), she found herself relieved and then annoyed. Christ, she was certainly going through an emotional rollercoaster today.

“Dad, why the hell aren’t you picking up your phone! We’ve been calling and calling!” Emma demanded and brushed past him to enter the apartment.

David never had the chance to speak but the wail of someone even more annoyed than she was answer enough.

"OH GODDAMNIT!"

Emma froze as she heard Snow White, her mother, let loose a barrage of expletives that would have made any sailor blush and probably did because Killian took a cautionary step backwards when he heard it. This time it was Emma who grimaced when she suddenly realised why her father would have kept his phone off while he was at home.

So we wouldn’t wake up the baby, dumbass.

David let out a weary sigh, rubbing his temple before calling out to his wife, “Sorry Snow, we’ll try to be quiet.”

“Well its too late now!” came the annoyed retort over the sound of Baby Neal’s crying.

“Sorry mom,” Emma sang out apologetically when she saw David beckoning to her and Killian to step outside the apartment into the hallway. Closing the door behind him, after she and Killian were outside, her father looked decidedly harried and Emma supposed running a kingdom and fighting monsters were nowhere as taxing as trying to look after a baby.

"Sorry about turning my phone off," he explained even though the reason was self-evident. “Your mom’s having a little trouble getting Neal to sleep and because he's not sleeping, neither is she."

“Have you tried rum?” Killian asked helpfully.

“For the baby or Snow?” David asked. At this point, he was willing to be flexible.

“Whatever works.” the pirate shrugged. “A wee bit of rum in the milk and the little one will go right to sleep.”

“Once again, the baby or Snow?”

Men, Emma thought

“Dad, I’m sorry about barging in,” Emma apologised, remembering that she got Henry as a ten-year-old boy and had never had to go through the situation her parents were experiencing now. Actually, now that she thought about it, the Curse had ensured that they had as much experienced with babies as she did. "I was just worried, Killian and I just got back from Zelena’s farm and it's bad."

Suddenly, the new father vanished and the Prince of the Kingdom was back with a vengeance. 0“What do you mean? Are you both alright?” He shifted his gaze from Emma to Killian.

"I've never seen anything like it mate," Killian answered, sensing real concern in David’s voice for him when the Prince asked the question... "The land was burned to the ground almost half a mile out. Nothing is standing, not the barn, the house or any of the grazing animals. Not even the grass. Its like something fierce came out of that portal and devastated everything around it.”

"My God,” David exclaimed. “And you’re sure this isn’t something leftover from Zelena?”

“I don’t think she had the juice to do this even when she was alive,” Emma answered. “There’s something else out there and it pretty damn powerful.”

*******

Regina sped her car all the way to Gold’s house.

Although initially ambivalent about climbing into her Mercedes, Regina managed to convince Stephen that this really the fastest way to reach Gold. Once inside the car, his anxiety gave way to fascination especially when he saw how quickly the distance was covered. Neither spoke during the journey and Regina hated to admit, she missed the playful flirtation they'd been indulging in since they'd met. It had been a good distraction from her troubles with Robin. Stephen appeared just as preoccupied as she by what he had seen in his vision and Regina suspected that while he may be aware of magic, he did not deal much with it during his day to day life.

“This is it,” Regina announced, bringing the vehicle to a gradual stop along the kerb that flanked Gold's house. It was only mid-afternoon so Regina could not tell by the lights if the couple was home or not. All she had to go on was Stephen's insistence that some menace was threatening Belle and Rumpelstilskin. 

“I hope we are not too late,” Stephen declared as he followed her out of the vehicle, repeating what she did to open the door before he joined her on the sidewalk. Appearing clearing distressed by the fate of an innocent, he added, “the girl was so afraid. She was screaming.”

"Don't worry," Regina brushed a glove across his arm. "We'll get to them in time." 

With that, she hurried up the path, hearing his footsteps keeping pace with her as she took the cobblestone walk to Gold's front porch. As she approached the house, she could feel the tremor through her senses of something powerful behind the door. It was staggering how strong it was, even the white magic she'd used to defeat Zelena didn't feel as potent as this.

Not bothering to knock, Regina twisted the doorknob on the front door and found it unlocked. It opened with an audible click and she pushed it open, peering around the corner to see if anyone was in sight. There wasn’t. Surveying the rest of the house from where she stood, Regina saw nothing out of the ordinary but there was no denying the place was resonating with unfamiliar magic. It felt as if it had soaked into the walls and into the wood. It would have been intoxicating if it were not so obviously dangerous. 

"Gold! It’s Regina! Are you and Belle alright? Answer me!” She called out, staring at the staircase that led to the upstairs floor of the house.

“Perhaps you should seek them out," Stephen suggested coming up behind her when no answer was forthcoming. "What I sensed was powerful and evil. It could have overcome them.” 

"Stay here," Regina answered, hating to admit he could be right and approached the staircase. This time, she opted for stealth, in case what was responsible for the magic she was sensing was up there. No sense giving herself away more than she already had. 

She didn’t notice where Stephen went.

********

More than one hundred millennia before this day, Sauron, Lord of Mordor had stood upon the plain of Dagorland facing Gil-galad and Elendil during the Last Alliance of Men and Elves. It was on that plain, that he last wore the One Ring. 

Today, it gave him immense satisfaction to know that despite his apparent defeat at the hands of Isildur, who’d cut the ring from his finger, Sauron had outlived them all. Gil-galad, Elendil, Elrond and even Aragorn were all gone, withered into the dust of time’s passage. The line of kings was broken for all time while the elves had retreated forever into the Undying Lands, abandoning Arda for good.

And once more, the Ring of Power had returned to his master.

He found it on the floor of the kitchen where the girl had dropped it after her brief moment as a ringbearer. It took a strong will to be able to wear the ring without it consuming the mind. That damn hobbit had worn it all the way to Mount Doom and was undoubtedly scarred after the experience but he had managed to prevail. Sauron had sensed that there was strength in the girl Belle but she was a kind, compassionate soul and the Ring of Power had no use for such qualities.

Picking it up off the floor, there was no hesitation when Sauron slid the ring upon his finger. 

He wondered how he could have ever poured his strength into any piece of jewellery when he felt the surge of power that exploded through him as soon as the ring made contact with his flesh. Every corner of his being came alive as Ring of Power renewed him with the strength that had been lain dormant since the Second Age. It swept through him with the raw ferocity of an elemental god finally awakening from a long sleep. 

"Stephen!" Regina burst into the room with Gold behind her, feeling the shockwaves that had moved through the house and then across the town. “Take off that ring! You don’t know what it will do to you!” 

“Actually my lady,” he looked at her with a smile. “I do. After all, I am the one who made it.”

Chapter Six
Primordial Magic

Emma was still standing outside the apartment with David and Killian when the fallout from Sauron’s magic swept across Storybrooke and finally reached her. 

One moment, she was telling her father what she and Killian found at Zelena’s farm and the next minute, she was overcome with a wave of disorientation so intense, the world spun around her in a dull, grey kaleidoscope. Emma felt the air being forced out her lungs, causing her to gasp as she struggled for breath. She couldn’t breathe or focus for that matter, feeling as if she’d been dropped into the eye of a hurricane turning the world into a formless vortex that had no colour. When her knees buckled beneath her, Emma hardly noticed.

 “Swan!” Killian exclaimed and caught her before she could hit the wooden floor, his hand coiling around her waist while at the same time David gripped her arm. 

“Emma, what’s wrong?” David demanded as he helped Killian to keep her on her feet. 

“Something’s happened,” she replied breathlessly, unaware that she’d almost collapsed. "I’m not sure what but it's strong and I think its magic. It just hit me like a ton of bricks. I’ve never felt anything like it.” She declared, with more than a hint of panic in her voice. 

"Come on," David said gesturing at Killian, "Let’s get her inside." 

"No, no!" Emma protested, forcing herself to regain control of her faculties. She didn’t need to rest! She needed to get to the bottom of this, whatever this was. "We have to find Gold and Regina. If I felt it, then they must have too. They'll have a better idea of what it is than I would." 

Killian did not like this idea at all but knew Emma well enough to accept that she wouldn’t be deterred if this was her decision. Judging by the frown on David’s face, the pirate guessed that Emma’s father felt the same way. 

"Swan, are you sure about this?" He asked, still holding onto her tight. He shared David's wish to get Emma somewhere she could catch her breath before she went rushing off to face this new menace. Then again, Emma wouldn't be Emma if she sat back let everything go to hell. The woman had a fearless streak that knew no limitations. It was why Killian loved her so much and why he vowed to remain at her side, to always remind her that she was strong even when she didn’t believe it herself. 

"Yeah," she nodded still keeping an arm over Killian’s shoulder for support while she regained her balance. "Dad, I need you to stay here and close to your phone. If we need help, you’ll have to get Robin and some of the others together. Killian and I will find down Regina and Gold. Maybe they need to go to the farm and check it out for themselves. Gold especially, he's got more juice than any of us; he might be able to figure out what happened out there." 

"Aye," Killian nodded in agreement with that. "If anyone can work it out, it’s the Crocodile. He's been around magic longer than anyone else in the Kingdom." 

David frowned, hating the idea of letting Emma go off alone with just Hook as back up when he should have been alongside of her. However, Emma was right. He had to think about Snow and the baby, not to mention Henry whom he'd have to go pick up from school soon. Besides, even though he was still cautious about the change in Emma’s relationship with Hook, he did know that the pirate would never leave her side was he able. 

"Keep her safe...Killian." David said turning to the pirate, his voice conveying the trust he was putting in this man over the life of his daughter. 

It was quite something to earn David's trust, this much Killian had come to learn and like Emma's love, it wasn't something he took lightly. "Will do mate," he answered, his voice devoid of its usual flippancy. "I’ve got this." 

“Uh she can take care of herself Dad,” Emma shook her head and broke away from Killian showing she had recovered fully from her earlier disorientation. “Come on pirate, let’s go.” 

“Wonderful girl,” Killian gave David a look as he followed Emma who had recovered walking down the hall. “She must get her charm from you.” 

*****

A few minutes before Regina had found Stephen in Gold's kitchen, she'd been on her way up the staircase to find Gold when the wizard himself appeared at the top of the stairs, his expression stormy. In all the years she'd known him, Regina had rarely seen him enraged like this, even when she’d been his student and not even after Zelena had killed his son. The fury in his eyes unnerved the former Evil Queen but her own imperious nature exerted itself and she brushed away her reservations about intruding upon him. 

“What are you doing here Regina?” He demanded, looking down at her, pausing in his steps when he caught sight of her. 

“Stephen had a vision of you and Belle in trouble,” she explained quickly. “He insisted we come here to see if you both were okay. Where’s Belle?” Regina asked, worried when she could neither see nor hear the girl anywhere. 

“I put her to bed,” Gold retorted with barely concealed rage in each word he spoke. “She’s had a bit of a nasty turn after finding something in my collection I don't ever remember getting." 

“Is she alright?” 

While Regina had her own chequered history with the little librarian, Regina knew that Belle was one of the few people in town who saw her as redeemable. If Belle could find it in her heart to love the Dark One, then it wasn’t a stretch to see how she could think the Evil Queen could become someone better. For that Regina was grateful and hoped Belle hadn’t been harmed. 

“She’s not in good shape,” Gold said grimly. Regina’s genuine concern disarmed his anger somewhat. “She found a ring in my collection and put it on. When she slipped it on her finger, she turned invisible.” 

“An invisibility ring?” Regina exclaimed with surprise unable to imagine Gold not remembering that he possessed such a trinket. A ring like that would require significant skill with magic to create. "There's such a thing?" She stared at him having never heard of anything of the like that during her time as the Evil Queen in the Enchanted Forest. 

“It's more than just a ring...” Gold started to say when suddenly he realised something. Regina had not come here alone. He'd been so preoccupied with Belle he hadn't been paying attention. "Where's Stephen?" 

Regina never had a chance to answer because that magical nuclear bomb he had been so concerned about detonating suddenly went off in his kitchen. 

*********

She was a fool. 

That was all Regina could think when she found herself facing Stephen in Gold’s kitchen. He’d played her like a fool. All that flirtatious looks and intimate gestures, not to mention that damned tattoo. All of it was a lie perpetrated to get under her skin, to get past the defences of her already ravaged heart. Regina glared at him, trying not to let the emotion reach her eyes, trying not to let her see just how vulnerable she was because she couldn’t bear anyone seeing the pain of her humiliation. 

"You made it, " Regina declared, comprehension flooding her when she realised how easily they’d all been played. Everything he’d said to them had been designed to engender sympathy. His feigned bewilderment at the modern world, his false declarations of concern regarding Belle and worst of all, his attempt to charm her with the conceit that she was the woman he’d been searching for. 

“Is that what this whole thing has been about? About getting that ring?" Regina’s words escaped her bitterly because even if she tried to project indifference, the bastard would still know he’d hurt her. 

“Yes,” Sauron nodded simply, making no effort to hide his true intentions, not now that he had the One Ring in his possession. However, while the main goal of his arrival here had been satisfied, there were other lingering desires that would not be dispelled that easily. The curse of flesh, he told himself. "One hundred thousand years ago,” he flashed the ring at both Regina and Gold, "This ring that belonged to me was stolen. My every waking moment after its theft has been engaged in its retrieval. Now, at long last, the One Ring belongs to me again.” 

"And now that you have it? What do you plan to do with it?" Gold asked, feeling his gut twist in anger at how easily they'd been taken in. Or had they? Was Stephen simply that good or was that part of his power? The answer frightened Gold. The power that had swept through the house and across Storybrooke was far more potent than any he’d ever encountered. Earlier at the diner, he had felt the radiating power of the man but now the coming together of Stephen and his ring had made that earlier estimation pale. The magic that had been unleashed was almost primordial in its purity and for the first time in his entire existence, Gold was uncertain whether he could take this enemy. 

"Absolutely nothing," Sauron assured them both having no desire to fight either Regina or Gold. There was too much to be done back in Middle Earth and he was eager to get back to his own time. The battle at the Black Gate would unfold differently when he returned with the One Ring. However, before he returned, there were other matters he wanted settling. "I have no designs in this land. It has its attractions,” his eyes rested on Regina, “My business is back in the Third Age. I came here only to claim what is mine, to begin with. I have a war to win." 

"A war to win?" Regina scoffed, still smarting from his deception. “Was anything you told us real?” 

“A great many things I told you is real Regina,” Sauron addressed her directly because he knew that Gold had a pragmatic spirit. He was much like Saruman in that way. If Gold could be convinced he was no threat to Storybrooke, then he would not interfere with Sauron’s plan to return home. However, the rage of a woman who felt herself deceived could not be underestimated and if anyone would challenge him, it would be Regina. However, Sauron did not wish her as an enemy. 

"I never lied to you about anything except my name my lady,” he spoke in the same tone he had used when he was attempting to seduce her. “There is a kingdom of Gondor and a city called Minas Tirith. That city was defended by Rangers of the North but alas, I was the one they were trying to defeat. I am Sauron, Lord of Mordor and I came for the One Ring." 

As he presented it to them, Regina saw the inscription against the gold that was suddenly visible. The language was nothing she recognised and Sauron saw her confusion.

 "Allow me," he declared confidently and recited, "Ash nazg durbatulûk, ash nazg gimbatul, ash nazg thrakatulûk, agh burzum-ishi krimpatul." 

As he said those words, the sky beyond the ceiling began to rumble uncomfortably as if something unholy had been unleashed from the memories of the world when it was still young. Thunder and lightning contested dominance over the sky with each word of Black Speech uttered.

This was ancient magic, one that could only be exploited by someone who was able to tap into the fundamental fabric of the world. Wizards of his and Regina’s calibre could only manipulate these forces of nature through the use of spells that most often required other ingredients to empower. On some level, they could manipulate the existing weave of magical energy to do their will. However, what this Sauron was doing, took skill that neither Regina nor he had. To be able to sift through all the patterns of energy, to find the ones to use as he had, that was magic at its purest and most dangerous. 

“What does any of that mean?” He demanded, prepared to attack if necessary. He was attempting to be the better man for Belle, to not react blindly until they knew what they were dealing with. A premature exertion of power could cost them all. 

"Forgive me," Sauron apologised, eyes fixed on Gold, suspecting the man was debating what was to be done. “I should translate. One Ring to rule them all, One ring to find them. One ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them." 

"Well, you have your ring!" Regina spat. "Get out of here and leave us alone. No one will stop you!" She wanted him gone, wanted him to take the feelings he’d engendered in her and leave. The notion that he could be her soul mate made her sick to her stomach. What was the point of her trying to be a better person when the person who could be her true love was a monster? It didn’t seem fair. 

“I will soon enough but Regina,” Sauron took a step towards her. “Come with me.” 

Her jaw dropped in astonishment. “You must be joking.” 

“No,” he shook his head. “You and I are alike. We are both driven by nobler causes than our actions would have others believe. I wanted to end the chaos of man’s rule. Watching them slaughter each other by the thousand whilst destroying everything they touched, they needed order and I could have made this a paradise. You, your heart has been broken and everything that you have done since then has been a cry of pain. We can heal each other Regina, come with me and you will not be the queen of a broken heart. I will give everything you have ever desired. You want love? I will give that to you. You have moved me in ways I never thought possible and I do not wish to leave without you. You know in your heart you can be happy with me.” 

“Regina...” Gold spoke up, aware of how close to the truth, this Sauron was about Regina’s motivations. She’d always been a slave to her passions. It was why he had found it so easy to manipulate her into enacting the Curse he needed to bring him to Storybrooke so he could find Bae. At the heart of her, however, Regina was still that idealistic girl whose heart Cora had broken by killing Daniel. “You’ve got people who care about you here. Don’t be foolish. This is a trick.” 

Sauron shot Gold a look of ice but resumed his entreaty to Regina “I did lie to you about why I am here but I am not lying about my feelings for you. What people do you have here? Your lover belongs to someone else and your child has his real mother. Come with me and I will give you a houseful of sons. Together, we will rule a dynasty that will last all the ages of the world. Be my queen and you will never be unloved again.”

He spoke with such earnestness, it was hard for Regina to not be affected nor could she deny how it felt to be with him today. His touch against her skin had been electric and how he made her feel despite her heartbreak was undeniable. There was so much sincerity in his voice Regina found herself unable to immediately balk at what he was offering her. Those same blue eyes, intense and searching, fixed on hers, waiting for an answer. 

“Regina,” he extended his hand to her, “I can make you happy.” 

If it were any other day than the one after Robin had broken her heart, Regina knew she’d be able to laugh this off but she couldn’t. She’d been so happy with Robin and to have it snatched away, cruelly, was more than she could bear. She’d done everything she could to be a better person and yet a happy ending was still denied her. Why shouldn’t she take his offer? 

“Regina, think of what this will do to Henry.” Gold reminded when Regina did not refuse Sauron outright. 

Sauron’s patience with this wizard had run its course. With a sharp turn of his head towards Gold, the Dark One was suddenly flung out of the kitchen with such force that the debris of crushed wall and furniture followed him out of the building like it had been blown out by a vacuum. Regina jumped as she watched the most powerful wizard she knew swatted out of his own house like an interloper. 

“Stephen... I mean Sauron, stop!” She cried out. 

“The choice is yours, Regina,” Sauron lowered his hand. “I have been waiting for you all my existence. I am your soul mate.” 

******

Emma’s first clue that everything had gone to hell was when Gold smashed into the windscreen of her car. 

Glass sprayed across her and Killian as he impacted and Emma was barely able to shield her eyes in time, letting go instinctively of the steering wheel. The VW bug veered dangerously off the road, making a beeline for the row of parked cars on the street. Hearing the screech of tyres snapped Emma back to attention and she grabbed the wheel and turned the car sharply before it could plough into the other vehicles. The bug tilted precariously to the side, almost tipping over but Emma managed to keep it from capsizing completely. 

“What the hell!” Killian had cursed once the car had stopped, brushing glass off himself and turning to Emma. “Are you alright?” 

“Yeah I’m fine,” Emma replied hastily and saw that Gold was still lying across her windscreen like an insect caught on the wipers. “Gold!” She called out as she jumped out of the car, the door opening with an uneasy creak. “Gold are you okay?” 

The wizard appeared dazed but the lack of blood after the landing he made gave Emma hope that he wasn’t hurt too badly. He had magic to protect him, didn’t he? Then again, what the hell had flung him through the air like a puppet? Not even Zelena had been able to do that and she had his dagger. 

“Gold!” Emma cried out again, wanting an answer. 

“I’m fine, I’m fine!” Gold snapped, sitting up on the hood of her car and dislodging more glass from the ruined windscreen as he moved. 

“What the hell happened?” She demanded. 

“Stephen!” The wizard returned, furious as the ease at which he’d been dismissed as well as suffering the after-effects of being swatted away like a fly. “Stephen is what bloody happened!” 

“Oh bugger,” Killian hissed realising that they had inadvertently let a wolf in the fold. “Let me guess, he wasn’t exactly forthright about who he was?” 

“To say the least,” Gold growled and turned towards his house. “I’ve got to get Belle out of there.” 

“Wait Gold!” Emma hurried after him still playing catch up. “Stephen is our bad guy?” 

“His name isn’t Stephen,” the wizard answered promptly, “and he’s got more bloody power than I’ve seen anyone wield. I don’t know how but he’s using primordial magic.” 

“What?” Emma stared at him. “What the hell is that?” 

Gold paused and a moment and shot her an impatient look but understood it had to be explained. “Primordial magic is ancient. I don’t have it, Regina doesn’t have it, not even Maleficent. I don’t even know of any wizard that possess that kind of power. White magic is able to channel some of the elements of primordial magic because of its purity but not to its full effect. In this world, what we call primordial magic is you call creationism.” 

“Wait a minute,” Killian froze in his steps, having read some of the literature of this world and had found their Bible almost as entertaining as some of the more lavish tales of the Enchanted Forest. Still was it real? He hadn’t thought so. Then again, to the people of this world, he was a fictional character, they all were. “You’re talking about the making of the world.”

“Yes,” Gold resumed walking. “Primordial magic is what is used to create life. Its most powerful magic there is and usually wielded by higher beings.”

“Higher beings?” Emma’s eyes widened. “You mean like angels and...” she almost didn’t dare say it. “God?”

“I suppose you could call them that,” Gold frowned, not about to substantiate her belief in this realm’s mythology. “In any case, it's going to take all three of us to stop him. That is if Regina hasn’t already joined him.” 

“What?” Emma demanded only to have her question go unanswered when she saw Stephen stepping out of the hole that had been created in Gold’s kitchen. Regina was nowhere in sight and that sent a surge of alarm through the Saviour at what had happened to the former evil queen. After what she’d done to Regina the night before by bringing Marian back, Emma was harbouring enough guilt without believing that her actions might have driven Regina back to her old ways. 

“Stand down,” Sauron said as he saw the three people before him. “I am leaving this realm and you will not stop me.” 

“Where’s Regina?” Emma demanded. “What have you done with her?” 

“I have done nothing to her,” Sauron declared, eyeing Emma closely. He would need the girl eventually but right now, he needed to play the part because he was earnest in his desire to take Regina with him back to Middle Earth. To do so, however, he had to proceed carefully. “I made her an offer and allowed her time to consider it.” 

“You’re not going anywhere,” Gold retorted. “Not until you tell us where you came from. If it was a simple matter of retrieving your ring and returning to where you came from, you wouldn’t have lied to us. What aren’t you telling us?” He demanded. 

“I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to you,” Sauron said coldly. 

“Crocodile,” Killian warned, “I wouldn’t bait him after what you’ve told us about his magic.” The pirate still couldn’t believe he was trying to keep the man who took his hand from being killed needlessly however, the times made strange allies of them all. “Not until we’ve got some way of beating him.” 

“Listen to the pirate,” Sauron continued walking over the grass, nearing them on the sidewalk, “he gives you good advice although he is wrong in that you can find a way to defeat me. You cannot.” 

“He won’t be alone!” Emma declared, taking a stance next to Gold. She was unafraid to admit she was scared because she knew what she felt in the hallway only a short time ago. If Stephen was the cause of that, then she had reason to be worried. In the corner of her eyes, she felt a flood of relief when she saw Killian taking up position alongside of her. This may be a fight out of his depth but Emma was grateful that he was willing to stand and fight with her anyway. 

“Back off!” She shouted at Stephen who had managed to fool them all so spectacularly. Not even her superpower was able to penetrate the mastery of his deception. 

“I have no patience for this,” Sauron snorted and then started reciting more words from that dreaded language that able to make nature itself recoil at its utterance. 

“Snaga fûthûrz oghûk bûrzum bûrgulu!”

Emma looked up and saw storm clouds appearing with each word spoken as the air became charged with electricity of some kind. Then without warning, lightning bolts lashed out from the sky striking various point on the street. Bluish spikes of energy impacted against the tar road, fragmenting rock upon contact and leaving something behind in its wake. A pool of black cloth was left behind wherever the tendrils of energy had struck. It wasn’t just on the road either, she realised, it was all across the street, on the sidewalk, on the front porch of the house belonging to Gold’s neighbours and even in the middle of someone’s front lawn. One of them struck behind her, making Emma jump and spin around. 

Like the rest of the street, Emma watched the dark pool of fabric left in the wake of the lightning spike, confused by what this was until she heard Sauron’s recital once more.

“Snaga fûthûrz oghûk bûrzum bûrgulu!”

As he spoke, the cloth began to rise, slowly and surely. Emma thought of a balloon being inflated but as it continued to grow, matching her in height and then surpassing it, she realised that there was more than just something beneath that pile of dark rags. It was someone. 

And there were Nine.

Chapter Seven
The Lord of Mordor

Regina's head was spinning. 

Nevermind that she had been completely utterly taken in by a stranger who had not only appealed to her broken heart but was in possession of magical so formidable Regina could scarcely believe it let alone know how to combat it. Until now, Rumpelstiltskin had been the most powerful wizard she had ever encountered. Hell, he’d taught her almost everything she knew and yet Stephen...no, not Stephen, she corrected herself, Sauron had swatted him away like he was some novice stumbling with the craft for the first time. Even at the height of her power, Regina had never dared to go up against Rumpelstiltskin and yet this Sauron not only did it with ease, but the whole confrontation also seemed like a chore he had to perform, not a battle between equals. 

That was only one of the many things that unnerved Regina about Sauron. The most obvious of course, being the ardent and passionate proposal he’d left her with after walking out of Gold’s ruined kitchen. Yes, everything he had told her about himself a was lie. He wasn’t a soldier trying to protect his city. Instead, he was the very enemy waging the war in the first place. He had not been displaced in time but had chosen to come here willingly, in search of a ring that seemed to imbue him with levels of power that Regina had never seen before. 

Despite all this, she couldn’t deny that when he looked at her with those searching blue eyes, it was as if he was reaching into her soul and claiming her heart for his own. Not only that but it was as if it had always belonged to him and all those loves were only placeholders until his arrival. Even when his touch was chaste, Sauron managed to feel like a lover. And his words, it was everything she’d ever wanted to hear from someone who loved her. Everything she’d thought she’d lost after Daniel had died, only dangled cruelly before her by Robin, was what he now offered her without hesitation. A house full of children, he'd said. He would make her his queen and give her a family. She'd never be alone again. She'd have love that was hers and hers alone, not to be shared or stolen away. Finally, she’d have a happy ending.

It was almost too good to be true and then again, wasn’t that how it started with Robin? Look how that turned out. 

Sauron had stared at her with those intense blue eyes and once again Regina felt her heart melt in her chest, felt the hungry need that pulled her towards him. All that power at his command and it was she he wanted. No one else. Regina couldn't help feeling flattered by that and what he'd offered her was everything she had dreamed so long ago when she was young and still full of hope. Even more recently, she had truly believed that fate had given her a second chance and that she could have it all with Robin but that wasn't on the cards, not now that Emma had brought back his wife. 

"Regina," she heard Belle's voice calling her. "What's happened? Where’s Rumpel?” 

Regina blinked, forgetting that Belle was still in the house, recovering from what Gold had called ‘a nasty turn’. The librarian had come down from the upstairs bedroom, no doubt to investigate the commotion and was now standing at the doorway to the kitchen. Belle’s expression revealed shock and growing fear of what had happened in her absence. 

“Belle!” Regina hurried over to her, wanting to make sure that she was alright. The young woman looked frightened and dazed and Regina who had recently learned that these people in Storybrooke meant more to her than she could possibly believe, wanted to ensure Belle was alright. “Are you okay? Gold said that you were hurt or something?” 

“Yes, I put on this strange ring and something happened to me,” Belle struggled to explain and decided she needed answers more than she wished to give explanations she couldn’t articulate yet, “Regina what’s going on?” She demanded instead. 

“Stephen,” Regina answered her quickly. “He’s not what he seems. You need to get to Granny’s. Gold and I have got to deal with this. Go there and wait. If you get caught up in the middle of this, it’s only going to distract Rumpelstiltskin and I need his head in the game. You need to get out of the line of fire.” 

“But...” Belle started to protest not liking the idea of leaving Rumpel at all. 

Unfortunately, Regina had no patience to deal with the girl and her questions. As it was, she needed to see what was happening outside. Stephen’s deception had left her reeling and she’d fallen behind, allowing Gold to face him alone. “I said GO!,” Regina barked, her attempt at diplomacy giving way for urgency, “It’s not safe Belle and I’ve got to get out there!” 

Belle jumped at the sharp rebuke and nodded, smart enough not to challenge Regina with any more questions or delay her any further. Regina had become a better person these last months and if she felt leaving would help Rumpel than that was exactly what Belle would do. Without further protest, she hurried out of the room while Regina turned towards the ragged hole in the kitchen wall to see what was happening outside. 

******

They looked like Death. 

Covered from head to toe in long, black cloaks with their hoods concealing faces she couldn’t see, Emma felt a chill run down her spine when she saw them springing to life around the neighbourhood. Despite the fact it had been a bright sunny day only a short time ago, the skies had darkened as if the creatures had the power to pull the life out of the world by just standing there. Emma watched as they bowed their heads at Stephen, ensuring that anyone who saw them knew to whom they held fealty. 

The one that had formed behind her, raised its cloaked head and Emma felt another shudder of fear run through her when she realised she couldn’t see its face, only the crimson points of its eyes. It held position, making no move towards her but Emma had swung around nonetheless, prepared to face it. She had grabbed her gun when they got out of the car but it never felt enough when facing off with magical creatures. Killian, on the other hand, had unsheathed his sword, raising it at the creature in case it got it in its mind to attack. 

“They will not attack,” Sauron announced to them coolly, “not unless you give them a reason to. I have told you already, I have what I need. My ring is back in my possession and I do not plan to linger in this time for long. All I wish to do is gather my strength and then I shall return to my own land where I have business to attend.” 

“Really?” Gold snorted unwilling to believe a being of this power had no malicious intent here. Not with the deception he had so masterfully pulled on all of them, especially Regina. “Why don’t I believe you?” 

“Because you do not have the power to stop me,” Sauron stated bluntly seeing no reason to pad the truth for these minor conjurers. “You and the girl with your higgledy-piggledy, two penny understanding of magic. Children playing with weapons you do not understand. You are in no position to challenge me and I certainly am disinclined to waste my effort here on battles I have no interest in waging. Stand aside and let me and mine leave without interference.”

“Well we’ve just been told,” Emma bristled, finding it infuriating and at the same time worrying that Stephen hardly saw them as a threat, let alone anything to be wasting time with. 

“He may talk a good bluff Swan,” Killian remarked, watching the hooded figure behind them closely., “but beware, he could have the cards to play.” He warned her. 

“My master does not lie,” the figure suddenly spoke for the first time and its voice was reminded Killian of the last breath of a drowning man before he was taken into Davy Jones’ locker. Despite himself, even the pirate’s usual cocky demeanour was somewhat unnerved. 

“You are nothing to be concerned about,” it hissed smugly. 

“Now that just wounds me,” Killian retorted flippantly, feigning mock hurt while he held his blade steady in the direction of the creature. “At the very least, I wanted to be mildly irritating.” 

Emma rolled her eyes, the guy could be such an ass. 

“Killian,” She flashed him a look of warning. “Maybe not the best time to try and charm the guy.” 

“Come Morgul,” Sauron commanded his servants. “We are leaving.” 

“I beg to differ,” Gold countered, still convinced that this Sauron was nowhere as benign as he claimed to be. Every instinct the wizard had told him there was something this Sauron wasn’t telling them and that allowing him to go about his business without learning the truth or trying to stop him from achieving it, would have dire consequences for them all... 

Concentrating hard, his expression taut with concentration, Gold threw a holding spell at Sauron. A cloud of dark energy suddenly formed around Sauron as if he was caught in the middle of a hurricane. It encircled the enemy in a vortex of purple that lifted leaves and dirt from the ground and filled the air with the sound of gale-force winds of a tornado. For a moment, the purple mist completely enveloped Sauron until he disappeared before its thick, swirling clouds. When the Lord of Mordor attempted to break free, he found his arms and legs held in place as if he were a fly caught amber. Frowning in annoyance, he appeared to let out a heavy sigh as he was forced to deal with the very same inconvenience he had been hoping to avoid. 

“I really did not wish to do this,” he shouted at Gold through the sound of rushing wind. “However, if it is a fight you wish, I will oblige you.” 

Dropping his head down for a moment, Sauron closed his eyes and summoned all the power at his disposal now that the One Ring was returned to him. He was a Maiar spirit who had helped Morgoth shape Arda, it would take more than this to hinder him. The purple mist of energy was suddenly dispersed, scattered by a blast of fiery power that escaped him like the first explosion of lava from a volcano. The wave expanded outward, causing parked cars to flip over and the tops of fire hydrants to suddenly burst, sending jets of water spraying into the air. Power lines snapped, spitting glowing embers electricity across the tar road from live electrical cables dancing about excitedly. 

The expulsion of energy swept Gold off his feet and Emma found herself tumbling against Killian uncontrollably. It was as if an invisible hand just brushed them aside like they were nothing. Her fall was blunted by Killian’s body and she heard the sharp clank of his hook against the hard ground. The creature in the dark cloak, however, remained on its feet, unaffected by its master’s tremendous power. 

“Swan, this is not the time,” Emma heard Killian grumble when she landed on top of him. 

Emma didn’t answer. Instead, her attention was fixed on the creature that was now approaching them. Somehow, it had reached into the folds of its dark cloak and produced what appeared to be a broadsword, clutched in a gauntleted hand. She reacted immediately, raising the gun she hadn’t dropped when she’d fallen and opened fire. 

The explosion of gunfire made Killian curse beneath her and halted the cloaked figure in its tracks. It looked down at its body, to where the bullets would have entered. Its reaction appeared to be one of curiosity rather than any real concern of injury. Once it was confident that the bullets had done no harm, it resumed walking towards her again. 

“No weapon forged of men can harm the Nazgul,” it explained to her almost amused as it lifted the sword in its hand, prepared to bring it down on her.

“Emma! Get clear!” Killian shoved her off him with all his might when he saw the Nazgul hovering over them. Emma was thrown clumsily off to the side of him and Killian had just enough time to raise his hooked hand to take the brunt of the blow. Metal clanged hard against metal, raining sparks against his skin at the contact. He managed to keep the blade from his body though not by much. Mustering another bout of strength, Killian shoved back the blade with a forceful grunt. Scrambling upright, Killian immediately took on a duelling position so that he could fight the creature on more equal footing. 

In the meantime, Emma had gotten to her feet to see another one of these Nazgul approaching Killian’s flank. Making sure that he was clear, Emma tried shooting at it again but just like earlier, bullets seemed to have little effect on it. It continued to close in on them with Killian oblivious to the danger. He was busy fighting off the first Nazgul. However, while he was matched the creature blow for blow, Emma realised that the jabs he inflicted had the same effect as her bullets. They weren’t harming the thing at all and she was certain that Killian didn’t have the same advantage.

She sought out Gold, hoping he could help but soon realised that the Dark One was having problems of his own. 

Emma had seen Gold use magic before but not like this. The space between Gold and Stephen was crackling with magic. Stephen’s power seemed steeped in fire and when he attacked, columns of it flew through the air like cannonballs. Gold threw up a shield of protection magic but the relentless cascade was driving him backwards, until he was almost to his knees, trying to keep the flames consuming him whole. Stray bursts of Stephen’s magic was setting fire to bushes and fences until smoke was filling the air. In the meantime, the rest of the Nazgul continued to close in on Gold. 

He couldn’t help them, she thought and turned back to Killian. The pirate was still battling the Nazgul with everything he had but the second creature was closing in on him fast and a surge of panic struck Emma at the thought of what would happen when he found himself trapped between them. Realising she had to help him, Emma tucked away her gun because magic was needed to help him and cursing at the fact that she was still pretty lousy at it. 

She had no choice, Killian’s life depended on it. 

Taking a deep breath, she concentrated, using her fear for him to guide her focus. Suddenly bursts of white energy flew from her hands and struck the second Nazgul square in the chest. It flung the cloaked figure across the road and both Killian and his opponent turned to her in surprise. Emma let out a grateful sigh that her magic had worked well enough to help Killian and felt chuffed at the proud smile he gave her before turning back to the Nazgul in front of him. However, what triumph Emma felt was short-lived because the creature had tricks of its own to surprise them with. Without warning, it expelled something from its mouth, something dark and malignant that resembled a cloud of ash that hit Killian full in the face. 

For a second, he did not register what the Nazgul had done. If anything Emma saw only confusion come over his face as he tried to determine what had just happened. Then suddenly Killian sank to his knees. The grip on his sword went slack and the weapon slipped out of his grasp unto the ground. The Nazgul turned away as soon as Killian had dropped, so confident in its masterstroke that it didn’t even bother with looking over its shoulder to see the pirate’s condition. Instead, with callous indifference, the Nazgul continued towards Gold, converging on the wizard-like the others. 

Emma didn’t notice any of this. All she saw was Killian going down. For an instant, she was transported back to that terrible moment when she’d pulled the pirate out of the well after Zelena had drowned him. In that instance, her stomach became sick with the idea that he could be dead before she had the chance to tell him how much he mattered to her. 

“Killian!” Emma cried out and bolted forward once she was able to get her legs moving again. Skidding to her knees next to him, Killian had fallen on his back against the bitumen road. His blue eyes were quickly turning dark and he didn’t react to her voice when she called his name. The lack of recognition was like a punch to the gut and filled her with a terrible sense of dread.

He couldn’t leave her! Not after she’d let him in! Not after he’d sacrificed to win her heart. 

“Killian!” She grabbed him by the lapels of his coat and shook him hard, hoping the action would bring him back to life. By now, his eyes had not only turned dark but his eyelids were closed and his breathing was shallow. While he wasn’t dead yet, she could feel the life draining out of him slowly but surely. It sent a surge of raw panic through her. “Come on Pirate! Wake up!” 

But he seemed beyond hearing her.

********

It was chaos that greeted Regina when she finally left Gold’s house. 

She saw nine dark figures converging on Gold while the wizard was battling Sauron with everything he had. Dark balls of energy were being dissipated by fiery orbs of power, sending stray embers of magic and fire in all directions. Trees were starting to burn, the fire was spreading across bushes, sneaking up on homes. People had started leaving their houses, running up the street to escape the smoke and the magical barrage that was destroying anything that did not reach its intended target. While Gold seemed to be holding his own, Regina could tell that once the nine cloaked figures converged on him, what advantage he had would be gone. It seemed Sauron was keeping him distracted to allow his minions to surround him.

She saw Emma with Killian and might have been inclined to help but there was part of her that still resented Emma for what she had done by bringing back Robin’s wife. She could stand to suffer for a few more minutes, Regina thought as the former queen headed towards Gold and Sauron. Dealing with the magical battle taking place in the street was more important right now; before some innocent bystander (that wasn’t Hook) really got hurt in the crossfire. 

“STEPHEN!” Regina called out, poised to use her own powers if any of that deadly barrage came her way. If he was being truthful about what he’d said to her earlier, then he wouldn’t want this to escalate any worse than it had already done. She might be able to bring this fight to an end without any further damage or destruction. She hoped. 

Sauron responded immediately to Regina’s voice as he again conjured spell of protection to avoid the dark energy Gold was volleying at him. Sauron deflected the killing curse easily and saw her approach was not one of attack. While he could see that she was prepared to defend herself, her manner was one of caution, not aggression. It meant that she had yet to choose a side and he could still have her for his own.

“This was not what I wanted my lady,” he spoke to her in the same voice he had used when he played the part of Stephen. “I did not bring about this battle. He did.” Sauron shot Gold an accusatory glare as the Nazgul surrounding him held position, waiting for their master’s instruction to proceed. 

“Then stop,” Regina begged. “Don’t make this any worse. People are getting hurt!” 

“I was merely defending myself, Regina,” he explained. “If Gold will desist, so I will. I told you the truth, I have no designs on this realm. I have what I came for. I was going to leave.” His eyes fixed on hers and added in a softer tone, “preferably with you.” 

What was this damn power he had over her? Regina thought silently to herself. When he looked into her eyes and said such words, she could feel it in the core of her. Until today, it was only Robin who had the power to move her and in a space of a few hours, this Sauron had come out of nowhere and shattered everything she thought she knew about herself. She wanted her own happy ending, she wanted children and the love of a man who would never break her heart. Was he simply telling her what she wanted to hear or was what she was seeing in his eyes real? 

“Regina you can’t believe this...” Gold started to say but she cut him off. 

“Rumpelstiltskin! STOP!” Regina shouted. “This has gone far enough. We don’t do this in the middle of the street with innocent people around us! Not anymore. Stand down!”

“Like bloody hell, I will,” he growled, cursing the foolishness of women and how easily they were taken in by syrupy words. This Sauron commanded power enough to destroy all of them and even though it appeared as if he was holding his own, Gold knew he was barely able to mount a defence. This Sauron, whatever he was, wasn’t human. He may look like it but to command primordial magic meant that he must have started out as something else. Regina couldn’t see it but Gold could. He sent another blast of dark magic at Sauron and once again, the man fought back with ease. With ease damn it! 

“ENOUGH!” Regina roared and this time she acted. White magic smashed through Gold’s defences and sent him sprawling. He slid across the road for a few feet as tendrils of power cackled through his body. Then just as quickly as she had dealt with Gold, she turned to Stephen or rather Sauron, expecting to do the same if he did not stop. 

“Stop,” Sauron ordered the Nazgul who remained still, completely in his power. He lowered his hands and turned to Regina. “Thank you,” he said with sincere gratitude, “I am sorry you had to see this but I did not wish to fight him. I was going to leave peacefully.” 

“And him?” Regina gestured towards Emma and Killian.

“She has the power to heal him,” Sauron answered and started walking towards her. Smoke swirled around them like a fine mist and the fires still continued to rage but he didn’t seem to care. She was the only thing of importance right now. 

Regina wanted to draw away, wanted to pull back but his gaze was mesmerizing and once again, that powerful yearning for him surfaced, much to her chagrin. “Stephen...” she still couldn’t bring herself to call him anything else. “This isn’t the time to discuss this.” 

He ignored her protest and reached for her hands. His thumb stroked her knuckles tenderly as he held her hand in his and caught her fluid brown eyes with his own blue eyes. Once again, Regina felt that familiar charge of desire running through her body at his touch. It terrified and excited her at the same time and she wished she knew what this power he had over her, that could make her want him so much even though everything in her, knew it was a bad idea. 

“I will leave this realm in peace,” he resumed speaking, “I promise you that but I will not go until you allow me the chance to show you how much you mean to me, that leaving without you is inconceivable. You have touched my heart my lady when I did not think it was capable of being affected by anything. I sense the same loneliness in you that I always felt and I think together, we can make each other happy. I will call on you my lady, I hope you will receive me.” 

Regina didn’t how to answer him but she knew the current situation needed diffusion and if this promise was all that was needed to make it happen then so be it. 

“Alright,” she agreed, telling herself that it was for the necessity of the moment not because it was what she herself wanted. “If you promise that you’re not going to hurt anyone else, we can talk about it.” 

“That is all I ask,” he smiled and raised her hand to his lips before planting a soft kiss on her knuckle. “Until our next meeting, my lady.” 

With that, he stepped back from her, his blue eyes still holding her gaze, the barest hint of a smile on his lips as he took in the sight of her like something to be savoured. Regina felt her breath catch, once again feeling that sensation of heat running through her at his obvious desire. His gaze lingered for a few more seconds before he turned away, this time turning his attention to the smoky sky. 

A flock of birds had been flying overhead when Sauron spoke once more in the tongue of his kingdom. “Shapend urdan uru mabaj kasnok mabrotnog bartom burguulv kil!”

Drawn to him, at least a dozen of the swallows broke from their migratory path and descended from the sky. The small birds landed against the bitumen road, oblivious to the fire and smoke, ignoring their natural instincts to flee and roosted in front of Sauron as if he was theirs to command. Regina saw him closing his eyes with singular concentration. The crimson energy he wielded suddenly enflamed the skin of his hands as if his bones were on fire inside his body. 

“Shapend urdan uru mabaj kasnok mabrotnog bartom burguulv kil!” He repeated once more. 

The changing of higher forms of life into lower ones was in the repertoire of every wizard’s playbook but what he did next made her jaw drop. Ten of the swallows suddenly began to morph, their small feathered bodies growing larger and larger. She watched as their soft, blue and white feathers vanished, replaced by thick, scaly hide. Their small, slight wings extended outward and then continued to grow until the span of them was easily the size of a boat sail, flapping as they grew, dissipating the smoke in the air. Short, ornithoid necks extended outward, becoming saurian in their appearance. Sharp spiky ridges ran along their necks, tapering to an end at their serpentine heads. 

“My God,” Regina gasped as she saw the creatures waiting patiently for Sauron to command them.

 Regina watched as he stepped off the sidewalk where he’d been waging his battle with Gold, approaching the nearest of his ‘creations’. The creature bowed down before him, lowering its neck as if it was paying homage to its creator. Stephen grips the last of the ridges along its neck and then hauled himself onto its back with one quick movement. Once he was astride the beast, his Nine servants followed and did the same. Each one, claiming one of the former swallows as its personal mount. 

From astride the creature, Sauron looked at Regina once more, appearing to her like the dark god he was, the god who apparently wanted her as his consort, his queen. Even one as jaded as she could not help but feel overwhelmed by that. 

“I am coming back for you Regina,” he said looking down at her. “I will not leave this realm until I know I have done everything I can to convince you to return with me. Whatever else has happened, I know that you and I were meant to be. I thought this ring was precious to me but I was wrong, it is you and I will not give you up without a fight.” 

And with that, the wings of his mount flapped dramatically and the beast took the air, carrying Sauron into the sky with the rest of the Nine in pursuit. 

She watched him disappeared into the clouds, forgetting everything for an instant but that powerful declaration, the kind that poets wrote about in romantic sonnets, the one that all little girls dreamed of hearing just once in their lives. This time it wasn’t happening to someone else like Snow White or Princess Aurora or even Belle, this time it was happening to her and Regina couldn’t ignore how it good it felt. Especially after how easily Robin had discarded her. 

And almost as if he was able to read her mind, she heard Gold come up alongside her. He looked exhausted and was limping, immediately provoking her guilt at attacking him until she remembered why she had done it. Gold glanced at the sky at Sauron’s rapidly departing phalanx before sniping at her, “I hope you know what you’re doing Dearie because if you’re wrong, we’re all going to pay for your mistake.” 

 But that was the problem, wasn’t it? For the first time in her life, Regina had no idea what to do. 

Chapter Eight
The Courtship of Princess Leia

“Killian!” Emma shook him again, “wake up! Stay with me!” 

He remained maddeningly unconscious and as she felt his pulse, her heart grew cold in her chest at how erratic it felt. It was barely there. What the hell had that thing done to him? Lifting her head up, she saw that Stephen and those things were gone, leaving Regina and Gold behind. Two people that were neither fans of hers or Killian at this time but she didn’t care. She was desperate. 

“Gold! Regina!” She called out. “I need help! Killian’s hurt.” 

It was Gold who approached first and judging by the stormy expression on his face, his anger for once wasn’t about his turbulent relationship with the pirate. No, his anger was directed at Regina who appeared disturbed and conflicted as she followed behind Gold. Emma had been so distracted with Killian she hadn’t seen what had transpired between the two of them when they’d faced Stephen. She made a mental note to ask after they’d helped Killian. 

“What happened? Did one of those monster’s run him through?” Gold asked. He’d been too busy fighting their master to take note of what mischief they’d been up to. 

“Nazgul,” Emma found herself saying. “It called itself a Nazgul and no, he didn’t stab Killian, he..he...spat something at him. Like seriously toxic bad breath or something...” she had no idea how to articulate it. 

Gold had no love for Hook. He never would, but as Belle was so often fond of reminding him, everyone deserved a second chance. Gold could never entirely blame Hook for taking Milah away from him when it was his wife that had left willingly with the pirate. Hook’s mistake had been falling in love with Milah and he’d paid for it with his hand. Of course, Hook’s desire for revenge had given way in light of his feelings for Emma and the pirate had risked his life for Henry. As far as Gold was concerned, their accounts were now settled. 

Gold examined the pirate quickly before raising his eyes to Emma. “He’s been cursed with a spell, one I have never seen before. It's magic I’m not familiar with. It’s almost like he’s crossing over into some kind of limbo...” 

“You have to help him,” Emma insisted, stomach knotting because everything Gold said sounded bad, sounded like he had no answers. “Between the two of you, you must know how to do help him right?” There was more than a tinge of desperation in her voice. 

It would be so easy for Regina to crush Emma Swan’s spirit right now, so easy for her to get the vengeance she had craved the night before because Emma had brought back Marian. However, as she saw the outright panic in the woman’s face, she remembered what it was like to hurt that much and be completely helpless to stop any of it and it was a pain she no longer wanted to inflict on anyone. She’d told Zelena she’d changed when she’d realised she could wield white magic and after everything she’d gone through to be that better person, Regina didn’t want to lose that.

Thinking quickly, Regina remembered what Sauron had said before he'd left. She has the power to heal him. 

Of course, it was so simple. She was rather surprised that Emma hadn’t thought of it herself. Then again, Emma Swan had spent her life running from one thing or another and only now had started to accept who she was and what she could do. Ironic that she was the Saviour to everyone except herself. 

“Emma,” Regina said simply, “you’re the only one who can heal him.” 

“I haven't learned enough to do anything like that!” Emma protested immediately. “Fighting is one thing but this...this is something else.” She looked down at Killian again and felt her heart sink when it seemed like he'd become paler like the life was draining out of his body the longer they took to argue the point. 

“That’s not what I mean,” Regina retorted impatiently, “true love’s kiss had the power to break any spell, whatever its origins.” 

Gold nodded, his face devoid of any sarcasm or humour. “She’s right Dearie. If you care for him, this is the time to show it.” 

“Oh great no pressure there!” Emma snapped before turning to Killian. She didn’t know if she loved him or not. It was too soon. Last night, last night had been amazing with him but even then she hadn’t dared to say it, hadn’t dared to allow herself admit that it could be true, that she could love him. And yet if she didn’t, he would die and that was something Emma couldn't even begin to imagine.

"Son of a bitch," she cursed at Fate for putting her in this damn position. Belief was never her strong point and now she had to believe that he was her true love or lose him for good. Closing her eyes, she leaned forward and cringed a little how cold his lips felt. The anguish rose up from deep inside her as she thought about how they'd kissed that first time in Neverland. It wasn’t so much of a kiss as it was a dare. Yet even in the middle of it, Emma remembered how it felt, like a spark of something had ignited in her gut that continued to burn even after the kiss was done. 

They'd been on a journey together, the both of them. He had become a better man and she had understood at last what home really meant. Killian had been key to helping her realise that and last night, last night she learned just how much he loved her, what he was willing to sacrifice for her. When they were fighting that Nazgul, he rushed in ahead of her, never considering that she might be the better one to face the creature. Never thinking because it was always about her for him. 

This kiss, this kiss had to be about him.

Emma poured into every feeling she had for Killian Jones. From his stupid, cocky swagger that made her want to slug him rather than kiss him, to the way he'd taken her breath away when he'd made love to her night before. He always reminded her that she was strong, even when she was at her weakest. You never gave up on me Killian, she thought silently. Please don't give up on me now. 

And suddenly, just like that, Emma felt his mouth come alive under hers, warmth infusing it as he sucked in a breath, taking hers out of her lungs. She pulled back abruptly, needing to see for herself that he was really okay. Killian was panting, holding his chest as if in pain but he was alive. Colour was returning to his face and though he appeared somewhat disorientated, there was no doubt in anyone's mind that the kiss had done what was needed. 

"Well there you go, Dearie," Gold remarked behind her. "For better or for worse." 

Emma almost glared at him for that. Yeah thanks, no pressure at all. 

"What?" Killian managed to ask, puzzled at the way the three were staring down at him, suddenly feeling like the man who’d walked on deck without a stitch on. Wait that had happened and his men found it funny. "What did I miss?" 

"Nothing," Emma said quickly, shooting both Gold and Regina a warning shot that she'd take care of explanations later. "You were out of it for a bit," she answered, knowing that was an understatement, to say the least, but that was all she had time to process right now. What had happened between them bore thinking and Emma never rushed in where her heart was concerned. 

 "Come on," she got to her feet and extended her hand towards him. "On your feet pirate. We've got to figure out where Stephen went." 

"Have a heart Luv," Killian grumbled, feeling like someone had dropped on a ton of bricks on him, but accepted Emma's hand to stand up. "That spooky bastard knocked me out good," he added rubbing the back the of his head once he was on his feet. 

"Yeah right," Emma said quietly, hiding just how close she'd come to losing him. Instead, she shifted her gaze back to Regina and Gold, trying to downplay how momentous the last few minutes had been for her. Hiding just how much she’d been affected by the fact that she’d delivered true love’s kiss to a guy she hadn’t even said the words to yet. 

“So what happened? How did Stephen become...Lord freaking Voldermort?” 

All three looked at her blankly. 

Emma rolled her eyes. These people had to read something other than fairy tales. 

*****

A short time later, they were back in Regina’s office with David and Belle joining them. 

After Regina and Gold put out the fires in front of his house and fixed the damage caused during their battle with Stephen or rather Sauron, Emma had called David and learned that Belle had turned up at Granny’s diner to raise the alarm that was something was wrong. Thanks to Regina’s warning, Belle had removed herself from the fight and avoided becoming a liability to her husband. Instead, she had rallied the others at the diner until Emma’s call to David had them congregating at the Mayor’s office. 

“And you don’t remember anything about how you got it?” David asked Gold as they started discussing what this Sauron had come to Storybrooke for in the first place. 

“Not at all,” Gold shook his head as he and Belle sat on the sofa before Regina’s desk. “I mean I’ve collected a few trinkets in my time. Tokens in exchange for favours, I can honestly say I never remembered acquiring a ring. Certainly not something that dangerous.” 

“Did you ever see it before today?” Regina asked from behind her desk. 

“No,” Gold shook his head and glanced at Belle. “Belle?” After all, during that time he’d been dead, he assumed she’d been in the house at least once or twice. 

“Not at all,” she shook her head. “I was just walking around the house and I saw it...” she replied. “I wish I hadn’t put it on.”

“You weren’t too know,” Gold assured her, giving her a quick kiss on the temple as she leaned into the crook of his shoulder against the soft fabric of the leather seat. 

“Too true Luv,” Killian agreed as he leaned against the mantelpiece of the unlit fireplace. He was looking a good deal healthier now that he was recovered from the attack by the Nazgul. “Besides, I’ve never met a woman who could resist at least trying a ring one when she saw one.” He winked at Belle in gentle teasing. 

“Okay, okay,” Emma retorted shaking her head at him before facing the others. “The fact is he obviously knew the ring was here so that means he knows a lot more about this world than he’s letting on. That whole lost boy routine was just an act. The thing I can’t figure out is why he’s still here. He’s got the thing and if that’s all he wanted, then why hang around or for that matter what’s his next move.” 

“I believe our Madam Mayor can answer that question a bit better...” Gold started to say when he was interrupted by a knock on the door that had all eyes turning to it.

 “Who is it?” Regina demanded impatiently, suddenly longing for the days when everyone was terrified of her and didn’t feel the need to just show up at her office whenever they pleased. 

The doorknob twisted and when it cracked open, Regina’s expression hardened at the sight of Robin standing at the doorway. His eyes met hers awkwardly before he spoke, “Granny said that there was trouble. I thought you could use some assistance.”

“We’re fine,” Regina said coldly. “We don’t need anything from you.”

The temperature in the room dropped several degrees and there was an awkward silence from everyone as they were all aware of what had transpired between the bandit and the queen the night before. Emma, in particular, felt the resurgence of guilt at the pain she’d caused not only Regina but also Robin she now realised. She’d placed the man in an impossible situation, caught between the woman he had lost and the one he may now love. When he’d entered the room, she couldn’t look at either of them and stared into the cold embers of the fireplace, prompting Killian to reach over and squeeze her shoulder.

“Regina please,” David finally broke the impasse and spoke gently. “We might need his help.” 

“I’m sure we won’t,” Regina declared haughtily, not wanting him here, not wishing to have the discussion about Sauron in his presence. She could see the pain in his eyes and could take no comfort from it because she felt the same agony. However, he’d made his choice and though she didn’t blame him for it, she couldn’t forgive him either. 

“I just want to help,” Robin spoke not to her but to the group this time, suspecting he’d have better success with them instead of the woman whose heart he had broken, “I won’t get in anyone’s way.” 

“Fine, fine, stay,” Regina said dismissively. Maybe he should stay, maybe he should hear why Sauron was still staying around. Neither she nor Gold had told the others yet but the turn of the conversation was making that revelation unavoidable. Maybe he should know that he wasn’t the only man in her life, there was a god in the wings waiting to make her his queen. 

“The man who showed up through the portal is from a land none of us have heard of and was apparently after a ring that Gold had, a ring he now has,” David filled him in quickly as Robin joined Killian on the other side of the fireplace, keeping as far away from Regina as he could. 

“And he has it now?” Robin asked. 

“I’m afraid so mate,” Killian nodded. “And he was able to conjure up some pretty nasty beasts as well. Bloody ghoulish looking creatures that are incapable of being harmed by either this world’s weapons or ours. I ran him through with my blade and it didn’t hurt him one bit.”

“Nazgul,” Emma explained. ‘That’s what it called itself. Nazgul. It said it couldn’t be harmed by any weapon forged by man.” 

“Well that’s discouraging,” Robin grimaced, not liking the sound of that at all. “And you say he has his ring. Now that he has it, what does he want?” By now, Robin had enough experience to know that all these evil wizards and sorcerers were always after something.

“Do you want to tell them or shall I?” Gold asked, staring at Regina pointedly. He was aware of the situation between the bandit and the queen and while Gold had some sympathy for her, he was more interested in the threat Sauron posed rather than Regina’s love life. 

“Tell us what?” Emma shot Gold a look of demand and then noted how suddenly very uncomfortable Regina appeared to be. If Emma didn’t know any better, she’d almost think that the queen was embarrassed. 

When it became obvious that Regina wasn’t going to volunteer the information, Gold decided to do the honours himself, “he’s staying here because he wants Regina.”

“What?” Robin blurted out, much to Regina’s chagrin. “What does mean exactly?”

Regina’s cheeks turned even redder at the indignity of the situation. Why the hell did he have to be here for this? Unable to meet his gaze, she cursed herself for feeling guilty at having Robin hear this. Why the hell should she feel guilty? She owed this man nothing. Less than nothing after how he’d treated her the night before. “He wants me to go back to wherever he came from, with him.” 

“Why?” David asked puzzled. 

“What do you mean why?” Regina demanded somewhat offended.

Men, Emma and Belle winced in unison.

In retrospect, Emma wasn't the least bit surprised by the statement. She hadn’t missed how Stephen or rather Sauron had regarded Regina from the minute she stepped into the diner this morning. It was clear that the man had been somewhat smitten by the queen and why not? Regina was attractive and powerful. If Sauron was a sorcerer of similar power, he might have found a kindred spirit in Regina. 

“Dad!” Emma gave her father a look and wished Snow was here. Her mom knew how to diffuse situations like these. Furthermore, Emma was probably the last person Regina wanted to hear from about this. “How do you feel about that Regina?” Emma asked tentatively, conscious of the sparks she’d seen between the two, not to mention the fact that it was Regina who had made Sauron call off his attack. 

"Do you like him?” Belle asked. 

“Of course not!” Regina declared angrily, wondering as she made the outburst if she wasn’t protesting a little too hotly. “I just met the man a few hours ago! All of a sudden he’s telling me he wants me to go, God knows where with him, so I can be his queen and we can have a family together? It's crazy!”

“Obviously you made an impression,” Robin couldn’t help but mutter loud enough to be heard. 

“I think you are the last person to have any opinion on the matter,” Regina bit back and properly silenced him into submission. 

“Alright, alright,” David broke in realising this thing was a whole lot more sensitive than anyone here was equipped to deal with right now. “Regina, is there any chance he’d try to take you by force?” 

The thought hadn’t occurred to her and she stared at David with genuine surprise. “No, I don’t think so. He said he wanted to stay long enough to convince me to go with him and doesn’t sound like someone who wants to kidnap me. Besides, he stopped attacking Gold when I asked him to and he did tell me how to save the pirate before he left.” 

“Save the pirate?” Killian declared puzzled. “Save me from what? I just got knocked out.” 

The opportunity to serve Emma a little bit of the discomfort she was now experiencing with Robin in the room was too good to resist and Regina couldn’t help but turn the tables a little on the Saviour. “I think it was a little more than just that,” she said smugly. “One of those Nazgul spat some kind of dark curse at you. You almost died.” She put enough emphasis on her words to show Killian how close he came to meeting his maker. 

“Regina...” Emma started to say but suspected that she wasn’t going to be able to keep the woman silent on the matter. Obviously Regina had been waiting for the moment to stick to her and now that the opportunity had presented itself, the queen wasn’t about to squander it. With an inward groan, Emma realised that there was no stopping what was coming. 

“Until true love’s kiss saved you,” Regina replied, giving Emma a satisfied smirk that said ‘this doesn’t even come close to making up us even’. 

‘True love’s kiss?” Killian shot Emma a look and saw the blush that had run over her cheeks at the revelation. He couldn’t help but smile at the rush of feeling that overtook him when the full implications of Regina's words settled in. She’d saved him with true love’s kiss which meant Emma Swan loved him. Even if she hadn’t been able to say it last night, she’d felt it enough to save his life. Killian had never thought just knowing that could be the greatest feeling in the world.

“Yeah, true love’s kiss alright?” Emma retorted. “Can we talk about this later? You know...alone?”

“As you wish,” he grinned at her and didn’t at all feel offended by the fact that Emma looked as if she wanted the ground to open up and swallow her whole. His Emma was never comfortable about having her feelings exposed for all to see and he would spare her any further discomfiture. Besides, it was enough to know that she loved him.

“It appears we have more important matters to discuss,” he said gallantly and turned back to the others. 

Stupid pirate, Emma thought to herself. It was little things like this that made her fall for him and she was sure he knew it too. 

David took in the exchange and found himself smiling at his daughter and Hook. Earlier today, he had been annoyed at the obviously physical turn Emma and Hook’s relationship had taken. As her father, he couldn’t feel anything but protective towards his daughter. In truth, he’d always regretted that she wasn’t raised as the princess she was, spoiled rotten by royal parents, courted by princes and being taken to balls. Instead, she’d had a lonely life without them that had built walls around her heart. If Hook made her happy, if he made her see that Storybrooke was home then David was grateful to the pirate for that and maybe, Emma would be good for him too. Sometimes, it was the unlikeliest lovers that ended up being the best ones. David knew that from experience.

Deciding to move the focus away from his embarrassed daughter and her pirate, David turned to Regina to get them back on subject, “Regina, we need to know more about this Sauron. If he’s willing to win your hand maybe we can use that to find out where he’s from.” 

“What are you suggesting?” Regina looked at him suspiciously. 

“Well I’m assuming if he means to win your hand, he’s going to call on you,” David replied. “Maybe you should let him.”

“Is that a good idea?” Robin immediately countered. “I mean isn’t that leading him on? If she isn’t interested? It could anger him if he finds out she’s playing him for a fool.”

Regina’s eyes narrowed listening to Robin who sounded like a jealous ex-boyfriend. “I think I can take care of myself and I am certainly capable of handling him. Besides,” she added with a hint of malice in her voice. “How do you know I’m not interested? It's not every day a man comes up to me and is willing to do anything to get my love.” 

“Sometimes there are situations that are beyond a man’s control...” Robin retorted. 

“Obviously,” Regina shot Emma a look. “Of course that doesn’t excuse the man from being a total jerk when it happens.” 

“OKAY!” David cut in once more, “I think we’re getting off point here.” He looked at the two of them and knew that they were a hair’s breadth from getting embroiled in a screaming match between Regina and Robin. 

“To say the least,” Gold muttered, getting bored by all this nonsense. “You need to find out all you can Regina because you can bet your life there’s a reason why he’s keeping mum about where he came from Dearie. To say nothing of the fact that he’s wielding primordial magic. Most wizards can’t channel that kind of energy unless they’re more than human.” 

“What do you mean Rumpel?” Belle asked. 

“As I told Emma and Hook,” Gold explained for the benefit of those who hadn’t been present for the conversation. “The reason most wizards don’t channel primordial magic is that its power is so intense it burns out the body of whoever is wielding it. That is why its use is limited to beings that are of a higher order of existence. For instance, the Fae, some nymphs and in this world, what they call angels and demons.” 

“But he’s human,” Regina insisted remembering how warm his hand had felt against her. How she’d felt the beat of his heart under her palm when he held her hand against his chest. That electricity that could not come from any other source. It was human, Regina was sure of it. “He felt human.”

“Felt human?” Robin blurted out once again. “How close did you get?” 

“I’m sorry,” Regina glared at him. “How is this any of your business?” 

“Enough you two,” David retorted, halting the argument before it progressed any further. “She’s right. He looked human.” 

“Look being the operative word,” Gold declared. “We don’t know if he’s human at all. Regina, you need to find out where he’s from because I have a feeling there’s a reason why he’s keeping that from us and until we know for certain what that is, we can’t let him leave.” 

Regina nodded, knowing Gold was right but suspected it was easier said than done.

Chapter Nine
What's True Love gotta to do with It?

By the time Regina had left the others and her office, she wondered how it had ever been a good idea to get out of bed in the first place. 

Even though the plan they had concocted involved her getting close to Sauron, she was still trying to overcome the confusing feelings Robin had engendered by his oh so obvious jealousy at the possibility he might have competition. Competition? Regina snorted as she opened the front door to her house, there wasn’t even a race now that Marian was back. In some sense, she was flattered by his ire but at the same time, it saddened her because he still cared for her though not enough to overcome his love for his wife. The whole situation left Regina hollow and exhausted. 

Closing the door on more than just the outside world, Regina wanted nothing more than to crawl back into bed and forget Robin ever existed. Maintaining a tough facade had been harder than she ever believed possible especially when she had to do it in front of him and Emma, the two people responsible for her pain to begin with. She didn’t even have the dignity of nursing her pain in private. No, the threat that Sauron demanded her presence and robbed her of any solitude to mend her broken heart.

 The house was empty and for once Regina was grateful for it. Only days ago, she'd bemoaned how lonely it was to not have Henry stomping about, running along the corridors or stairs, invading her study and filling the house with the sounds of Saturday morning cartoons. Even though he had been terribly sweet to come over this morning to make her feel better, Regina knew there was no substitute for a few days of good, solitary brooding. The only way she could deal with this was to do it the way she’d endured all the other tragedies in her life, alone and on her own terms. 

She hadn’t even stepped into the hallway of her house when she noticed the living room was flickering with the ambience of a lit fireplace. Wondering who had dared invade her home, Regina supposed she shouldn't have been surprised when she found Sauron crouching in front of the fireplace. He was, prodding the crackling flames of the burning logs with the cast-iron poker missing from its stand.

"Your castle is small but quite quaint in its own way," Sauron complimented, standing up and running a cursory gaze over the room before his eyes touched hers. He was accustomed to his fortress at Bara-dur and could never quite fathom these small dwellings that felt like hobbit holes. Hobbits, he seethed involuntarily as he stood up and faced her. 

"Apparently the locks could use some work," Regina accused as she paused at the doorway, unfastening the buttons of her coat. The boldness of him should have infuriated her but by now, it was just what she was coming to expect from him. She noticed he was still wearing the clothes she'd bought him although it appeared he'd done something with his hair. Had he cut it? Despite herself, she had to admit it suited him well. 

"I do apologise for the intrusion," he said contritely even if he wore the smile of a little boy who had been caught carrying out some mischief that had yet to be realised upon his helpless victim. Crossing the floor, he approached her like a lion stalking a zebra, full of predatory intent. "But I wanted to see you alone and have you all to myself. " 

Every word he spoke spread across her skin like warm butter, making her attuned to him in a way that felt more intimate than a lover's kiss. Sauron circled her, pausing behind Regina to help her with her coat. His hands slipped the heavy fabric off her body like he was caressing it, palms charting the curve of her shoulders before gliding sleeves down her arms. By the time he hung the coat on the stand behind them, Regina was well and truly flustered. 

God, the man should come with a warning label. 

"What do want from me really?" Regina asked turning around only to find herself standing chest to chest with him, his breath warming her skin as tantalizingly as his hands had done a short time ago. 

"Why is it so difficult to believe that I want you because you are an exciting, alluring woman who intrigues me to no end and with whom I feel a kinship? Do you consider yourself so undeserving of anyone's admiration?" Sauron asked genuinely wishing to know the answer. Had life been so cruel to her that she felt herself so lacking? With all the things she could do? Not waiting for an answer, he took her hand in his and bowed his head to brush the smooth knuckles with a gentle kiss. 

Once again, Regina found herself helpless by the irresistible pull of him as she became transfixed by the intensity of his blue eyes. She didn't know if he was exuding was raw magnetism or some kind of glamour that made her throat go dry in his presence while the rest of her quivered with anticipation. Regina swore that when she stared into his eyes, it almost felt as if she could see worlds beyond this one, a glittering canvas of possibility that was only a breath away. Her cheeks warmed at his touch and she realised much to her annoyance, she was blushing. 

What the hell was he doing to her? She thought defiantly, struggling to remind herself that she was the Evil Queen who had once laid waste to the whole of the Enchanted Forest in her quest for revenge. However, even as she was thinking this, his closeness made her breathless. 

"I don't need anyone's attention," Regina declared, recouping some measure of dignity even if her protests felt weak and ineffectual. Worse yet, her fingers were still intertwined in his and she found no desire to extricate herself from him. 

"I beg to differ, my lady," he spoke smoothly in that husky voice, all the while stroking her knuckles with his thumb making her shudder from the contact. "I suspect that you have convinced a good many people that you need no consideration but you do yourself a disservice by that. You are a rose my lady, beautiful to behold but to be handled cautiously nonetheless. All should love and fear you. Sometimes what is most precious makes us scream with desire while capable of tearing us apart at the same time. That is what you should be and you should never, ever settle for anything less." 

"And you?" She stared at him with challenge, recovering her poise somewhat now that she was accustomed to his touch. "What do you want? To love or fear me?" 

"I want neither," he said with a smug smile, "I want to release you. I can see the woman you are and the queen you should be. With me, I will help you can be both." 

There was such sincerity in his voice and the intent in his eyes seemed so earnest that Regina had to remind herself he was the enemy, that he was here with a hidden purpose and was trying to use her for something but it was hard when he was so overwhelming. "Why? Why me Ste... Sauron." 

"You may call me Stephen," he replied, "if that makes you more comfortable and why? Because we are the same. We are creatures of circumstance and we've dared to sacrifice what means most to us to get what we want. We are not easy to love but when we do love, we love hard." 

"Are you saying you love me?" She stared at him disbelief. 

"I would not bandy about that word my lady," Sauron snorted. "It is too often used as a cheat by any man who wishes to slip into a woman's heart without any real proof of affection. Men use it knowing the power it has over women and its clearly an unfair advantage when any fool can sing songs of love to bed some innocent maid. I would rather tell you I want you at my side, to share my world and my heart than to make some proclamation of love that will never live up to our expectation of what the word should be.” 

This was too much. She had to look away because if she continued to stare into his eyes, she'd lose all sense of herself. Still, his words were compelling because each one struck home. All her life Regina was forced to watch as true love flaunted in front of her face, dangled like some carrot she had to chase. She'd lost Daniel and Robin...God, she had really believed that she'd found true love with him. Except once again, it was snatched away and her heart was left in pieces. That Sauron didn't try to use true love to win her over was the first real thing he'd said she could rely on. 

"This is too fast," she stared at him, feeling herself succumbing to the allure of what he was offering her. 

"Then get to know me," he extended his hand towards her before she could pull too far away from him. "Let me show you what is possible between us." 

"How?" She asked, arching a brow at him in suspicion. 

Sauron could not help but smile at her doubt. She was proving to be a challenge and he had to confess, not since Númenor had he need to work so hard to convince anyone of anything. Still, the chase was giving him a new appreciation of her and now he was doubly determined to have her return with him. All he had to do was convince her to give up this provincial life she was clinging to and unleash the power inside of her. It would make her an even more valuable ally and a more interesting lover. 

It would make her a worthy queen of Mordor. 

"Come," he took her hand like they were two children about to embark on some mischief. 

Regina allowed herself to be led through her house while she tried to regain the composure he had so thoroughly shattered with his passionate speech. They stepped through the kitchen door which emptied into the backyard. In the grass courtyard, Regina's jaw dropped as she saw the winged creature he had created outside of Gold’s house, waiting patiently for him to return. It was roosting on the grass as if it were any other bird, occupying itself by snapping at the stray insects that flew in the proximity of its mouthful of serrated teeth. At the sight of them, the saurian neck jerked up like an ostrich, the serpentine eyes watching their approach. 

"You don't expect me to get on that thing?" She stared at him with wide eyes when she realised what he had planned for them. 

"Isildur won't hurt you," he tugged her towards the creature when he saw her hesitate in her approach. "It will be pleasant, I promise you." He tilted her his head towards her and gave her an almost puppy dog look of insistence. 

"I must be crazy," Regina muttered to herself as she let him lead her to the beast. As she stood next to the creature’s flank, she noted its green scaly hide and marvelled at how its breath rippled across the flesh like an ocean wave. She placed a hand against the body and felt its heart pounding. She was marvelling this when suddenly, Regina noticed Sauron’s hands on hips as he came up behind her. 

“A little lunacy is good for the soul,” he replied and tightened his grip on her hips before lifting her up in one quick movement. 

Regina let out a small gasp of surprise when she was placed on the creature’s back. She was in a skirt so she was forced to sit side-saddle but it didn’t matter because Sauron soon joined her and he made sure his arm was securely around her waist. She tried not to be affected by his closeness but with his back pressing against hers, his arms around her waist holding her steady, Regina found it difficult to keep her heart from skipping a beat. 

“I’ll bet you I’m not the first girl you’ve taken out on your winged lizard,” Regina quipped, trying to hide his effect on her with flippancy. 

Sauron laughed and spoke in that odd language of his, “Skoi!”

The creature beneath them stood up from its haunches and extended its wings. The span of them almost covered the length of the backyard and with a graceful flap, they were suddenly airborne. Regina felt her stomach leap as the ground grew distant beneath them and tried not to feel fear. She had magic for God sake, if she fell, she certainly knew how to save herself. Still, she’d never ridden any animal like this, never even thought to try. His arm coiled a little tighter around her until she could feel his chest pressed into her back and for a moment, Regina forgot who she was with, only how he made her. She relaxed into him, feeling the wind her hair, the warmth of his skin against hers in contrast with the cool breeze. 

Beneath them, the world seemed small and for the moment at least, as he held her tight, Regina wondered if it would be so bad to let herself fall for him. 

******

After leaving Regina's office, Robin of Loxley didn't immediately go back to the camp where he and Roland and now Marian were staying. Instead, the former prince of thieves found himself sitting at Granny's staring into his mug of coffee, trying to make sense of what had become of his world. 

Yesterday, everything had been so simple. The Evil Queen had given her his heart and it was no small thing that she'd entrusted to him. It wasn't just her love but her trust and faith that life could be good and second chances were possible for anyone. He'd been so proud to stand at her side when she fought Zelena, to watch her rise above everything she'd ever been and emerge phoenix-like as a hero that he would have followed to the ends of the earth if she asked it of him.

And in a single moment, he'd destroyed her. 

Robin was happy that Marian was back. He really was. They had been through so much together, fought the good fight against the Sherriff of Nottingham, camped under the branches of ancient wood dreaming of a future together and bringing Roland into the world. The moments were too many to count. When he lost her, Robin was convinced he'd never get over her much less move on. However, even before he met Regina, he'd turned on the page on that life with Marian and he had become accustomed to being without her.

Now that she was back and the initial joy of her return had passed, Robin had started to feel something gnawing in the pit of him that wouldn't let go no matter how much he told himself that all was as it should be. After all, in their stories, wasn’t it always Robin and Marian? Where did it say that he would end up with the Evil Queen? Nowhere, that's what. 

Then why did he feel heartsick that he couldn't be with her? Every time he saw her, saw the anguish she was barely able to conceal in those brown eyes of hers, it broke his heart and it made him resent Marian just a little and hate himself just a bit more. 

"You appear to be a man with a problem." He heard a familiar voice and glanced up to see David standing over him. 

"Do I?" Robin asked distantly as he regarded the Prince who was holding a Styrofoam cup of piping hot coffee in his hand. 

"Yeah," David nodded, though he needed no clairvoyance to know what was on Robin's mind. Since the second curse had brought them back, David had gotten to know Robin who had proven himself to be a stalwart defender of Storybrooke and its citizens. He'd helped them in the fight against Zelena and for that, he was a friend as far as David was concerned. 

"May I?" He gestured to the empty seat in the booth Robin was occupying. 

"Go ahead," Robin replied and finally took a sip from his own mug, the contents of which were now tepid. 

"Thanks," David said gratefully. "Both the baby and Snow are finally asleep. I don't want to risk either of them waking up with me stomping about the place so I figured I'd catch up on some television at the Sherriff’s office." 

Robin nodded politely and David guessed he was still coming to grips with what had been happening in his life the past 24 hours. 

"How are you doing Robin?" David asked finally. "With Marian being back." 

Robin eased back into the vinyl of the booth and sighed. "I thought I'd be overjoyed to have her back and I am, truly. I am happy she is alive and my son has his mother back but..." 

"Regina?" David hazarded a guess after his reactions to Sauron’s interest in the queen. 

"I can't stop thinking about her, about how I've hurt her. She trusted me, David, she opened her heart to me and told me how hard it was to love anyone again after she'd lost Daniel. At least he died, what did I do? I'm almost as bad as Cora." 

"No, you're not," David stated firmly. "This is a bad situation not just for Regina but for you too, I get that. Before the curse was broken and I had no memories of Snow, I knew I loved her but I was also married to Abigail. I was trapped between doing the right thing and the honourable thing. Sometimes, the two are mutually exclusive. You have to ask yourself, what do you want? Because if you're still in love with Regina, staying with Marian isn't a kindness." 

"She's the mother of my son," Robin pointed out. 

"And that won't change no matter who you love," David reminded. 

Robin let out of a sigh, "you know we were meant to be, even before I met Marian it seemed." 

"How so?" David asked, listening to Robin because that's what the man needed right now, someone to listen to the lament he dared not voice to anyone else because it went against everything he knew about himself. 

"The fairy Tinkerbelle showed Regina her soul mate after Daniel had died," Robin explained, rolling up his sleeve. "It seemed that Regina's true love would have this tattoo. I never believed in all that but the way Regina and I seemed to connect..." 

David was still listening but he was suddenly very interested in the tattoo Robin was showing him. His brow furrowed at the familiarity of it. "I've seen that tattoo before," he said halting Robin in mid-sentence.

"What?" Robin exclaimed. "Where?" 

Hell, David cursed inwardly aware of how Robin was going to take his answer. "On Stephen," he admitted reluctantly, "I saw it on Stephen." 

"On Stephen?" Robin burst out with alarm. "Did Regina see it?" The implications of what the tattoo’s effect on Regina would be suddenly filled Robin with near panic. If she saw it, she might believe that Stephen was the man she'd seen in that tavern all those years ago. After all, hadn't she told him she had never really got a good look at the face beneath the hood? All she had to go on that he was her soul mate was his tattoo and if Stephen was now wearing the same thing, she may well believe it was the sorcerer who was meant for her. Not Robin at all. Especially with Marian's return. 

"I couldn't tell you," David replied and then remembered that moment when Regina had gone pale after he'd introduced her to Stephen when the man had kissed her hand so gallantly. "But I think she might have." 

"Then we have to go find her," Robin stated starting to get out of the booth. "There's no telling what kind of influence he might have over her if she believes that tattoo is real!" 

Some of the other diners had turned to the two men in curiosity at the archer’s raised voice. David smiled awkwardly at them as he tried to convey the message that there was nothing to see here before he turned and faced Robin. "Hold on a second Robin, what if its real?" 

"Of course it's not real," Robin retorted dismissing the possibility without hesitation. "He just used the one thing that could sway her to his will. This is a trick Prince," the archer said firmly. "It's a trick to make use of her power for his own ends. That's why he's so insistent on her going back with him." 

As much as Robin's words made sense, David had one more point to make. "Robin, you said so yourself, she never saw your face in that tavern. How do you know the one that's meant to be her soul mate?" 

"Because I do!" Robin insisted. "If it wasn't true then I wouldn't feel this way." 

"What way?" David asked. 

"Like I can't live without her," Robin stated and the words escaped him like the last gasp of a drowning man. He sank into the booth again. "I can't let him take her," he met David's eyes. "I just can't." 

And there it was, the admission he had been trying to deny himself. Whatever lay between him and Marian had past its time and he knew it. He still loved her but he was past being in love with her when he’d moved on. This was the irrefutable truth he'd been unable to admit since he faced Regina this morning and saw her tears. She'd told him it was over but it was Robin who had more difficulty believing it than Regina. He knew for certain now that she was meant to be with him but knowing that gave him little comfort because he had no idea what was to be done about it.

They were both prisoners in the same cage. 

***********

“That’s Venus,” Regina stated as she stared at the evening sky. 

They'd flown across Storybrooke and Regina was treated to a view of the sleepy town she'd never really cared to see in all the time she'd lived there. Even though Storybrooke was located in Maine, it had never really felt apart of the world, just a crucible to hold her enemies as she took her revenge on them all. She'd forgotten how lovely it was, with its quaint New England coastline that was a mixture of gothic cliffs and sweeping pristine beaches that vanished into the Acadian woods of spruce, balsa and red pine. Their leaves creating a canopy above and a carpet of gold beneath. 

They didn't speak when they’d flown. The beauty of the town's lights glittering like fairy dust against the dark, the salt air in their lungs as the sea breezed beneath them and the glorious sunset took away the needs for words. They sailed over the world, feeling very much apart from it as his arms remained wrapped around her, his breath warming her neck as she leaned against him, allowing her resistance to bleed into his muscled chest. 

When they finally came down to Earth, they’d landed at the cliffs where the lighthouse stood, giving them a breathtaking view of the ocean as it caressed the night air with its rhythmic rush of waves. He'd conjured up a blanket and they were now curled up together, warming each other as they watched the stars while their mount took to the skies. The winged creature flew as if it were still a swallow, relishing the freedom of flight, unfettered. It was almost beautiful. 

“We call it the Star of Eärendil,” Sauron replied, surprised by how pleasant it was to hold her, feeling the strands of her dark hair against his lips as he breathed in the sweet fragrance of her in his lung. The enchantment of a corporeal body, he reminded himself, he had forgotten how delightful the senses could be. 

Regina would have been surprised to learn that like Emma Swan, she was similarly enchanted by the names he had for places and things. Wherever this land it was that he had come from, they had a flair for language that made the spoken word of the Enchanted Forest seem clumsy in comparison. “Eärendil?” She glanced over her shoulder at him. “What does that mean?” 

“Nothing of consequences,” Sauron replied, feeling no desire to explain the legend of the first Peredhil who had worn a Silmaril on his brow when he came to Valinor in search of help against Morgoth. "It simply means Evening Star," he explained, altering the truth somewhat. "A relic of a forgotten language and its forgotten people." 

“This world you come from,” Regina asked, still clinging to the plan that she was meant to be interrogating him, "where is it really? I've been to many worlds in my time, Wonderland, Oz even Camelot and I’ve never heard of Middle Earth.” 

Sauron smiled faintly, aware of her agenda and traced a finger along her shoulder, satisfied by the slight shudder he felt running through her spine at his touch."They are all the same, you know?" 

She craned her head slightly to meet his gaze. "What do you mean?" 

"They were all created by the same song," he replied gazing into the night sky. "In the Timeless Halls, Eru revealed to us the themes of the music he wished to create. Each of us had our own chord to sing and every chord was a strand of creation. When our orchestra was complete, the Great Music reached across the Void and gave form to the emptiness, light to the stars and sowed the seeds of life across them. When the Great Music was done, the universe came into being. The universe and all the worlds that you know. It was apart of Eru’s great symphony.” 

"Were you apart of this symphony?" She asked, trying to take it all in. Rumpelstiltskin had claimed he wasn’t human and as she heard him speak and saw the memory in his eyes, she almost believed he was present at the beginning of everything. That he’d really lived it. 

There was no harm in admitting this bit of truth and honestly, Sauron had no opportunity to speak with anyone about those days. His relationship with Morgoth had been supplicant to master. By the time Morgoth had been vanquished into the Void by the Valar, he stood alone and there were no others who were his equal. No one to whom he could speak his innermost thoughts. It occurred to him then that he had been alone for a very long time. 

“Yes,” he nodded, still reflecting on this thought. “I was apart of it. My chord was about industry, about using what had been created to make something better. I had so many dreams about how it was going to be and then Morgoth in his foolishness decided to add chaos to the mix and the universe has never been right since.” 

“So are you human?” She needed to know and turned around in his embrace to face. “Is this,” she touched his face, “real or magic?” 

“This is flesh,” he said holding her hand still across his cheek. “When we chose to leave the Timeless Halls, to see what it was we had created, we took on a physical form. This is mine.” 

Well, not exactly his but as close as he could manage if he had to wear a human shell. It was not so different from how he had appeared as Tar-Mairon to the people of Númenor. It was the last time he was able to appear at all pleasing to anyone thanks to the actions of the accursed Valar. 

“Are you immortal?” She asked, staring at him.

“Yes,” he nodded, “but so will you be if you come back with me. We will never be apart.” 

“Why are you so sure about me?” Regina stared at him in genuine puzzlement. “We just met and all of a sudden you’re ready to sweep me off my feet and take me to some faraway land where we will spend eternity together? It's insane!” 

“Perhaps because yours is the first face that has moved me in a very long time,” Sauron admitted without guile or deception. There was no need to. On a very fundamental level, he understood her and perhaps in time, she might have even understand him. He spoke earnestly because to lie to her was a very bad way to begin this thing between them. 

“My course was always clear,” he said staring into her eyes, “I allowed nothing to get in the way of what I wished to achieve. I have compromised myself in ways that no creature can ever appreciate in order to right the taint of Morgoth upon the world. In all the time, I saw nothing except my purpose and even when I was touched by someone, it was never in my power to surrender to it. On this day, I am myself in a way I have not been in three millennia and I have also found you. This time, I will not sacrifice what I want for the greater good. This time, I mean to have it all”

And he did. Before she had a chance to protest, he leaned forward and caught her lips in hard, demanding kiss of passion. The suddenness of it surprised her and there was a brief instant when she tried to pull away but Sauron did not give her the chance to retreat. As in everything he had ever undertaken, Sauron claimed her lips with all the power at his disposal, until her hesitation gave way to hunger and inflamed desire. 

Oh God, Regina thought as he kissed her with such fierce need that it was impossible not to be swept away by it. This was nothing like the tender, sweet exchanges she’d had with Robin. This was fire and passion, driving the sense from her world, filling her with this lustful madness that couldn’t be satiated by anyone but this man. Her nails dug into his back and the pain intensified his kisses until she felt her insides liquefying with need.

At that moment, she wanted him more than life itself. At that moment, she would have gone with him anywhere and damn the consequences.  

Chapter Ten
Burn

WARNING: ADULT CONTENT AFTER CHARMINGS SCENE

David called Emma as soon as he was able to calm Robin down. The Sherwood archer was more than ready to go pound on Regina’s door and tell her that the tattoo Sauron was wearing was a fake and that he was her true soul mate. Having a pretty good idea how badly that would turn out, especially when Regina was all kinds of hurt after of Marian’s return, he managed to convince Robin that his warning would fall on deaf ears and most likely be taken as jealousy. Instead, David sent the man home, assuring him that he would take care of it.

Of course, how to do that was another matter entirely.

David called Emma and was pleasantly surprised to find his daughter already home at their apartment. Apparently Snow was awake and Henry, who had enthusiastically taken on the role of ‘big brother’ to Neal even though technically he was a nephew, was giving his wife some breathing room as he looked after the baby for a bit. Emma had ordered pizza and was only minutes from calling him herself when he’d pre-empted her. Despite the tense situations, they always found themselves, David couldn’t help be pleased with the current state of his family.

Even if Emma had invited Hook to join them for dinner.

When he entered his apartment, David saw Snow at the dining table with Emma laying out plates while Hook was examining the contents of the pizza boxes like some strange new discovery. The pirate was lacking his famous attachment this evening and was instead sporting a gloved prosthetic hand. Henry was on the sofa, happily cradling Neil and explaining to the week-old infant all about the adventures of the cartoon character they were watching on television. David didn’t recognise the show but then he was one year behind with his television programming.

“Hey Dad,” Emma greeted and after a day of hearing her call him that, David decided it still hadn’t gotten old yet. He loved how it sounded and was sure Snow felt the same way hearing Emma call her mom.

“Hey,” he greeted Emma back and then glanced at Snow. “You look more rested.” He said to his wife, joining her at the table and greeting her with a kiss.

“Yeah,” Snow White aka Mary Margaret smiled when he’d pulled away. “I’m sorry if I was a bit crazy. Lack of sleep, crying baby, new evil... you know it goes.”

“Seems the norm in this locality,” Killian retorted and asked seriously of the food in front of him, “there is no bologna in this right?”

“Of course not,” Emma retorted giving him a look like he was being a baby before noting the puzzlement on her parents’ face, “They force-fed him baloney when he was in jail at New York. He’s been traumatised ever since.” She explained and then smirked at the pirate who flashed her a little smile of affection in return.

Snow took in the interplay between the two and smiled because there was real happiness in her daughter’s eyes and she wanted that badly or Emma. After losing Neal, Hook had been a surprise even to Snow White, at how he’d been at Emma’s side ready to combat her insecurities about staying in Storybrooke. While he would not have been Snow’s first choice as a suitor for Emma’s hand, she believed in second chances and Emma was clearly the reason for Hook’s redemption.

She glanced at David and saw her husband having the same reservations at the relationship but they both were constantly needing to remember that Emma was a grown woman who had been without the benefit of anyone having a say in her life. All her choices had been her own and if Hook was what she wanted, they had to respect it. 

For his part, David hadn’t forgotten what had happened in the office, when Regina had gloatingly revealed that Emma had saved Hook’s life with true love’s kiss. Having once done the same thing for Snow, he knew the feelings that made such a thing possible and if Emma felt this way for Hook, then nothing he or Snow said would change that. The heart wants what the heart wants, he decided.

“I won’t ask,” he laughed and turned to Hook. “Want a beer?”

Killian stared at David a moment and then nodded, “I’m willing to try it.” His liquor of choice was rum of course but he was willing to try something different, especially when the offer was made in the spirit of acceptance by his love’s father.

Snow and Emma exchanged quick glances as Emma started serving.

“So what was the emergency with Robin?” She asked even though she had a good idea of it. Once again, the memory of bringing back Marian surfaced and a sting of guilt rising up inside her. No one could miss what was happening between the two in Regina’s office this morning.

“Well he’s in a bad way,” David replied, popping the top off the beer can he’d taken out of the refrigerator for Hook before handing it to the pirate. “He’s torn between his feelings for Regina and Marian,” he continued, shutting the fridge door after getting his own can.

“Can’t say I blame him,” Killian declared as they two men drifted back to the table, “its a hell of a shock for a man to have a dead wife return from the grave.”

“This is my fault,” Emma shook her head as she served the pizza on plates “I shouldn’t have brought her back.”

“Emma, you couldn’t leave her to die,” Snow countered automatically reaching for her daughter’s hand and squeezing it. “You couldn’t have known that this was going to happen.”

“Aye Luv,” Killian agreed. “Perhaps it's better that it unfold this way. How would Robin fare if he were to learn later that the woman he was with, was the killer of his son’s mother? This situation places him in a difficult position for certain but had you not acted, the one he would have faced would have been far worse.”

“Hook’s right,” David agreed and raised his can to the man in a small toast to which Hook reciprocated before taking a sip. “Unfortunately, that’s not all of it.”

“What? What’s not all of it?” Emma asked her father with concern as she crossed the floor to Henry and served him a plate of pizza. She returned a moment later when they were all seated and took the chair next to Killian, waiting for an explanation.

David let out a sigh, hating for something that was obviously private between Regina and Robin to be discussed openly like this. However, there was no preventing the discussion especially in light of what Robin had told him at the diner. Now that they were all settled, David explained Robin’s account of how Tinkerbelle had once shown Regina her soul mate, a man wearing the same lion tattoo that he wore on his wrist.

“Sauron had a lion tattoo,” Killian pointed out recalling seeing the tattoo. He had observed everything about the stranger to try and gauge where the man had come from. “It was on his wrist.”

“Oh hell,” Emma eased back into her seat, feeling her appetite dwindle. “No wonder Regina was so bowled over when she first met him. She probably doesn’t know what to think!”

“That’s what Robin believes,” David declared. “He thinks that if this Sauron is after Regina, having that tattoo is going to go a long way in convincing her that he’s her soul mate.”

“Especially now that Marian’s back,” Snow reminded and felt heartsick for Regina. It was bad enough that thanks to her all those years ago, Snow had inadvertently caused the death of Daniel and Emma’s actions had separated Regina and Robin for good. “She might even believe that she was wrong about Robin, to begin with, and that it was Sauron she was meant to be with. After all, with Marian being alive, Regina probably assumes Marian’s Robin soul mate, right?”

“Not necessarily,” Killian interjected, “it is possible to love a woman without any there being any pre-destiny involved. Sometimes the attraction simply exists and somewhere out there, there’s someone even more perfect for you. Its a game of chance mates, you can find happiness without finding your one true love. Perhaps that’s what happened to Robin.”

Killian didn’t look at Emma as he spoke and she was grateful for that. They hadn’t had a chance to talk about the kiss that saved his life. True love’s kiss, her brain reminded her pointedly. The fact that Killian hadn’t pressed her on the issue was part of the reason why she did love him. He knew how to give her space even when he was talking about Robin’s situation which had a remarkable similarity to his own relationship with Milah and now her.

“Its a mess,” Emma groaned, taking a begrudging bite of pizza and chewing.

“We have to talk to her but I just don’t know who could,” David shrugged, not envying whoever was given that duty. “I mean Robin wanted to do it himself and you saw how he was today. She’ll think he’s just being jealous.”

“To be fair mate, he was wearing more than a little shade of green,” Killian pointed out.

“Well, I can’t do it,” Emma retorted. “She’s pissed enough at me as it is...”

“I’ll do it,” Snow said firmly. “I’ll talk to her tomorrow. Look, I’ve known her the longest and sometimes the best person to give you some home truths is a former enemy. We connected a little during the year in the Enchanted Forest, I think she can take me telling her the truth.”

“Is it the truth?” Emma asked her mother, “what if this Sauron guy is her one true love?”

Part of Emma wanted that it was true. If Sauron was Regina’s one true love than she finally had a chance to be happy and Emma wouldn’t feel so awful about what she’d done by bringing Marian back. Of course, there was no telling what consequences might result from Regina throwing in her lot with this Sauron. Anyone who scared Gold was someone to be viewed with caution.

“He isn’t,” David said firmly, remembering what he saw in Robin’s eyes, the anguish at the possibility he’d have to give up Regina. David had felt the same pain once and he knew it couldn’t be faked or misjudged. Robin loved Regina, possibly more than he even loved his wife. “This whole situation between Robin, Regina and Marian may be completely messed up but Robin is convinced Regina is his soul mate.”

Deciding that they could talk the subject into the ground, Snow made a royal decision. “Alright, I’ll talk to her tomorrow. Tonight we’re going to forget about this for a while. We’re going to sit here and have dinner and discuss,” she said turning to Killian with an evil smile, “what are your intentions towards my daughter.”

Emma spat Cola out through her nose.

********

WARNING: ADULT SCENE

Somehow, they’d gotten back to her house.

She vaguely remembered using magic to get them there, materializing in the middle of the living room and reigniting the dying embers in the fireplace to a healthy roar. She was sure that she hadn’t consciously cast a spell to bring them back and that their arrival here had come about because of her overwhelming need to be somewhere secluded with him had prompted her magic into acting on her behalf.

It was difficult to think clearly when their lips had not left each other since he’d pulled her to him and kissed her for the first time. His kisses were powerful, all-consuming things and her head swam with a mixture of delirium and delight as he drew her into the fire with him. His tongue accepted the invitation of her parting lips and slipped into her mouth, exploring the warm cavern within before duelling wetly with her own tongue. Their teeth clinked from the intensity of it and it didn’t feel as if he was kissing her, it felt like he was making love to her mouth before he moved onto the rest of her.

Regina for her part ignored the distant voice in her head that begged for caution, that reminded her that just 24 hours ago, she’d sobbed like a child because of Robin. Instead, she raked her fingers through Sauron’s newly cut hair, digging in her nails into his back in defiance of the pain Robin had caused her. The pain made him hiss into her mouth and the effect of it ran down her throat and until it reached her core, making her damp with excitement.

Sauron paused long enough in his ravishment of her lips to take note of where they were and met her gaze with amusement. Such a dazzling display of magic chained by the need to be something she wasn’t. Once again, he was reminded of how distracting flesh could be and how rarely had he partaken in this most base act of corporeal existence. Now that he was here however, he fully intended to indulge himself especially when he saw her with lips swollen, her hair tousled and her cheeks burning with heat. He had thought the lady merely beautiful before but now the sight of her provoked a lust so black it wouldn’t be quelled until satiated.

By the action of bringing them here and her setting of the scene, Sauron took this as confirmation of what she wanted. While it was well within to take her by force, he took her actions as permission and brought their foreplay up another level. While continuing the plunder of her mouth, his hands slid down her back and over the curve of her rear. A grunt of pleasure escaped him as he kneaded the firm flesh, the action grinding her hips against him until he could feel himself pressing into her belly.

A soft whimper escaped her lips and then it seemed as if they were both on fire. Their limbs began a frantic but clumsy dance of coordination as he felt her pull the jacket off his shoulders with urgency while their mouths remained attached in a desperate need to maintain contact. He let her go long enough to shake off the sleeves, allowing the jacket to fall somewhere on the floor behind him. No sooner than he was free of it, her hands were questing beneath his shirt and he saw the shudder that ran through her when her palms made contact with his bare chest.

The shudder coincided with the slackness of her jaw as her lips parted even more, like a flower in full bloom. Her soft liquid eyes became black and the need to possess her became overwhelming. She attacked the shirt, ripping it off his body by sending buttons flying in all directions. Once he was free of the garment, he cupped her rear once more and lifted her easily off her feet. She gasped into his mouth at being suddenly carried but offered no argument when he took her to the nearby dining table. She shook off her shoes, leaving them in a trail as her legs wrapped around his waist.

This is madness, Regina told herself, but she didn’t care. Not one damn bit. She’d been a hero and she’d saved the day. Her reward had been to have the man she loved snatched away. Now this stranger had come and he was worshipping her like nothing she’d ever known before. She was going to have this, damn the consequences. She pulled off her blouse as he carried her, letting it fall on the marble floor and saw his appreciation at her body. His mouth slipped away from her lips, charting a sensuous trail down her neck until he reached her cleavage and started nipping at her breasts through the rough lace.

Regina wondered if he could feel the rush of heat between her legs as he did that and supposed he had to if the rigid stiffness of his cock beneath his pants was any indication. They reached the table and he sat her down on the edge, her stockinged legs dangling off the end. Giving her no quarter, she was aware of her bra straps being pulled down, the lace forced down to her waist before she was pressed down against the table, her back touching the cold surface. It made her nipples contract and jut prominently.

Suddenly her arms were pinned above her head, held against the table so firmly that she could hardly move them. She looked up at him, a surge of fear and anticipation crossed her face at that moment and what she saw back was a lust so black it made the fear dissipate in an instant and replaced it with a throbbing in her sex that felt unbelievably wanton.

“This, my lady, is how you use magic,” he said with a wink and then fell down hungrily onto one of her erect nipples.

“Oh God,” she whimpered as she felt his lips drawing her nipple past his teeth, suckling first, swirling the taut flesh with delightful strokes that made Regina moan not only at his touch but the desperate need touch him. Then he bit down and the pleasure became coupled with sweet pain that made her buck against his lips. Her back bowed over the table in hungry need to feed more of herself into his mouth. His other hand caught her neglected breast, cupping it first, feeling the heaviness of it in his palm before his thumb began to pluck at the nipple like he was playing an instrument.

There was something pure and primitive about this that gave Sauron new appreciation for the act. The delights of flesh had never seemed as enjoyable in the past as it had now. Each new taste as he ravished her breasts seemed to enflame his desire for more until he was sliding down her body, in search of new plunder. He heard her groan of disappointment when moved away and smiled, knowing that what he tasted next would not leave her wanting.

Sauron trailed a wet line down her stomach, his hands sliding down her ribs until he reached her waist and was kneeling before her like a man in worship. Fingers hooked the scrap of undergarment she wore, tugging it past the fastening that held her up stockings. He wasted no time with this, removing only the lace that covered her sex from his lips. Tossing it over his shoulder, he spread her legs apart and licked the insides of her thighs. Biting and nipping the skin lightly, he could hear her groaning with frustration.

“Bastard...” she hissed at him, feeling her stomach sink each time he flicked his tongue close to her sex, aware that he was trying to torture, make her ache for him. Furthermore, her arms were still pinned and while she supposed she could fight the magic used to hold them in place, there was something deeply erotic about being held down this way. She was still pondering all this when suddenly she felt his breath warm her clit and craned her neck just in time to see him bury his face in between her legs.

Regina bucked against the table the instant he made contact with her flesh. By the time he’d drawn her clit past his teeth and began washing the tiny nubbin with his tongue, Regina forgot everything she was thinking and became lost to the intense sensations. She was aware of him sliding her forward to the table’s edge and draping her long legs over his shoulders, his arms circling her thighs to hold her steady. Their eyes touched hers once and Regina braced herself for the pleasure as Sauron gave her a sinful smirk and lowered his head to continue eating her out.

And it was a feast, Sauron decided. She tasted sweet as honey and he was determined to get every drop he could from her. His tongue teased the tiny pearl concealed within her folds until it was jutting out impudently for the taking. He sucked at it, nipped it with his teeth until she was both crying out his name in reverence and cursing him at the same time. He used the slick of her folds to thrust two fingers inside her and found that tender spot insider her that most women never knew existed until the right lover showed them it was there.

Regina thought she was going to die from the overload of pleasure he was forcing her to experience. She felt him manipulate her inner passage with expert fingers while simultaneously sucking her clit until she was mindless from the double assault. His chin, though shaven, had enough stubble to create delicious friction against her outer lips as he continued to eat her. With her arms pinned above her head, the lower half of her body so utterly at his mercy, Regina was rushing towards an orgasm so splendid, it would shatter her.

Sauron could sense its arrival of course. The contracting muscles around his fingers, the way her hips rode his mouth like she was attuned to the flicks of his tongue, could mean nothing else. He held on tight, braced himself for the wave that was coming his way because he wanted to drink her down like a fine elixir. He pulled away from her folds for a moment and savoured the ripple of need that shuddered through her body at the loss of his mouth. Sauron took in the sight of her head bent back, her thighs quivering and her nipples hard and awaiting his hands. It was a glorious sight.

“Please,” she begged lifting her head to stare at him with pleading eyes. “Don’t...don’t stop.”

He grinned with satisfaction at the plea and returned to the business of finishing her with renewed vigour. He sucked the now prominent clit into his mouth, inserted an additional finger and pumped her oh so lovely quim until she was crying out his name. When her climax came, it felt more like a crash and she filled his mouth with her taste. He savoured it all and relished the clenching muscles around his fingers wanting to feel that same pressure when he began a more substantial penetration.

The orgasm that rippled through her body made Regina forget every thought she had in her head. Her legs tightened around his neck and even though she squirmed uncontrollably, he held her in place, forcing her to endure every second of sweet release until she was near senseless from it. Even as she came, his fingers didn’t let up, they continued to pump in and out of her, using her own slick juices to move faster and faster, until the crescendo she thought she reached, was superseded by another and another until she didn’t know when one orgasm ended and another began.

It went on for what seemed like forever and then suddenly, her arms were freed and he pulled away from her, leaving her momentarily dazed. Without warning, he pulled her roughly off the table, until she almost fell. He caught her at the last moment under the arms, forcing her into a kneeling position before him. Once again, the rough handling was exactly what she wanted and as she found herself face to face with the prominent bulge beneath his pants. She looked up at him and realised that she was exactly where he wanted her, on her knees.

The need to wipe that smug look off his face was so overwhelming that before she had time to question the symbolism of the act, she was pulling down the zipper of his pants, dragging the fabric over his hip bones and freeing his cock. He was hard and erect, not to mention, large. Seeing it made her mouth water, particularly when her entire being was still shuddering from the orgasm, no orgasms she corrected, he just made her experience. She wanted to make him call her name, wanted to drive himmindless.

When she took him into her mouth, Sauron had wasted no time with any delicacy in the matter. His fingers clenched her hair and his hips moved to the rhythm of her bobbing head. He felt her surprise and her indignation at her loss of control when he started to pump in and out of her mouth. Her hands gripped his rear, held on tight as she fought to regain dominance. He pistoned in and out of her mouth, feeling pleasure as her lips slid over his shaft with delicious ease. Regina looked utterly magnificent on her knees before him, her mouth working so determinedly to bring him undone. Her eyes met his and at that moment, Sauron might have loved her. The emotion was so alien to him he could not be sure but it made him doubly determined to bring her back to Mordor with him.

Regina fondled his heavy sacs as she continued to suck, finding a rhythm with his hips so that she could take his cock into her mouth as deep as it would go. She laved the underside of his shaft with her tongue and pulled back long enough to give specific attention to the swollen head. For an instant, she saw his puzzlement at what she was doing and realised, for all his devastating effect on her earlier, he hadn’t really experienced this kind of intimacy before. Or at least not enough of it to register. She smiled at the thought of being the first one to show him how good it could be and stroked his shaft as she sucked hard on the glans, her tongue probing the weepy slit.

Sweet Eru, he thought, looking down and watching the almost graceful way her mouth was gliding over his flesh. The pleasure of it was beyond belief. He felt every inch of her lips as they charted the length of him, even the tiniest of contact had him ready to break apart like a wave against the rocks. Those full lips were doing their worst and his grip of her hair slackened until he was brushing the strands tenderly for fear of disrupting what she was doing to him. She was drawing life and soul out of him, driving him to the point of complete and utter surrender. This Queen was going to make him beg because his control, so ruthlessly maintained for so long, was beginning to slip.

If anything was capable of drawing Sauron back from the brink, it was that.

If he did not exert his will over the situation, it was he who would be supplicant to her and after Morgoth, he swore he’d be no one’s creature again. Not even this woman he so desired to keep. With a sudden start, he forced her away from him and Sauron looked down to see her confusion at why he’d forced her to stop. Without giving her any time to speak, he pulled her to her feet and spun her around.

“What’s....” she started to say when he pushed her legs apart and stepped in between them. Hands on her hips, it was all the warning he gave before he drove himself into her body. Already made slick by his mouth, he did not yield until he’d reached the end and was fully sheathed. There was nothing tender about it, it was hard and fast. He reached the end with a forceful bump that drove a cry from her lips as she threw her head back and angled her hips so that he’d slid in even deeper.

He was going to kill her, Regina managed to think before he slammed into her so hard, she saw stars when he hit the end. She threw her head back and moaned his name as if his cock had forced the words out of her mouth. He filled her so completely, claimed her so utterly that by the time that he was pulling back for another stroke, Regina thought her knees might give out. Instead, she leaned forward, bracing her arms on the table and feeling another surge of black lust when his hand clenched her hair and his fingers dugs into her hips before he started to fuck her.

Fully in command of himself once more, Sauron plunged into her like she was the enemy. To win her, he had to conquer her, break her apart and then rebuild her again in the form he desired. He was the Lord of Mordor and he would not beholden to any woman. She would be his queen but she would never rule with him. He told himself this as he pounded into her, hearing her cries grow more and more frenzied, pulverising her insides until she could have died with pleasure. He felt her muscles contract around him, felt the sensation of her inner walls clenching his shaft, coaxing him to join her in the same song of ecstasy.

Once again, to show her that he was not only ruthless but merciful, he withdrew from her once more and heard Regina cry out in frustration by his absence. This time, he flipped her over again, so that she was facing him. Her skin was covered with a sheen of moisture, her hair mussed and her lips swollen. She was looking at him like both god and monster and he knew then, she was trying to decide whether or not she had made a mistake. Sauron gave her no chance to reconsider, he gripped her legs, pulled her to him and slid inside her once more, his journey to full sheathe was a little less cruel, certainly kinder.

She ought to kill him treating her like some common whore, Regina was thinking when suddenly he spun her around to face him. His eyes were tender, his chest covered in sweat and he was smiling, the same tender smile he’d given her the first time kissed her hand like she was something delicate to be cherished. The man was a paradox. One minute he was lust given form and the next he was gentle again. Each facet of him was compelling and mirrored her own turbulent personality. It frightened her how much they had in common, how kindred their spirits were.

“What do you want from me?” She breathed as her legs wrapped around him and he resumed thrusting, her arms coiling around his neck as he leaned forward, their lips inches apart. “Do you want me as an ally because of my magic?” Her words turned into a gasp at the feel of another deep stroke.

“No,” he answered, slamming into that delicious barrier inside her, the one that made him grunt, the one that made her insides clench around him just a little harder. “I have my own magic,” he spoke in stutters. “I want you for myself. You may be the first thing I have ever really wanted just for myself and not a cause.”

“I...am...not...yours...to...own!” Regina countered through gritted teeth, each word punctuated by the stroke of his cock inside her.

His answer was to kiss her again. His mouth covered hers as he felt her fingers nails dragging across his back, the pain so sweet against the pleasure. They moved like one creature, in graceful undulating movements, their bodies corresponding to each other's movements perfectly so they could reach completion together. Regina could feel his heart against hers and marvelled at the strange thing that it was. It didn’t so much as beat as burn with heat. Like it was fashioned out of creation’s fire. She wasn’t his to own but as he continued to grind into her, Regina suspected that she might give herself to him anyway.

Opening his eyes, Sauron drew away from her lips when he saw her starting to come apart before him. Sauron himself could feel the imminent approach of his own release but unlike earlier, he was master of how far he’d fall over the precipice. Still, there was so much beauty in her face as he watched the escalating mask of pleasure taking charge of her lovely features. Her lips parted, her breasts were glistening with perspiration and her eyes were glazed. Here was a vision of her he wished he could immortalise on canvas.

When she quickened around him, he felt the air escape his lungs and for a moment, he was gasping as the pressure of her slick inner walls, tightening around his shaft in a near impassable wall of flesh. The exquisite sensations coupled with the beatific expression as she climaxed finally broke him and Sauron allowed himself a surrendering roar of pleasure as he exploded inside her. 

This distraction of flesh which until today, he had no use for, had suddenly made him feel more alive than he had since leaving the Timeless Halls. The One Ring had returned his power to him but until this moment, Sauron had not truly felt it. He was whole again, not only in power but also in spirit. Being with her had given him more than just pleasure, she had allowed the Lord of Mordor to remember how truly powerful he was.

When he was spent, he drew her to him, holding her in a tangle of sweaty limbs as he whispered in her ear. “Come with me Regina,” he spoke using her name for the first time. “There is nothing for you here and I can give you a world and kingdom the likes of which you cannot possibly imagine. Ask it of me and I will level this world to bring you anything or anyone you want.”

Regina was still coming down from her climax, shaken by how much he affected her, how easily she was losing herself to him. Their lovemaking was raw and fiery. She imagined immortality, imagined having sex like this forever, bringing children into the world and teaching them all she knew about magic. A world she would rule with him, a man worthy of her, a man who was perhaps even a god.

Half coherent, with his cock still inside her, his seed warming her insides, Regina managed to speak, her words leaving her with lazy interest. “What do you mean?”

“Your son Regina,” Sauron spoke as he plied her damp neck with soft kisses, “Say the word and my gift to you before we leave this world, will be to take your son with us.” 

Chapter Eleven
Happy Ending

Snow had almost brought Baby Neal with her she decided to go have her talk with Regina the next morning.

She'd reasoned that approaching Regina with the baby under the pretext of needing some maternal advice might make the former Queen more receptive to talking about Stephen and the tattoo. After all, Regina had gone through all of it with Henry and probably had some useful advice to give. It seemed like a better idea than wagging her finger at Regina and telling the woman that she could be tricked by some stranger from another land simply because he was wearing the same tattoo as Robin.

Truth be told, Snow wanted to see Regina anyway. After her complicity in Daniel’s death and with history now repeating itself because of Emma’s involvement in Regina’s heartbreak, Snow didn’t want to see the tentative friendship they’d forged the last year go back to the outright hatred of previous years. She had wanted Regina to find true love and she also knew how painful it was to lose it, even briefly. If nothing else, Snow wanted to offer Regina a sympathetic ear.

Of course, there was also no guarantee that Regina wouldn't turn Snow into a toad or some such horrible thing being presumptuous enough to approach her at all.

After all that rumination, Snow decided on leaving the baby behind and Charming was certainly happier about it. As it was, he wanted to go with her until explained that it really wasn't girl talk if there was a man in the room. In truth, Snow had no idea how Regina would take her overture. However, she was willing to try because she hadn’t forgotten it was Regina who defeated Zelena and saved Neal.

 Walking up the red brick pathway that led to the front door of Regina's stately mansion, Snow was glad to be out of the house for a few hours. While she adored her new baby and his care, she needed a moment to catch her breath when she was trying to figure out what to do next. She should have been expert at this by now but the Curse had robbed her of raising Emma from infancy and she was trying to cope with her second child with the skills of a novice.

Halfway down the walk, she saw the French doors to the upstairs balcony swing open with Regina stepping out into the open air. It wasn’t quite afternoon yet and it certainly wasn’t early morning either but it seemed as if Regina had just woken up because she was still clad in a champagne coloured silk robe, tied about the waist. Judging by the way the fabric clung to her body, Snow realised she wasn’t wearing anything underneath it. Regina paused at the doorway and stretched her limbs with like a cat in the sunlight. She actually looked rather rested and very relaxed. 

Regina finally caught sight of her as she approached the railing, looking down at Snow with a mixture of puzzlement and annoyance.

“Snow, what are you doing here?” She asked.

“I came to see how you were doing,” Snow answered, pausing in the middle of the walkway and gazing up at her. “I’m sorry I didn’t realise you’d just woken up. I never remembered you being a....”

Anything else she was going to say came to a sudden halt by the sight of the man who joined Regina on the balcony.

 Dressed in jeans, the unbuttoned white shirt he wore flapped in the morning breeze and exposed an impressively broad chest and rather perfect abs. He was barefoot but the cold floor didn't seem to bother him as he padded over to Regina, wrapping an arm around her waist when he reached her. Planting a seductive kiss against her neck before he realised they had an audience, he gazed downwards and offered Snow a polite smile of an acknowledgement as he held Regina with the intimacy of a lover. 

 Oh boy, Snow winced inwardly. She was too late.

“Hi,” Snow greeted with a pronounced attempt at cheeriness to show that she was neither scandalised or taken back by the man’s appearance. In fact, she was trying her best to keep from showing any trace of awkwardness at all.

“Snow this is Stephen," Regina introduced almost as if she were showing him off. It was easier to call him by Stephen since that’s how everyone knew him anyway. As she watched Snow attempt to conceal her shock, Regina guessed what the former princess was thinking but dismissed it with a hint of satisfaction. Her private life was no one’s business.

"Stephen, this is Snow." Regina introduced, "My former stepdaughter."

"Delighted," Sauron greeted, planting another kiss on Regina’s neck as he answered. "I hope I was not interrupting."

"Of course not," Regina turned to him and gave him an equally lusty kiss before turning back to Snow. “Give us a minute and then you can come in for some coffee.” 

There was more than a little hint of smugness in her voice because she wanted to show not just Snow but everyone, that she was over Robin and she was no longer weak or pining after anyone.

“I don’t want to impose,” Snow replied, uncertain how to proceed now that Stephen was present. Her whole plan of easing into the subject of the tattoo was undone by the fact that he had obviously charmed his way into Regina's bed.

“Don’t be silly,” Regina smiled at her coyly. “We’ll have a nice chat.” 

**********

Snow had to admit, she could understand the attraction.

And she’d found true love.

This Stephen or Sauron was definitely magnetic. At the moment it was all very civilised even if Snow did notice the articles of clothing that were strewn across the living room floor, the shoes near the dining table. The evidence of a night of heated passion that had spilled over into the morning was all across the room. To some degree, Snow felt a little envious and if this were any other circumstances, she’d been dragging Regina off to have some serious ‘Sex in the City’ girl talk. However, in light of who this Stephen was, the only thing that Snow could feel was rising alarm.

“Regina, I wanted to see if you were okay,” Snow confessed first and foremost because that was the truth. They’d retreated to the kitchen, thankfully away from the front rooms so Snow didn’t have to think of what had taken on that dining table even though she had a pretty good idea. The ulterior motive seemed a moot point and had to be shelved for now because the enemy was here. This was the sorcerer that had worried Gold so Snow was not foolish enough to get on any kind of moral high ground with Regina.

“With the baby and all, I haven’t had a chance to come and see you especially after what happened...” Snow paused, realising it was probably indelicate to mention Robin when Stephen was there.

“It’s ancient history now,” Regina shrugged dismissively as they sat across each other at the kitchen island and nursing cups of coffee each. “I’m fine.”

“I see that,” Snow remarked as she watched Stephen grabbing an apple from a bowl in the middle of the counter and retreating to the far edge of the island. He examined the polished red apple as if it were some strange thing he'd never seen before taking a bite.

“You don’t have to worry about me,” Regina retorted sarcastically. “I’m not going to turn evil again.”

"That's not what I meant Regina," Snow countered, wanting the woman to know it wasn't about that at all. "I mean I know how close you two were..."

Regina shifted her gaze to Stephen who was watching her reaction closely while he continued to chew. She wondered if he was curious to know if he still had a competition for her attention. However, upon contact with her eyes, the corner of his lips tugged into a knowing smile and the images of their lovemaking flashed in her memory as Regina was sure it did in his too. They had rutted shameless into the night, at first in her living room and then later in her bedroom.

There were bruises on her body as there were scratch marks on his back from the rough sex that had taken place between. She was certain the sun had peeked through her window when they’d finally collapsed exhausted, a tangle of sweaty limbs after fucking each other senseless all night. A sliver of anticipation wormed through her as she thought of him, his fingers, tongue and cock doing such marvellous things to her. It made her wish Snow was gone, so they could do it again.

And he was staring back at her, perfectly aware of that she was thinking it.

"It was a passing phase,” Regina declared pretending as if she were bored with the whole subject, “and I just as well. Stephen has asked me to go back with him and I'm considering it."

"I am trying my best to convince her," Sauron added, seeing Snow's surprise at the statement. It served him well to play the agreeable suitor for now because he still wished Regina to come back with him willingly. He had enjoyed their passions the night before, enjoyed how he’d made her scream with a different kind of agony from what he was usually accustomed to inflicting. So many thousands of years of living and he’d never indulged in the flesh as he had now, never found its trappings to be quite so seductive. Or maybe it was the woman, Sauron could not say. All he knew was that he was sincere in her desire to have her return to with him.

"I have work to carry out at home, a kingdom in pieces. Its time to bring order from chaos. Regina and I can build something great together."

"What about Henry? What about Storybrooke?" Snow asked, unable to believe that Regina would leave her son, not when she saw how devastated Regina had been in the Enchanted Forest when they had to leave Emma and Henry behind.

"I'll always love him but let's face facts. Thanks to the memories I gave him and Emma, he's had a lifetime to believe she raised him and she'll always come first with him. Who am I but just this person he couldn't wait to leave to go find her? No, this is for the best." Regina said with an intensity that felt like it was herself she was trying to convince and not Snow.

Stephen joined Regina at the counter and offered her a comforting arm before he added to Snow "if she comes with me. We'll have a houseful of children, as many as she wants with a kingdom to rebuild. Can you say that she deserves any less than you yourself have obviously achieved." 

Snow opened her mouth to refute him but then she realised he was right; she and Charming had done all that. Everything they had promised each other, everything they had set out to do had been accomplished even before the first Curse had brought them here. Even now, they had their family back and were building a life in Storybrooke. Why shouldn’t Regina have the same chance at happiness?

"I guess not," she met Regina's gaze unable to deny his words. "When will you go?" She asked Regina, no longer thinking whether or not this was a question of if but rather when.

"We are in no hurry," Stephen answered with a smile, "the beauty of travelling through time, one can afford to spend a few days away without losing any of it at all. Besides, we will leave when Regina is ready to go.” He returned to her and leaned forward to plant a kiss on her head.

"Where will you go?" Snow asked tried not to be distracted by those piercing eyes, "I mean where is this land you are going to?" This time the question was directed at Stephen.

"Home," Stephen said giving her that much even though he knew it was meaningless information. "To Mordor.

********

"I wonder how mom went," Emma asked no one in particular after as she sat around the breakfast table with David and Killian after she’d dropped Henry off at school for the day. Robin had shown up earlier, bringing doughnuts like some offering he needed to bring to the royalty of Storyrbooke in the hopes that David had made some progress with Regina after their talk the night before. The man appeared as if he had a restless night and once again, Emma felt the guilt eat away at her at how she’d messed up his life with her attempt at charity.

"I still think I should have gone and talked to her," Robin grumbled, impatiently waiting for Snow’s return after he’d been told what the lady was up to this morning.

"And say what?" Killian asked with a hint of annoyance because this was the second, nay third time the man had made this complaint. “You’re the man for her even though you have a wife and son waiting at home? I can tell you from experience mate, that no woman takes that well."

Emma kicked him under the table at his insensitivity but the truth was; Killian had hit the nail right on the head. What was Robin going to say to Regina that could change anything? The pirate frowned at her, showing no signs of repentance because he believed he had made a valid point.

Robin glared at Killian, angry that the pirate had reminded him of his situation so starkly but said nothing because there was no argument he could offer otherwise. He’d managed to put up a good front to Marian but she was starting to see cracks in his demeanour and she knew him well enough to eventually guess something was wrong.

"Let Snow handle this," David advised in that calming tone of his, trying to diffuse the situation before Robin’s temper got any worse. "She'll make Regina see sense."

“Because she’s done that before,” Killian said doubtfully, wishing this lot would remember that Regina had cursed them all to this land out of sheer spite from her failure to kill Snow several times in the past. Perhaps a year had given them a tentative friendship and the alliance against Zelena had helped but Killian knew that if not for Emma, he would have killed the Crocodile the first chance he got. There were some things that no amount of time could heal and he felt as if they were placing a lot of faith on Regina’s ability to forgive Snow enough to let this last injury pass.

“Well I have faith in Snow,” David said firmly but he had his doubts to even if he wasn’t showing it.

While she didn’t voice it, Emma was with Killian on this. Snow and Regina had an acrimonious relationship, to begin with, and one year of calm could not wipe away the hatred of decades. Snow was convinced she could talk to Regina down and Emma had to have faith in that but there was a part of her that was worried her mistake with Marian had set that relationship back to its previous hostility. And if Snow couldn't convince Regina that Stephen was using her, then what? What would Robin do? More importantly, what would they do?

Killian saw the concerned tug at her features and knew those eyes were troubled. He suddenly felt guilty for being such a pessimist and quickly added, “but we’re not going to come to any conclusions guessing so I suppose we should take the king’s advice and simply wait it out.”

"Right,” Emma sighed and gave him a little smile, aware that he could see right through her and those words were for her benefit. Christ, why couldn’t she have left well alone? If she hadn't brought Marian back...

Suddenly the front door swung open and all eyes shifted to the door to see Snow entering the apartment. Her expression was serious and as she stepped in, her eyes saw Robin and she seemed to stiffen a moment as if the sight of him had caused her to swallow something unpleasant.

Not exactly encouraging, Emma thought as she saw the look in her mother’s eyes. Snow's face was grave and she braced herself for the worst.

“Oh hello Robin,” she greeted. “What are you doing here?” She asked pleasantly but there was underlying tension, everyone save Robin could see it.

“I thought I’d bring some of these doughnuts everyone is so fond off and see how things were going with your talk to Regina,” he answered. “Did you see her?”

“Oh yes,” Snow nodded, setting down her handbag before she lowered herself onto one of the wooden chairs at the table. “Any more coffee?” She asked, not exactly feigning a change of subject but definitely attempt to slow down the imperative to answer.

“I’ll get you a tea,” David offered instead as he got to his feet. “You’re feeding remember? The baby has enough trouble trying to sleep. You don’t want him loaded up with caffeine.”

“Oh yeah because that’s going to stop him from ever keeping us up,” Snow retorted with a hint of snark.

Oh hell, Emma thought as she listened to Snow and read her body language. Something really bad has happened. She didn’t know what but suddenly Emma felt the need to get into crash position.

“Did you see Regina?" Robin asked, his patience unable to stand much more.

There was nothing for it, Snow sighed. She wished he wasn’t here. She wished she didn’t have to tell Robin what she’d seen at the mayor’s mansion but there was no preventing it. He was determined to get his answers and her evasion would not put him off indefinitely. It was better for her to get it over and done with.

David returned to the table and served Snow a cup of chamomile tea before Snow finally answered, “Yes, I saw her.”

"Did you tell her about the tattoo?" He asked immediately.

“Maybe this isn’t a good time to discuss this,” Emma spoke up trying to spare her mother who was obviously having difficulty speaking.

“He’s not going to be able to survive the suspense,” Killian declared because Robin was about to burst if he didn’t get his answers. “Just tell him, lass.”

Sighing, Snow nodded. “I didn’t have a chance to talk to her about the tattoo.”

"Why not?" Robin demanded. "What could be more important than that?"

Emma saw David bristling immediately, not liking the accusation being levelled at his wife. He knew Snow and if she hadn’t brought it up, it was for good reason. Emma’s mind was whirling, what could possibly have happened to keep Snow from speaking her mind if she had seen Regina?

"She wasn't alone," Snow finally revealed. "He was there."

"Stephen?" David exclaimed. "At this hour of the morning...” he started to say and then slammed the brakes on his next words when he realised what that meant. “Oh.”

The silence that fell over the table last a good few seconds as everyone realised the full implications of Snow’s words. Then without a word, Robin stood up, pushed the chair out from behind him and abruptly left the room, shutting the front door behind him. They heard his steps disappear down the hallway.

“Should we go after him?” Killian asked concerned about what the man might do in such a state.

"No, let him be for a while," David sighed, knowing that there was no way to ease Robin's pain. If Regina had wanted to get back at him for going back to his wife, she couldn’t have picked a more effective weapon. "He'll come in when he's ready."

"I'll give this Stephen credit," Killian shook his head surprised by the turn of events. "He moves fast with the ladies. I didn't think that the Queen was that susceptible to charm.”

If Killian had known that, he might have tried to enlist her aid in killing the Crocodile when he first got to Storybrooke.

“Are you sure?” David asked, hoping Snow was mistaken. It was a slim hope but then David was an eternal optimist like his wife.

“Pretty sure,” Snow declared firmly, remembering what she had seen at the mansion. “They weren’t making any effort to hide it.”

“Well, you can hardly blame her,” Killian remarked. “Robin may be angry but the truth is, he does have a wife and child and there is no understanding between the two now Marian has returned. The lady may be finding solace in another to blunt the pain of her rejection. After all, she likely thought Robin was meant to be her happy ending,"

"I know, I know," Emma exclaimed with exasperation, once again faced with the reality that this escalating problem was all her doing. "This is my fault. I shouldn't have brought Marian back."

"Emma we've been through this already," Snow spoke with a mother’s command, reaching for her daughter's hand and squeezing it tight. "You didn't know and you couldn't leave her to die. That's not who you are."

"Aye," Killian added, "listen to your mum."

"Stop trying to make brownie points with my parents," Emma grumbled and then gave him a wan smile because that was Killian’s way, to be her rock when she was feeling vulnerable and foolish. Besides, after last night, he deserved some slack for the way her parents had grilled him like he was the grungy, guitar playing, bad boy that turned up to take their virginal daughter to prom on the back of his motorcycle.

"Never," he winked at her.

“Well, I suppose the idea of true love...” David started to say when Snow snorted derisively.

“Oh please, that wasn’t true love. That was sex.” Snow declared without any hesitation. “By the looks of it, they've been together all night. I saw a pair of heels leading up to the dining table..." She looked at Emma as if only the women at the table would understand.

"Serious?" Emma leaned forward with interest. "You mean right there on the dining table?"

"Uh-huh and on that fancy rug of hers, not to mention all the stuff on the coffee table, wasn’t.” Snow revealed and then added, “there were like clothes everywhere. I suppose why are we surprised? Really hot guy, broken heart, I can’t think of a better way to forget than with a bit of rebound sex.”

"Well yeah," Emma agreed unable to deny that Stephen was very attractive although uncertain if she was comfortable hearing her mom using the term ‘rebound sex’. "I mean its too bad he's evil because really if Regina needs to get her groove on with someone after what happened with Robin, Stephen isn't a bad choice especially with that accent." She pointed.

“Yeah,” Snow agreed with a little smile. “The accent.”

"Oy!" Killian finally interrupted and the two women turned to see their significant other, staring at them with more than a passing hint of annoyance. He was not at all liking where this conversation was going. "Let's get back on point ladies. No more talk of heat and accents." He looked at David for support. 

"Yeah," David agreed. What was wrong with his accent? He wondered silently and was still not quite enough over Mary Margaret and Dr Whale before the Curse to be comfortable about his wife discussing the hotness of another man.

Emma and Snow shared a look of amusement at the obvious jealousy and tried not to laugh. She was still highly amused by Killian's reaction and was still laughing at how he'd punched out his past self on board the Jolly Roger.

"Alright, alright," Emma retorted and then added, “we’re scaring the menfolk. Did you manage to talk to her about anything at all?” She probed.

"I did," Snow answered, “and that’s where it gets worse. Emma she’s actually considering going back with him to wherever he came from. The guy was standing there next to us, promising her everything, a family, a kingdom, chance to build a future together... a happy ending. Even if Robin did convince Regina that he loved her, what does that mean exactly? As long as Marian's here, he's not going to leave her."

"But Regina would never leave without Henry," David declared. "I mean after everything she went through to be with him, why would she do that?"

“She wouldn’t,” Emma said firmly, refusing to believe that Regina would leave under any circumstances. There was little that she and the queen had in common but their love for Henry was definitely one. She knew that Regina would walk through fire for Henry just as she herself would. Sometimes, Emma felt guilty at being the one who was living with Henry when it was she who abandoned him as a baby. Regina had claimed Henry for her own because she had wanted him and she had ensured he had the best of everything.

“I don’t know Emma,” Snow replied. “She seems to think he doesn’t need her. After all, Henry left Storybrooke to find you and she hasn’t forgotten that.”

“Just another man who rejected her,” Killian pointed out. “Luv, you have to entertain the notion that at some point, she may have realised he’s your son, not hers and nothing she does will ever change that. Perhaps she thinks its better that she sever all bonds and have children of her own with the bloke.”

“I hope you’re right,” Emma sighed. “I really do.”

But she didn’t think he was.

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