#redemption process rumple

[a-rose-for-gold]

So I had this really fun idea recently for a Lore Olympus AU.

I thought it would be really fun to reimagine Once Upon a Time characters as Gods from the acclaimed Lore Olympus webcomic by Rachel Smythe. (Not Greek Mythology - not matching characters with specific Gods. I mean Rachel’s interpretation and art style specifically) I absolutely LOVE that series’ art style and the way Rachel uses color to tell the story.

So obviously I had to start with my favorite character!!!

Rumplestiltskin

God of

Textiles

Fatherhood

Dark Magic

Wealth

and Deals

(He’s an old God - he’s been around and is the deity of a lot of things.)

I have also drawn Belle but am yet to color her. I’m thinking she’s going to be the goddess of learning, stories, books, and redemption, and she’s going to be all shades/tints of light blue.

What other characters/gods & goddesses would you like to see?

Also some notes about my design/thought process and some other ideas about Rumple in this AU if anyone’s interested:

I put a lot of thought into Rumple’s design and what colors I should use for him. I wanted to incorporate gold into it obviously but I thought that all gold would be more appropriate for King Midas and Catherine. (And I wanted to try for something more original since Hera in LO is all gold) That, and I didn’t think all gold would fit all of his vibes. So eventually what I decided on was this:

Rumple’s main color was inspired by amber for a couple of reasons.

I thought oranges and browns would suit him well at all stages/phases of his life, from the spinner then the dark one to Mr. Gold then Detective Weaver.

Because amber fits well with the design concepts I have in mind for Fiona, Malcom/Peter Pan, and Baelfire.

Because his coloring is inspired by amber, which is a translucent stone, he can look different depending on the lighting he’s in or his mood, which suits him really well as an ever-shifting, complicated, and at times unpredictable character.

His hands however, have been corrupted by him overdoing it with his powers, so they’re black up to the elbow. Save his fingers, which turn gold when he’s spinning.

I also had the idea that his ankle was injured in the war against the titans, leaving him with scars that hurt and bleed ichor from time to time.

Also his like “god form” when he’s angry or otherwise using a LOT of power at once is either all gold or black with gold speckles/stars. I haven’t decided yet.

And I put him in the blue outfit for the sake of this drawing because I thought it would contrast nicely with his skin.

And the sparkles around the gold straw may be a little overboard and were a last minute decision but they were ✨fun.✨ ☺️

I had a lot of fun with this and probably won’t be able to resist drawing the God of Wealth again.

#once upon a time #rumplestiltskin #mr. gold #rumpelstiltskin #ouat fanart #lore olympus #rachel smythe #fanart #my art <3 #my art 2023 #lore olympus au #traditional art #mr gold #spectrum noir #god au

[dealmxkerofgold]

I've given it some thought... a lot of thought, actually... and I think I'm gonna reject the idea of Rumple becoming the Dark One again in S5 when it comes to my blog canon.

.

So, in my blog canon, when Rumple is freed of the Dark Curse at the end of S4 he believes himself to be human again, until in a dangerous situation - the scene that plays in my mind is him and Belle hiding in the backroom from Merida, but that could be changed - he throws his hand out on instinct to shield himself and Belle / Henry / whoever he's with if we change the situation, not thinking about not having magic anymore, only feeling the enormous need to protect... and Merida or whoever is threatening them is thrown back by a blast of light.

And thus Rumple finds out he still has magic - 300+ years of studying and practicing magic don't just disappear, after all, and there are examples of witches / wizards that learnt to do magic.

Whether it's light magic, he's not sure. Doesn't quite like the idea and the obligations that come with it of himself all of a sudden being called a light wizard or a hero or something, so he prefers to call it neutral magic, or just magic.

But one thing is certain - it's not dark magic anymore.

The Darkness left, and Rumplestiltskin remained, but who he is now is for him to discover ( hopefully with support of his family and friends ).

.

TL;DR: my Rumple never became the Dark One again after the Curse was purged from him at the end of S4 but he does have magic and from S5 onward is in the process of rediscovering himself, much like Regina is after S2;

hopefully, at this point he is definitely close with and is considered a member of the Charming-Mills-Swan-Gold clan, but ideally I would love to think / write of him growing closer with them since Neverland, as that would be a logical continuation of his redemption arc

#『 headcanon 』 #『 about 』 #『 blog canon 』 #idk how else to tag it #I've had this image of him throwing his hand out instinctively to shield himself ( and Belle ) and a blast of light hitting Merida #( not harming her of course just knocking her unconscious ) #ever since I watched 5.06 #and today I thought “why not make it my blog canon? what's stopping me?” #and you know what? #turns out nothing is!)

[kelyon]

As someone scared of fire, the last chapter of dark mistress scared the life out of me! Your descriptions of Gaston's death, and everyone burning really allowed me to picture it all in my own mind. How did you come up with the idea? As a writer did you fear that with her killing everyone, that there would be no possible way for redemption?

See, I wish I took notes during the "let the ideas rattle around in my brain" period of the writing process. I don't know exactly where Belle's backstory came from. But I've got some educated guesses.

When writing a Dark One Belle, I make a lot of decisions based around what Dark One Rumple is like. She usually has to be darker, I've noticed that in other fics (including the inspiration for Dark Mistress, The Spinner In Chains.) Rumple can be impish and playful and you can still understand that he's dangerous and powerful. I don't see that working with Belle. Never say never, of course. I can see an evil-but-childlike sorceress being quite intimidating, but I don't necessarily know if that's Belle. Especially not Belle as a romantic lead. The "dark and terrible queen" vibe works a lot better.

I know I didn't want Belle to have a castle the way Rumple does. I think I toyed with the idea that she didn't have a home at all, that she was just an amorphous spirit that only even had a tangible form when she wanted to. It's important to this story that Belle's power feels like a curse. Having her reside at a ground zero of her own making really hit that point home.

Powerful women getting so angry they become fire demons is far from a new trope. While I was writing this chapter, the image of Belle walking unharmed through her own flames was equal parts Carrie White and Daenerys Targaryen. I honestly don't think it's that out of character for Belle to straight-up murder Gaston and her father and any other person who didn't take her seriously and tried to decide her fate for her.

It didn't really occur to me that she might come off as beyond redemption. That's the joy of fanfiction: the readers know who Belle is, we know that she is better than what she did on her worst day. It's always something of a stretch to get the other characters to keep from hating the Dark One (I had this trouble in Golden Cuffs with Belle being way too forgiving of Rumple.) But I would hope that anyone who reads a story about these characters is rooting for them to be good and happy in the end.

As for the specific fire imagery... I have a weird fascination with the damage done by nuclear power/weapons. (Feel free to stop reading here.)

Like, I wish I could have gone deeper into the radiation analogue, something with the ash itself being dangerous the way nuclear fallout is. Or the idea that Avonlea is under a nuclear winter, that the cloud of smoke and dust was so thick that it blotted out the sun. Belle keeps saying that she's toxic to Rumple, that she's contaminating him just by being near him--but we don't really believe that because it's just Belle thinking she's unlovable. If I really wanted to get into horror, I would write something like that. Like, how being in the epicenter of the blast--being burned so quickly your body goes from solid to liquid to gas in seconds--is actually preferable to being farther away, where your death is just as inevitable but much slower.

The thing about Gaston's eyeballs melting in his skull is directly from an account I read about Hiroshima when I was in high school. Chernobyl is the most horrific TV show I've ever seen and I kinda want to watch it again.

#dark mistress #tmi tuesday #wow two 'read more's in one day #my mental health is GREAT

[pissedoffatouat]

here is the thing with ‘redemption’

when does a villain need to be redeemed? after he has done horrible things and made choices deliberately to hurt others.

I couldn’t reblog the post about “the problem with rumple’s redemption” for some reason so I will add my two cents here: 

Rumple doesn’t need a redemption. 

the way he is written is this:

1) he was a poor spinner who learned how to spin from the spinsters who raised him after his papa threw him out - no need to redeem himself from that

2) he broke his ankle to get away from a doomed situation so he could be a father to his son THAT made him labeled as a coward - I don’t think he needs to be redeemed from being the village coward, BUT HE SEEMED TO THINK HE DID. he told Bae, he will steal the dagger, become the dark one and use that power for good, he will “finally be able to redeem himself” from WHAT? redeem himself from not being macho enough to fight for Milah?

3) he made the choice to become the dark one for PURE reasons. and once making that choice, he could not go back. should he be redeemed for wanting to stop the oger’s war and bring all his neighborhood kids home? should he be redeemed for saving his son from a certain death?

4)once he became the dark one, every SECOND that he did NOT kill people right and left or open up the hell and fill the world with darkness or snuff out the light was actually him winning the struggle with darkness itself. the rest of his life was not about making choices to hurt people deliberately and become dark. HE WAS ALREADY DARK and not because of his actions but because darkness literally invaded his body and soul. from that moment on (key word: moment) his life was about constantly beating down his sudden instinct to hurt people but NOT doing so. he needs to be redeemed from that only in a sense that this is internal torture in itself. 

almost ALL the other characters on OUAT did a dark deed for a selfish reason. Rumple never did that. ever. The dark one might have, but not Rumpelstiltskin. so I don’t think he needs a redemption arc at all. 

what he did get was a regression of character.

first when we meet him until 3x11 he is:

1) the smartest guy in the room

2) the most perceptive of everyone’s emotions

3) good kind and gentle (even if everyone will argue, it’s true)

4) able to fight and win the darkness  

5) always successful in his plans

6) the most powerful wizard in all the realms

7) always guiding and teaching everyone magic and other life lessons

suddenly he regresses into:

1) a complete retard who doesn’t remember from one minute to the next

2) people keep telling him “you did the right thing, yay” like he’s some stupid little kid who has issues

3) unable to fight the darkness

4) arrogant and abnoxious 

5) never successful in anything he ever plans

6) the weakest coward and not just as a label

7) everyone always needs to guide him and teach him because he is totally helpless and clueless.

that is not a botched up redemption arc. that is characters assassination.

and then there’s what @likehandlingroses said about everything Gold ever did was futile and I remember Zelena’s line about how futility is so intoxicating to watch how it can break a man’s will and I realized that this must be the theme of the next part of ouat post 3x11. FUTILITY AND HOPELESSNESS

#rumple needs #redemption #redemption process rumple #@thestraggletag #@likehandlingroses #@violetfaust #@annythecat #OUAT #ONCE UPON A TIME TV #Adam and Eddy

[captainkirkk]

✩ WEEKLY FIC ROUND-UP ✩

A collection of fics I’ve read (/reread) and thoroughly enjoyed in the past week-ish from all kinds of fandoms and genres.

ATLA

Icarus, Point to the Sun by aeoleus               

Zuko tries.

Agni, he tries. Uncle wants so desperately for him to do the right thing, and he wants to, he does, he does, he does-

So when the Water Tribe girl looks at him with wild eyes, begging for help, and Azula raises one eyebrow with a sneer, Zuko chooses.

Azula’s scream of anger when he blasts a fireball in her direction is almost worth the twenty Dai Li agents that immediately surround him.

(or: Zuko is taken prisoner by Azula in the catacombs. Turns out, being kept miles away from the sun isn't so great for your bending.)

Like a Baby Shirshu by mindbending        

Despite the fever and the barely-healed burn scar, the boy’s fast. June avoids his blade, but still he jams his limbs into her, desperate to scratch and kick and bite off her hand…

(Just like a baby shirshu, spitting poison from behind the bars of its cage. The comparison shouldn't be so endearing.)

Or: the AU where Zuko flees the palace after his Agni Kai, running right into Nyla and June.

How Dare You? by Reaganrose1513 (Note: Based off this post I made a month back)

They sent a child. They wanted him to marry a child the same age as his own kids. What in the name of Tui and La- How dare the? How dare they!?

OR: The 100-year war is more of a 95-year war, end earlier for reasons that don't matter right now. After a few years of negotiations, Firelord Azulon wants a marriage alliance between the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe and a member of the Fire Nation royal family. No one really wants this, but after five years, Hakoda can tell his people are tired and want to move on, so he's willing to do what it takes to make peace happen. That is until the Fire Nation sends him a child to marry, and there is no way in hell that is happening.

Harry Potter

The Foundations of Family by waitingondaisies

Ron and Hermione spend a lot of time alone together while Harry is off at Quidditch practice. On one such occasion, Hermione finds herself revisiting her childhood dream of playing house with her friends.

BNHA

Apex Predator by silver jackdaw (idyII)                

Every single school had one: someone at the top of the food chain. An acme. Someone who could do things under a teacher's nose, escape consequences, and terrify other people. Someone who looked down on everyone else like they were prey. An apex predator. And Izuku couldn't count on teachers and adults to protect anyone. Even a hero school wasn't safe from the phenomena. When Izuku gets to Yuuei, he's determined to find out who it is and ensure they can't hurt him or his new friends.

...and accidentally, in the process, becomes the apex predator (though he is mostly unaware of this, and uses it for good. But still, people are terrified of him.)

(Or, a snowball chain of events wherein Izuku's paranoia leads to 1A becoming a family, everyone in school being in debt to him, Aizawa adopting everyone in his sight and slowly growing closer to committing acts of arson, the League gaining redemption and working with the resident Apex Predator to combat the Hero Commission whilst gaining technically legal identities, and Hawks finding a family. Hurt people help other hurt people, and they're all doing their best. Some laws may or may not be broken in the process.)

but I have promises to keep by SpiritusRex                

“I’m fine.” Midoriya repeats, calmer after a few large, uneven breaths, “This is i-important. This is more important than me.”

“Midoriya,” Shouta starts.

“We’re wasting t-time.” Midoriya cuts him off, “I have a list of Sensei- I mean- I- All for One’s current quirks, and I n-need to tell you them.”

(Late at night, Aizawa Shouta gets an unexpected phone call.)

TMA

Like I Was Inside by voiceless_terror                

Tim decided to do what he did best- roll with the punches. Even though the punch, in this case, was his prickly cactus of a boss suddenly deciding he needed affection like a dying plant needs sunlight.

In which Jon encounters a cursed object, and the rest of the archival crew suffers for it. If you can call it suffering.

Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System

by omission by Yuu_chi                

Shen Qingqiu had always hoped that if the chance arose he’d be able to tell his friends about his life as Shen Yuan on his own terms. It had never even crossed his mind that the day would come where his deepest secret would be outed in front of his husband, his friends, and his entire sect.

I Wish You Were My Husband by Feynite (+ podfic)

AU based on The Dreamer in the Spring Boudoir (familiarity with that story's not required).

Wherein Shen Yuan transmigrates into a harem intrigues romance novel (gay edition), Yue Qingyuan really fucks up, Liu Qingge is not suitable for his job, and no one even remotely sees Luo Binghe coming.

He Was Made For Untidy Rooms and Rumpled Beds by Bluethursday                

Shen Qingqiu kind of, sort of, does not have the same modesty standards as a xianxia novel set in some form of Ancient China? He also hates the heat, who knew right?

#fic recs #weekly fic round up #this one is a bit late since life has been so crazy #my marked for later is up to 30 pages please help me #svsss recs #atla recs #bnha recs #tma recs #hp recs #my posts

[fishyspots]

omg david finding out that patrick has a picture of him on his lock screen AND home screen

“Okay. Sorry. That was a really long hug.”

“Got a little dicey at the end there. I was worried we’d spend the rest of our lives here in the doorway of your room.”

David brushes the wrinkles out of his sweater. It’s rumpled from where he swayed into Patrick and tried to bury himself. “The lack of privacy would be an issue eventually.”

Patrick breathes out and turns to face David’s sister, who’s sure to be smug about whatever it was she had spun David up about before he got here. Okay, he thinks he knows what she spun David up about. “Alright, Alexis.”

“She left a few minutes ago. Went through my parents’ room.” David’s hands trace the line of Patrick’s shoulders. The touch is lighter than usual, so Patrick pushes up into it to get at that settling pressure he likes.

“Surprisingly considerate of her.”

David hums in a way that means he doesn’t agree but isn’t going to say anything else about it.

“Did you…” Patrick rubs a hand over his face. “I don’t know what your plans actually are for the night.”

“Well, seeing as I didn’t get any better offers today—“

“Me either,” Patrick says quickly. “I didn’t either.”

“Hm. Sure.” David bites his lip and bumps his hip against Patrick’s. Patrick catches his boyfriend around the waist and tugs him a step closer. David wasn’t lying about how long their hug had been, but Patrick’s still craving…something. Just David, maybe.

But Patrick senses David needs more reassurance before he’ll acquiesce to the quiet night in that he's picturing. “David,” he says, already regretting how what he’s going to do will affect David’s ego. “I have something to show you.”

David’s lovely, expressive eyebrows climb higher on his forehead. “My parents might be home soon. I want to.” David shimmies his shoulders in that teasing let’s-get-sexy way that never fails to turn him on despite himself. “But I just don’t know if—“

“Not what I meant. I mean, yes, that, definitely, but first I should show you something.” Patrick tamps down the fond smile that David can pull out of him so easily and reaches into his pocket for his phone.

“I have, in fact, seen your phone before.”

Prickly. Patrick can work with this kind of prickly, where David feels like he’s shown too much and pushes at Patrick’s buttons to make sure he’s sticking around. He’s done it before. “It’s photos on my phone."

“If it’s photos like the ones you sent me while you were at that conference, you can save them for a rainy day.” David runs a hand down Patrick’s chest. Those pictures had gone over really well. Patrick makes a mental note to take some more soon. "You don’t have to show me right now.”

“Will you stop guessing? I never asked you to guess.”

But David is not finished listing objections. “You said we weren’t going to be one of those couples that can do everything on each other’s phones. You said that seemed like a little much.”

Patrick pushes thoughts of text threads with his parents out of his head, the “meet anyone nice lately?” his mom sent last week still unanswered. “Call this an exception.” He leans up to kiss David’s temple, then looks back down at the black screen of his phone.

“I’m on the edge of my seat here.” At Patrick’s pointed look at the way David is very much not sitting down and therefore has no seat to be on the edge of, David waves a hand. “Metaphorically.”

Patrick presses the button at the bottom of the screen and watches David take in his lock screen.

“That’s me.”

Patrick nods solemnly. “That’s you.”

“That’s a picture of me.”

It is. It’s David, his profile lit up by the sun streaming in through the windows of their store. He’s leaning against the counter in a heather grey sweater that Patrick hasn’t seen in a while, coffee in one hand and a lopsided smile on his face. Patrick had been teasing him about his penchant for fall drinks. That day, he asked for something with cinnamon or pumpkin from the café and hadn’t even bothered to feign upset when Patrick interpreted that request liberally. He’d inhaled the slice of pumpkin pie in just a few minutes and then graciously allowed Patrick to chase the taste of his dessert from his lips for a few minutes between customers. Patrick took this photo a few minutes later, when the sign had been flipped back, David’s hair had been arranged back into perfect symmetry, and his self-satisfied smirk was settled in place.

“I looked into how to put the real you there, but the resizing seemed prohibitive. And then you couldn’t go on vendor trips without me or help me carry boxes.”

“You know how much I love to carry boxes.” David’s voice has gone breathy, the way it does when he’s processing.

Patrick doesn’t want to overwhelm his boyfriend more—there are already a few too many things on David's plate for comfort—but he wants to make sure. To make sure that David’s sure about him, about how he feels about his prickly, breathy boyfriend. “That’s not all.”

David makes a soft overwhelmed noise. Patrick takes pity on him and drops short, sweet kisses behind David’s ear. He realizes too late that he won’t actually calm David down that way. He digs his chin into David’s shoulder and breathes out instead. They’re still in the doorway, because apparently they will actually spend the rest of their lives there. Maybe just the rest of the night.

“You said,” David clears his throat, “that there was something else. Was it kissing me there? It’s fine with me if it’s that. That would be good.”

“More than that.” Patrick turns in David’s arms so that David can see his phone screen again. He lights up his screen again, David making a pleased hum next to his ear when he sees the photo, and unlocks the phone.

“That’s also me. How is that also me?”

This one is Patrick’s favorite. It’s David in silhouette, taken at the redemption barbecue the Roses—Johnny—had put together a few months after the traumatic first one. David had been stiff and uncomfortable around him for the first hour. Just long enough for Patrick to ensure that some of the brats were edible so he could ply his boyfriend with dinner and teasing. He’d been his usual unusual self in no time. On pain of death, Patrick will never admit how many times he’s traced the curve of David’s cheek in this photo.

“Well,” Patrick says innocently, “I recently learned that it’s possible to take more than one picture of the same person.”

“Got it. Got it.”

Patrick studies the press of David’s lips, the way that he’s chewing the inside of his cheek. He grabs one of David’s hands to ensure that he doesn’t loosen his grip around Patrick. “As long as you’ve got it.”

“I will be needing to see the other pictures—are there other pictures?” At Patrick’s nod, David keeps talking. “I will be needing to see the other pictures you’ve taken of me. If my mom’s taught me anything, it’s no photos without prior approval.”

Patrick can’t resist a slight tease, especially not after he’s been so obvious about how he feels for David. He has to cut through the sentiment, for David’s sake if not his own. “So you need me to change the photos on my phone, then.”

David clears his throat. “Well, we don’t need to go that far. Call it another exception."

#my fic #writing sprints #schitt's creek fic #schitt's creek fanfiction #schitt's creek fanfic #schitts creek fic #schitts creek fanfic #schitts creek fanfiction #david x patrick #set immediately post rock on! #i just have a lot of feelings about the gestures patrick does that make david finally settle into the love of his boyfriend #and then his FIANCE #and then his HUSBAND

[themattress]

Inspired by this post, I wanted to reiterate a view I’ve long held.

Redemption at its core is a three-step process: feel remorse for the wrong you’ve done, commit to stop doing wrong, and commit to start doing right. And while it’s mostly possible for any villainous character to do this, the question is whether it’s plausible based on how the villainous character is established and written...and if it’s plausible, would it still make sense if they don’t do it? Once Upon a Time’s redeemed mainstay villains provide great examples: 

Regina and Zelena - NOT PLAUSIBLE.

Whether you like these characters and their redemptions or not, the fact is that the writers royally fucked up when it came to establishing them in their debut story arcs. Regina was established as a warped psychopath who is willing to kill her own father to enact a horrible curse that will grant her total control over the eternally miserable population of an entire realm solely because she irrationally blames a child for her boyfriend’s death and can’t feel happy unless said child, now grown-up, is “punished”. The only hint at a possible redemption was her love for her adopted son Henry, and even that eventually went out the window in the following story arc where a brief attempted redemption was followed by her being even worse than she was before in both flashbacks and the present day! Zelena, meanwhile, had power in Oz and could have had it good there, but she was so obsessively jealous of the sister she’d never met and lustful over their mutual magic teacher that she would uproot time itself just to ensure Regina was never born and that she would be the one to cast the Dark Curse for Rumple; still not explaining how she’d get around the whole “she’d have to crush his heart to do it” factor which was why Rumple rejected her in favor of Regina in the first place. Oh, and both of these ladies are straight-up rapists, with Regina even murdering her rape victim.

So the problem with the Mills Sisters and their redemption is that it is totally dependent on them just...changing their established characters on a dime. In Season 3 and Season 5 respectively, they’re still not good people at the start but are suddenly psychologically stable and totally fine with working with the good guys in pursuit of a mutual goal. This makes them plausibly redeemable, but it also makes them wildly different characters than they were previously shown to be. The trick worked on many viewers, but it also failed on many others, or it worked in regards to one of them but not in regards to the other. For my money, I find redeemed Zelena to be more tolerable since didn’t backtrack as much nor was she rewarded for her redemption far beyond what she deserved, but both her and Regina were not the kinds of characters who could feasibly be redeemed in their initial two seasonal story arcs.

Rumpelstiltskin - PLAUSIBLE, BUT UNLIKELY.

From the beginning, many people said that contrary to Regina, Rumple was established in Season 1 as a character who would plausibly be redeemed. His backstory, certain character traits, and motivation for his role in the Dark Curse certainly made him more appealing than Regina. However, I never felt that plausibility meant that it was likely with Rumple. The whole point of his character seemed to be that yes, he could be a better man than he is, but he actively chooses not to be because he’s a selfish, power-hungry coward. And he was one even as a struggling peasant and single father, something he flat-out admits. Many people point to his desire to find his son and make amends with him as altruistic, but it really isn’t, especially when not only is he willing to do horrible things (the same kind of horrible things that drove his son away to begin with) to make it happen just to alleviate his own guilt, but he isn’t willing to achieve this goal without also working in a means for him to keep his power, which was what the whole True Love Potion thing was about. The best that Rumple could ever hope for was a Redemption Equals Death rather than a living, continuous redemption.

Oh, yeah. That happened.

Captain Hook - PLAUSIBLE AND LIKELY.

Killian Jones, aka Captain Hook, was introduced as a pirate with an honor code who then had his lover murdered in front of him and his hand chopped off for good measure. This drove him to become a ruthless, dishonorable seeker of vengeance, willing to stop at nothing to get what he wants and caring for no-one and nothing else. And the more we see of him, the more apparent it becomes that there is a deep well of self-loathing underneath the surface: it’s because he believes he’s a wretch doomed to both an unhappy life and an unhappy afterlife that he is able to shut off his conscience and honor and positive emotions. In his depressed, nihilistic worldview, nothing matters except getting his revenge and then dying to suffer the consequences of all the wrongs he’s committed in pursuit of it. And that perfectly sets up the question of what would happen if that worldview was challenged, and if he realized that happiness and salvation were still possible and that seeking revenge is what’s keeping him miserable? Answer: he’d feel remorse, stop doing evil, and commit himself to doing good.

Hook’s redemption is plausible and sensible because unlike the Mills Sisters, the object of his revenge is someone who actually wronged him, and the hurting of other people caught in the crossfire stems from a place of misery and self-loathing rather than from a sadistic sense of satisfaction from hurting others. And unlike Rumple, his redemption is likely because he’s not a coward, and his ruthless selfishness is a flaw we see him develop and can thus believe he can un-develop too rather than being a central component of his character from the start. Rumple stans point to him bullying peasant Rumple when the latter is pleading for his wife back in his formal introductory scene, which ignores that he gives Rumple the chance to fight honorably, doesn’t hurt him when he refuses and allows him to leave his ship totally unscathed, and later admits that if Rumple had just fought him he’d have let him talk it out with Milah. Him being kind of a jerk about it is because he’s a freaking pirate captain, it’s part of the job description. Hook is hands-down the least evil of the mainstay villains, and him joining the good guys and becoming the heroine’s love interest was an organic development.

#Once Upon a Time #ABC #Redemption #Villains #Comparison #Opinion #Analysis #Regina Mills #The Evil Queen #Zelena #The Wicked Witch of the West #Rumpelstiltskin #Mr. Gold #Killian Jones #Captain Hook #Anti-Regina #Anti-Zelena #Anti-Rumple #Anti-Rumpelstiltskin #(Sort of)

[gch1995]

A part of me feels like doing a rewatch of OUAT S1-3A on Disney+ and/or Hulu, but the other part of me is shying away from that idea because I feel like I'm probably going to end up crying my eyes out of heartbreak over the sheer feelings of bitterness and betrayal towards A&E and the writers of this show for making the dumb choice to kill off Neal in 3B, and then systematically destroying and retconning Rumple, Belle, Rumbelle, Snow, David, Snowing, Emma, and even Henry from the end of 3B-S7 because Kitsowitz and these writers clearly ran out of story to tell after the Neverland arc, and because these writers got a boner for Captain Hook/CS.

It's just that I really loved the Rumple, Belle, Rumbelle, Snow, David, Snowing, Emma, and Henry of S1-3A. Yes, they were flawed, but not in ways that ever felt cheaply shocking, cartoonish, ooc, one-dimensional, and/or stupid.

I related to their insecurities of not feeling worthy of love. I related to their tendencies to push people away because they didn't want to get hurt, and/or they didn't want their loved ones to get hurt because of them. I related to their introversion. I related to their desires to be better people. I related to their internal moral struggles with fighting the temptation to take the easy way out by being selfish to protect themselves, protect their loved ones, and/or find their loved ones, even if it meant that others might/would get hurt in the process, which we got to see play out on screen. I related to their awkward and witty senses of humor. I admired their bravery, their curiosity, their intelligence, their great capacities for love and selflessness, and while I didn't approve of their bad choices and/or crimes, it usually made consistent, relatable, and sympathetic sense as to why they were driven to make them out of desperation, fear, a desire to protect their loved ones, and/or a desire to be close to family again.

I quit watching after S5 because I couldn't stand the most of the writing choices for anyone in the main cast anymore, and, while I know that Emma, Rumple, Belle, Snow, David, and Henry all got "redemption" arcs and "happy endings" tacked on at the end, I still didn't feel emotionally invested anymore in their canon because everything that once made them relatively compelling, consistent, dynamic, and relatable characters and/or relationships had been completely destroyed by increasingly cheaply shocking, contrived, inconsistent, flanderdized, wildly ooc, melodramatically toxic, and stupid character assassinating bad writing choices one times too many throughout the end of 3B-S7.

Plus, no one in the remaining main cast really ever experienced any sort of growth after the Neverland arc, anyway. They just got character assassinated and/or retconned multiple times in increasingly contrived, ooc, and stupid ways , so that they could force them all to have Aesop's Amnesia (learn the same lessons over and over again) , which ultimately led them back to the exact same places they had already ended up at in "Going Home" (3x11) at the end of S6-S7, anyway.

Unfortunately, like I said before, I didn't care anymore about canon because they had all been destroyed by inexplicable character assassinating bad writing one too many times, both individually and as couples.

I'm tempted to do a rewatch of S1-3A because I don't want to acknowledge the bullshit on screen that came after in the next four-and-a-half seasons to be canon, but I'm worried that I'll just start sobbing my heart out when I remember how much Kitsowitz and these writers destroyed really beautiful, relatable, and complex characters and relationships, so that they could essentially reboot the show centered around Hook/CS, cheap shock value, recycled plots, and nonsensical and painfully character assassinating magical soap opera melodrama garbage instead.

#OUAT S1-3A #anti canon OUAT post 3A #even before that their were problems beginning to show in the writing #but after the Neverland arc they destroyed everything that made it great to begin with #I feel tempted to do a rewatch of OUAT S1-3A but I’m worried I’m going to cry my eyes out #when I remember how amazing Emma Snow David Rumple and Belle were before Kitsowitz and these writers ruined them #Anti kitsowitz #anti OUAT writers post 3A of canon #Even before that there were issues but after they killed off Neal and made Hook the lead the bad choices in the writing they made became un #Anti cs #anti hook #Emma swan #rumplestiltskin #mr. gold #Belle French #Rumbelle #Henry Mills #Snow White #Mary Margaret Blanchard #Prince Charming #David Nolan #Prince David #Snowing

[eirian-houpe]

For Your Consideration

It has taken me a while to get this together. I did way more writing this last year than I thought I had, so the decision to what I thought might be appropriate to suggest for nomination was a tough one for me. So please bear with me, and excuse my ramblings

Before I continue, I want to thank the Rumbelle community for giving me a home, and some sanity through a difficult year.  I hope I have written something that has helped other Rumbellers to get throught it as well. Much love to everyone.

Below the cut are my thoughts and suggestions. If your favorite fic is not there, please feel free to put it forward as you see fit.  You can find my fics here on AO3. Below the cut you’ll find my FYC presentation for this years TEAs.

Witness Protection

Summary: The Wife and Daughter of Massachusetts’ Governor, Maurice French, have been kidnapped. As the authorities raid the compound where they’re being held, his daughter, Belle, makes her own bid for freedom but is injured in the attempt before being taken into protective custody by Agent Milnor. Fearing for her life, Milnor calls upon an old friend to protect her; to keep her safe. A task that becomes imperative, as well as personal. Professional lines blur and the threat draws closer.

This was 2019 Secret Santa fic, and turned into an epic, sweeping drama of some 45,000 words, as such I feel it could be nominated for Best Novel length, Best Drama, Best Angst - Hurts So Good, and Best First Time. If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

Seven Tastes

Summary: Jefferson and Grace visit the Dark Castle to try and persuade Rumplestiltskin to celebrate the Winter Solstice. What begins with a hidden sprig of mistletoe leads through the emotional rollercoaster of a lifetime, that ends in a beautiful redemption.

Written for 2020 Secret Santa, It was a quite unusual fic, fun to write, a little angsty, and with a beautiful ending. I suggest it is suitable to be nominated for Best Rumbelle Secret Santa.  If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

The Gold Fleece

Summary: Belle wakes from a coma with no memory of who she is. Following a suggestion from her therapist she seeks to take up a craft she used to do before as a way to jog her memory. After making a deal with Storybrooke's craft store owner, it seems that the good Doctor Hopper may have been right... or was he?

Written for Rumbelle Christmas In July, an involved exploration of magic, memory and breaking of curses. My suggestions would be for Best Rumbelle Christmas in July, or Best One-Shot.  If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

Awakening

Summary:  Weaver is dreaming or halucinating after Alice shot him, but suddenly everything starts to make sense as he gives in to what he sees and feels, even from beyond the grave, his beloved saves him.

This was my first round Rumbelle Showdown Fic. I believe it could be suitable for Best Angst - Hurts So Good and Best One-Shot.  If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

Beauty Compelled

Summary:  Years ago, Moe French endebted himself to the nobleman, Mister Gold. Unable to pay the debt by any other means, he promises his daughter, Belle, in marriage to Gold. Now, on the day of her 18th Birthday, the contract is to be honored, and Belle must go to her new home, Adelram Hall, and to meet her husband-to-be, Mister Gold, who has a reputation for darkness.

Written from one of the Monthly Rumbelling prompts, I feel it could be nomintated for Best One-Shot, and Best Trope (arranged marriage).  If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

Lightly, Tender... My Dream

Summary:  Between realms, beyond curses, and through the passage of many lost years, Belle and Rumplestiltskin find one another again, and finally act upon their love.

One of the Monthly Rumbelling fics I wrote this year, I feel it could be suitable for Best First Time, Best One-Shot and Best Monthly RUmbelling (smut). If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

A Blade For Belfrey

Summary:  Edinburgh meets Glasgow as Weaver and Begbie clash when Begbie's alter ego, Jim Francis is commissioned by Victoria Belfrey to produce a work of art for a business rival. Rumplestiltskin, somehow suspecting Weaver an incarnation of himself, tries to take a back seat - but Belle needs otherwise.

One of the few crossover fics I have ever written, combines Once, with The Blade Artist. I feel it could be nominated for Best Crossover Fic, and because it has Begbie and Weaver, suitable for Best Bobbie Squared.  If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

Fallen

Summary:  Belle finds herself inhabiting the consciousness of a demon. When she finds a fallen angel, she begins to recognise the strand of darkness within herself. Not necessarily 'evil' but certainly not innocence and light. Who could she be if she embraced that darkness, and... shouldn't she be looking for Rumplestiltskin? Meanwhile, Rumplestiltskin finds himself in the conscisousness of an angel... falling.

One of my Lover’s Leap fics, and my first attempt at Creature fic.  As such I feel it could be nominated for Best Creature AU, or Best Supernatural.  If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

Gilded

Summary:  Belle fears she is to become trapped in a gilded cage of her father, and Lord Gaston's making, with no relief and no way to be herself... until she meets the enigmatic little man trapped in the darkest, shadowed corner of the castle's library... 

Written for the March 2020 Monthly Rumbelling, I feel it could be nominated for Best One Shot, and Best Monthly Rumbelling (non smut)  If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

Hatter

Summary:  Belle's consciousness is kidnapped as she tries to return from the latest test of the Fairy Curse. Running out of time to bring her back to her body and save her, Rumplestiltskin persuades Jefferson to use the Hat to take them to where they need to be in order to retrieve it, trouble is... it turns out to be the one place in all the realsm that Jeffereson NEVER wanted to see again.

Another story from my Lover’s Leap series, and another of the few crossover fics I have ever written, crossing with Alice, the 2009 miniseries. I feel it could be nominated for Best Crossover fic, Best TV Show AU and Best AU.  If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

Prima

Summary:  Detectives Weaver and Rogers stumble upon a crime at a local theater where they meet the Prima Ballerina, Anabelle French in the process of apparently committing agravated assault with a deadly weapon, but as Weaver investigates, he discovers there is far more to it than a simple crime, and he is forced to run to a place of safety with his suspect in tow.

A Woven Beauty fic that was written for the Monthly Rumbelling, so I feel it could be eligible for Best Monthly Rumbelling (smut) and Best Woven Beauty.  If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

Rack ‘Em Up

Summary:  Gold indulges Lacey with a night out at the Rabbit Hole, and she teases him while hustling the other patrons at pool. This is a game that Lacey is playing to win, but the money's not the object. This was written as a gift on the occasion of @emospritelet​'s birthday.

I feel it could be eligible for Best Smut - PWP, Best One-Shot, and Best Golden Lace.  If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

Two Could

Summary:  Belle and Rumple jump into the bodies of two pirates. When the King's Navy blockade the harbor, the decision must be made to run the gauntlet, or wait out the siege, but two captains seek another way, and seal their alliance in a way that only pirates could.

One of my Lover’s Leap series, I feel it could be nominated for Best AU, Best Historical Romance, and Best Romance (Smut). If there is anything else you feel might fit, please feel free to add the fic in that category, and if you think it appropriate for any of the character awards, I would be honored to be nominated.

#teas 2021 #fyc #for your consideration

[winterequinoxx]

Thought I should send some hcs over as well but you can ignore them if you want! Also I hope you feel better 💕

- Superheroine! Nile and Redempted Villain!Booker au

- A murder mystery au for BoN ( maybe set in the 1920 or smh )

- Art museum guide! Nile and Security consultant/former forger! Booker au

- Also a BoN kid au, where Nile is pregnant with Booker's child and Booker kids are super excited about the fact they're going to have a little sister/brother very soon

Thank you for putting up with my incompetent self @shebattlesman

Superhero!

Booker (shapeshifter with 3 forms-raccoon, grizzly bear and black kite) has had a playful rivalry with Yusuf (Solar power, able to make a scimitar out of a sunbeam) for several years. Yusuf decides to retire to spend time with Nicky (non-powered medic who is tired of patching up his husband). Yusuf convinces Booker that he could do more than just be a good their with the forms he has.

Nile (ability to turn into and control water) is new on the scene and wants to focus in the recent increase in drug related deaths from a powerful cartel, but the mayor feels that she needs to focus on catching the criminal who is breaking into the museums.

Nile this this is bullshit, but does it anyway, and is shocked to find that the thief is a raccoon, who snags a relic from a local indiginous tribe and then jumps out a nearby window and turns into a bird.

the next day, a rumpled man sits down next to her in a park, shows her a picture of the spiritual leader of the tribe with the recovered artifact. Nile starts helping him with liberating other suspiciously acquired items and Grizzly Booker backs her up when they take down the cartel.

1920s Noir

Booker is a drunk police detective who is tired of finding bodies in his town. Nile is a lounge singer at a local speakeasy.

Booker is getting a lot of pushback because (RACISM) who really cares about the people who are the targets. Booker points out that they are Freaking People. Nile receives a written threat at the speakeasy, and her boss -Andy- says that between herself, Joe the piano player, and Nicky the Bartender, they can take care of her. until the second threat appears in her bedroom. Then Andy convinces her that they can trust one cop, even if he is a drunk. He agrees to get sober for the occasion.

Art Museum

Nile has only been working at the museum as a guide for a couple weeks, so she doesn't know all of the higher-ups at first glance yet. So she doesn't hesitate when she sees someone in the process of stealing their new acquisition a couple hours after closing.

Booker is impressed by her instincts (and face, and body, and....) when she tackles him and holds him in a truly impressive arm-bar until the security team gets there 4 minutes later. He's gonna tear them all a new one for their poor response time.

Nile apologizes profusely when it is explained that Booker is the security expert who tests the new measures for each piece. Booker just begs her to go out to dinner with him

(I don't feel comfortable writing the pregnancy prompt due to personal fear of pregnancy and infants. I love the Abstract idea of a BoN baby, and don't mind reading them, but not my thing to write, sorry)

#book of nile #nile freeman #sebastien le livre #booker x nile #asks and replies #i may have to write that 20s AU

[hellsbellschime]

Let’s go down the list shall we:

Katherine: gets impregnated with child out of wedlock, child torn away from her right after birth. Her entire sympathy arc is based on a child she didn’t even connect with.

Rebekah: Believes her trashy life will all be fixed with a hello kitty bandaid if she just had Kids and a Hubby, (when all she needs to do is get away from her toxic brothers and experience life on her own)

Isobel Flemming: Teen mom ™ who regrets child but loves child who wants child but doesn’t want child, who looses child because the guy is a coward, leads person who clearly wants to use/kill child to said child, then turns around and says I love child. (It’s like they couldn’t stick to a single villain arc because how could a mother possibly not care about her child when even the shitty dad does all the while having eight different dad hates child story lines sitting in the back burner.)

Valerie Tulle: gets pregnant with Stefan’s child and has child LITERALLY beaten out of her, has child PHYSICALLY beaten to death inside her, is pushed to the fucking ground and kicked in the stomach till child dies, commits suicide because of loss of child, is not even given the dignity to choose her own death, comes back as first Heretic to exist, all of this to push plot and create dRaMa b/w steroline. Yes they actually used a women who was violently beaten to near death and experienced an even more violent miscarriage at the hands of a guy who believed the child will make him late for a bone sesh, revolve around steroline and how Stefan wouldn’t love Caroline if he just had that child, THERES HALF A EPISODE JUST DEPICTING STEFAN’S MANPAIN ON LOOSING A COULD BE CHILD, when Valerie literally acts like a mechanical robot reiterating facts and her entire emotional “reaction” so to speak is her committing suicide AND NOTHING ELSE (as if they couldn’t be bothered to write female trauma) Like JFC you CANNOT TELL ME THIS IS DISGUSTING FUCKING SHIT THAT SHOULD NOT EXIST.

Jo Saltzman: Looses twin foetus children on her wedding day, is literally killed by her abusive psychotic brother on the fucking alter, to cover up Candice’s pregnancy, JESUS, HOW DID A PERSON WHO IS NOT UNHINGED IN THE BRAIN SIT DOWN AND COME UP WITH THIS, and not for one second think how fucking traumatising ALL of this is FOR NO GOOD REASON. Not even good plot, this was all for logistics they could’ve fucking covered up in a hundred other different ways.

Caroline Forbes: Do we even have to mention it? Is forced to endure pregnancy she has NO obligation to endure, is not even given a single scene to process the pregnancy and come up with a coherent response that isn’t “I will do it for you” forces herself to marry a man who is as old as her dad in human years for said children, said man turns around and tells her she is not these children’s mother to her face when she was literally FORCED into giving birth to two children that aren’t even her own. Looses all character development and becomes Mother of child ™.

Hayley Marshall: Nah bro I shouldn’t have to TELL you, but ok, gets pregnant with an abusive psychopath’s child, ykw the list is too long, y’all know the drill choked when wanting abortion, experiences atleast 7 near death experiences in the nine months she was pregnant all because Klaus wanted to play King to three streets and one marsh, and she was KWEEN of the werewolves, has the most violent birthing experience, her child revolves around Klaus’ redemption, hence her character fully revolves around said child and directly/indirectly Klaus, is turned into a fucking animal when she decided to do one damn thing for her own child, is nothing more than “Mother of Hope” throughout the show.

Freya Mikaelson: Of ALL the different things a women in literal captivity FOR HER ENTIRE LIFE can experience for backstory Trauma™ OF EVERYTHING they could choose, they yet again go for traumatic pregnancy, a self-induced miscarriage and a SUICIDE story revolving around said pregnancy, her selling point to the Mikaelsons is “I lost a child I won’t let you lose yours.” LIKE ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME? Forget misogynistic writing that’s just paper-thin-rumpled-trash-in-trash-can writing.

Esther Mikaelson: Chooses to give up her first born child for the prospect of multiple children, in Lenore’s body actually bloody tells Hayley she can have more babies if Hayley allows her to make Hayley Human, Hayley CONSIDERS THIS SERIOUSLY. Is actually shown to want to become human so she can have more babies.

Sarah Salvatore: Black woman who is KILLED by Damon to give manpain TO DAMON, like bruh wtf?? You seriously had Damon kill a pregnant black woman and give him manpain in the form of guilt to redeem him? YOU MADE A WOMAN’S MURDER ABOUT HER MURDERER’S GUILT?? JP and her team of writers cannot get more fucked up than this

Feel free to add to this, and if any fucker ever dare come to your page trying to fight that tvd/to is not MISOGYNISTIC in its ENTIRETY, you send them to this post, and this post only contains pregnancy related batshit crazy misogyny in the show, if we went through everything that is misogynistic, I’d say the transcript of the show is an entire comprehensive list of all of it. And seriously anybody who believes JP’s writing isn’t the most misogynistic sexist piece of writing that’s just a steaming hot pile of rotten shit, Well then I sincerely suggest you fuck off to some other corner of the world where TO/TVD stans can gather and lick white manpain experiencing male dick.

Sincerely someone who has watched TO/TVD top to bottom and is traumatised.

LOL yes exactly, like I don’t understand how someone could see this and say that it’s not so soaked in misogyny that nothing in the show can be separated from the violent sexism. Saying “well this character stood there in one scene and didn’t say anything sexist so you can’t call the entire thing sexist and if you do then you’re basically doing the same thing as calling all men sexist” (and like I don’t want that anon to start that argument again but LITERALLY WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT ANALOGY) is an absurd, fatuous argument. 

#anti thirstday #Anonymous

[goblinconceivable]

It’s cool, I can fill my own sails

Finishing the last few eps of s7 OUaT helped.  At the very least, it brought up issues of family inclusion and exclusion, which was a heavy theme with Regina back in the day and reexploring that a little with Wish!Hook is intriguing.  And the nod to romance being nearly absent from the season gives license to delve into the negative space and supports the reading that Regina/Rogers are on a (very very slow) trajectory.

I don’t know how and when to refer to Wish!Hook/Rogers/whatever, so I’ll just go with Rogers because it’s easier to type, and where the character ends up.

Frankly, there’s about 5 gifs of Regina/Rogers and most of them aren’t shippy in canon.  Pulled out, they create a fanon narrative, and that’s great, but I always like to start deep in canon compliance and build/reinterpret from there.

One of the best points in favor of the ship, oddly enough, is the stack of prison books.  Which are ordered, intentionally.  Snow and Charming are next to each other.  Henry and Regina.  Alice and Robin.  Lucy and Cinderella.  And Captain Hook is next to Regina.  I don’t know why Zelena/Robin and Hook/Alice are so far apart but that the 4 new characters are on the bottom.   

 I will note that this season IS a compressed and thematically focused narrative, defined by our 4 returning characters and primarily the parent/child love.  Rumple is completing his own long arc, we’ll ignore him except that he is the one reminder of true romantic love in a season otherwise largely ignoring it with the mains. Yes, Henry/Ella begins, but their function is giving birth to a child and starting a family together, rather than their own story as a romance.  Which leaves Regina and Rogers, who are all about their kids.  Who do find love, next gen starting out with the fresh start their gone-evil parents have undergone change to give them.

They each do get a love interest, insofar as that exists.  Rogers had a recurring interest in Tiana, and while she flirted a bit, she shows greater interest in Naveen.  Regina had Facilier, more explicit, though he shows greater interest and investment than she does.  What this gives us as an opening where Rogers and Regina are both open to romance, though it takes a back seat to their children.  True love, for either of them, would be the end of a long journey, rather than the instant-fall we often see.  Older, more experienced, more bruised.  They both had that already, with first loves, lost it, became villians, and villians, typified by Rumple, get more love journeys.  

Regina is more open, she knows how to love and be loved, though she isn’t desperately seeking more because she is content - though she’s realizing she has more to give.  She mentors Drizella, she fights for Wish!Henry.  Rogers wants more, but he’s in an emotional place Regina was at back in season 2 or so, albeit gentler.

A cool thing about Wish!Realm is that happy endings often don’t exist.  The stories are darker.  I don’t have much to say about that right now except that rather than losing family, Rogers gained one - and lost it, but he gained love and redemption.  Arguably more painful.

I was drawn to 2.5 scenes at the end of the show.  The first is right after the curse was broken and Gothel was defeated.  Families are reunited, happy.  Regina and Henry, Regina and Robin, Cinderella and Lucy mixing in.  Alice has Robin.  Even Tiana and Naveen run in, holding hands.  In the background, largely ignored, is Rogers.  This had to be a specific choice, especially since everyone there knows a hospital will not help his affliction, yet someone must have called them.  He’s not a part of the larger family of interrelationships, and moreover, is watching Alice become a part of it.  His ties are only to Alice, and to Rumple, who is an outlying character (yet STILL part of the group, in his way.)

The .5 is when Regina, Henry and Rogers are together.  Rogers tries to join Regina to find Rumple, and she tells him to stay (he does tend to obey her immediately, see her admonishment to find and help Alice at the station.)  Later he tries to go with Henry, and Henry knocks him out.  He’s TRYING to be helpful, be part of the group, and no one needs or wants him.

The third is at the war table.  Again, everyone is sitting around the table, together and despite there being chairs, Rogers stands back, outside the circle.  This time, his exclusion is distinctly a decision he has made, how he feels.  But something shifts.  Charming, the family patriarch, reaches out, with “and a new friend... who feels like an old friend.”  Despite having just met him, he accepts him as one of them, and Rogers is surprised but appreciative.  It’s particularly touching because Rogers has been with Henry et family (Regina and Zelena etc) for years and never felt that.

The next point is Rumple sacrificing his heart and saving Rogers.  It’s the first time someone has sacrificed for him, it’s validation.  He’s one of them, annointed by the crocodille.  Literally having his heart creates ties to the group, puts him back with Alice so that physical distance is no longer an excuse or reason.  It’s is linked to emotional distance, as his quest to cure his heart for Alice, for their relationship, is now over, and he can take a next step.

What happens next?  Rogers, the only other active character at this point, explains the situation.  He moves from “to save me” to “to save all of us” - he’s considering himself an us, not just his admitted friendship with Rumple, but that perhaps he’s part of the whole.  He and Regina were the two tightest with Rumple, so it’s fitting.  Regina is 100% about Rumple, double proves he was beloved.  It IS his moment, the whole scene was about him.  But Rogers is on his own little journey, and he takes Regina’s oblivious hand.  Why?  

We’ve seen Regina touch him occasionally, more of a distant sympathy or comradery, but human touch is yet important, look at how much Regina hugs her family, and how much Alice and Rogers want to hug and be near each other.  Aside from Alice, Rogers never reaches out, 

Though as a side bar, when he reaches out to Tiana, to go with her to storm the castle, or hire Alice, she accepts, which probably explains why he likes her.  Conversely, trying to manufacture an adventure for Henry goes wrong, and see his recent attempts to help Regina and Henry are rebuffed.  All told, dude doesn’t have the best time of it.

So anyway, he takes her hand, and while she doesn’t acknowledge it, she doesn’t reject it either, and that is family.  Sometimes you’re just there, behind someone, supporting them as they go through their own thing.  And while sometimes you’re pushed away, you just keep trying.  Which as Hook with Emma, though I have my own issues with that.  They are the same person to large extent, so the tendency is worth mentioning.

Finally, the coronation.  Frankly, they had to pan to all the mains and Rogers/Alice/Robin are the least important group -to the show as a whole, the full 7 seasons which this scene is acknowledging and honoring.  But they do leave him as Rogers, suit and fake hand.  Distinguishing him from Original!Hook.  Which again is functional, so grain of salt and shippy eyes.  He is not yet integral, but the future is open.  As Regina says, see what’s next, indeed.

TLDR; my attempt to find a canon ships fails, but there’s potential if you look.  This is a story of an individual journey on Rogers’ part to GET to that point where he can open his heart, and romantic love can follow that.  Regina proves she’s now completely comfortable with who she is and who she has, and is open to additional love.  There may not be romance in this book, but as to the next...

Addendum because I’m doing the obsessive searching thing: apparently there’s a deleted scene where Rogers asks Henry if he got Regina’s crown.  FFS that’s useful information, it means Rogers IS a part of the group, and in fact a larger part of Regina’s future.  I mean, he’s there with Alice and Robin.  Henry swings by.  They’re not just in on the surprise, they’re planning it.  He has a role in the new world.  ...  Deserves it’s own analysis when I process.

Addendum 2 because still tracking down meta: so a reason for Regina looking to Rogers and his nodding could also be that they were talking and he let something slip at some point about... I dunno, something that didn’t make sense to her but now she’s all “oh, so this is what you were talking about?”  

#meta #OUaT #hooked queen #captain hook #regina mills

[galadrieljones]

The Lily Farm - Chapter 23

Formerly A Funeral

Fandom: Red Dead Redemption 2 | Pairing: Arthur x Mary Beth | Rating: Mature

Content: Existential Angst, Friendship, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Nature, Touch-Starved, Humor, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Angst, Violence, Hurt/Comfort, Fake Marriage, Epiphanies, Backstory, Banter, Deep Emotions, Sharing a Bed, Swimming, Arthur to the Rescue, Forests, Abduction, Angst, Heavy Angst, Mutual Pining, Friends to Lovers, Sexual Content, Sexual Themes, Adult Content, Canon Divergence, Found Families, Brotherhood, Fatherhood, pregnancy, Drug Use, Past Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Protective Arthur, Minor John Marston/Abigail Roberts

Summary: To help her process Sean’s death, Mary Beth asks Arthur to take her on a hunting trip, somewhere far away. He agrees, and on their journey to the north, they find quietude and take comfort in their easy bond. They’ve been friends for a while now, but life, like the wilderness, is full of uncertainty and complications, and in their desperate search for meaning together, they endure a number of trials, some small, some big, all of which bring them closer to one another, as well as to their future. But they’ve fallen in love during hard times. With the gang tipping dangerously close to a breaking point in a changing world, Arthur must make a difficult choice. Can he escape the past, as well as the outlaw life and start over, building a family of his own? With Mary Beth by his side, one thing is certain: redemption and second chances finally seem within his grasp.

***For the rest of this story, you can visit the masterpost or AO3, both linked in the replies to this post and also at my blog ^_^***

Chapter 23: Out on a Limb with Mary Beth

Back in their room at the saloon of St. Denis, Arthur and Mary Beth commenced undressing from the evening. It was a slow process, as neither of them was used to such elaborate sartorial affairs. Arthur was tense and very quiet as he took off his gloves, took off his tie at the dresser, untucked his shirt, and loosened his collar. Dutch had sequestered him toward the end of the party, while Mary Beth waited beside the champagne with Hosea and Bill. Hosea was subdued, scribbling something down in a leather notebook. Bill complained ceaselessly about the attitudes and accents of rich, French people, and in that time, something had happened to Arthur. When he came back, he was solemn and preoccupied, and he had barely spoken since—not to her, not to Hosea, not to anyone.

She was in her chemise now, and her powder blue bodice, with her hair down, sitting cross-legged on the bed, fussing with the rose gold bracelet around her wrist. The latch was delicate. She couldn’t get it with just one hand. At some point, Arthur leaned back against the dresser, hanging his head. He seemed like he might say something, but he didn’t.

Mary Beth watched him, real careful. She scootched up to the edge of the bed, letting her feet dangle off the mattress. She almost asked him what was wrong, but then she became discouraged. Normally, she would have, but now, she didn’t know how to navigate this part of him. She’d seen it before but never been this close. His stoicism was powerful. It wasn’t cold, but it was big. It could swallow the whole room. She sighed, looked back down at her wrist. She wasn’t gonna push him. She knew that it was Dutch making him so quiet, and she wasn’t gonna push him.

At some point, he straightened up off the dresser. He undid his cufflinks, one by one. With both gathered into his palm, he took a long look at them like they were poker chips and then set them on the dresser. They made little metallic clinks. She commenced focusing on her bracelet. She wondered why the hell anyone would make a piece of jewelry that was so impossible to get on and off. Maybe she wasn’t supposed to take it off, but in truth the metal was pricking at her skin and she did not much like metal pricking at her skin. Aside from her turquoise necklace—a hand-me-down from her mother—she didn’t really like jewelry all that much. Too much drama. Like this stupid little clasp on this stupid little bracelet. When she was almost ready to give up and just break the damn thing, Arthur approached her. Finally. He sat down next to her on the bed, and it sunk beneath his weight. Gently, he took her wrist into his hands, and he undid the little clasp of the bracelet for her. He piled the bracelet into his palm, looked at it for a moment, and then handed it back to her. He then picked up her hand, kissed her knuckles, and gave her back her hand. Then he sighed, folded his own hands together in his lap, and looked down at the floor.

She was very still. He was untucked beside her, all rumpled with no jacket, his pomade wearing off. He was just the old Arthur now—simple, undone, and hers. She was deeply touched by how he had unhooked the clasp to her bracelet, without even being asked. It was such a small but meaningful gesture. She tried to remind herself that Arthur was much better at communicating his feelings through his actions, not always words. She felt relief. She felt understood.

She waited. And after a little while, he finally spoke.

“You’re a storyteller, Mary Beth,” he said.

The sound of his voice surprised her. It seemed to come out of nowhere, and it was so deep, it could have vibrated the floor. “What?”

“I said, you’re a storyteller. A writer. You write stories.”

“Oh,” she said. “Pft. I mean, I try. What about it?”

“I wonder,” he said, looking up, wringing his hands now, “if you were writing this story, who would the villain be?”

“The villain?” she said.

"Is it Bronte?” said Arthur. “Leviticus Cornwall? Who?”

She thought on it. She was flattered but also somewhat confused. “I mean, I don’t know much about it, Arthur, besides what little you’ve told me.”

“You were there tonight,” he said. “You’ve seen enough.”

“I suppose.”

“Is it Dutch?”

“Dutch?”

“Is Dutch the villain, Mary Beth?” he said. Now he was looking at her. His blue eyes looked sad. He seemed desperate for something, anything of wisdom. “Because I gotta tell you. I’ve known the man for twenty-two years, and I still can barely make heads or tails of his motivations.”

“No one can,” she said. “It ain’t just you.”

“Just tell me,” he said, shaking his head. “Who’s the villain?”

She took a deep breath. She hadn’t thought about it like this, but now that she was, she could see with some modicum of clarity the thing that he was asking. “I don’t know, Arthur,” she said, “but if you want my honest, uneducated opinion, it seems to me that the villain in this story ain’t no who.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, it’s not a person. It’s time, and it’s space.”

“Time and space?”

“Yeah,” she said. She looked down at the bracelet. Despite its annoying little clasp, it was still a pretty piece. “We’re running out of both, ever since Blackwater. It’s time and space that’s catching up to us. We got nowhere to run, and no time to do it.”

Arthur looked down at his hands. He closed his eyes.

“Arthur,” she said.

“Yes, Mary Beth,” he said.

“Can I just—I got a question.”

“Go on.”

“Why did we come here?”

Arthur looked at her. “To the party?”

“No,” she said. “To St. Denis.”

“We followed Bronte,” said Arthur.

“But why did we follow him here?”

“Because he took Jack.”

She shook her head. “No, he didn’t. The Braithwaites took Jack, and we got Jack back, and the Braithwaites—well, they been dealt with.”

Arthur clenched his fists, opened them up again. He had such enormous paws. “You’re right.”

“I’m just saying,” she said. “Bronte is just—he’s an illusion. A red herring. Dutch is blinded. We ought to leave, escape, while things is quiet, while we still can, but I ain’t sure escaping is his aim no more.”

“What else would he be aiming for?”

“Vengeance,” she said. “We been running from the Pinkertons for months. But the Pinkertons, that’s just Leviticus Cornwall, and Cornwall, that’s just civilization. It's laws. You asked me before at the party if Dutch was still sweet on me. I don’t know, Arthur, but I have spent a lot of time with him, listening to him read from the pages of that book by our friend Evelyn Miller. Men like Bronte and Cornwall—to Dutch, they represent the death of the frontier, of freedom and the whole big American way. The West. We is all trapped, Arthur, enslaved by law, the way he sees it. They’re reshaping the world, us in it, and Dutch don’t like it. I don’t know if this is about escaping, Arthur. I think it’s about revenge. Big, cosmic revenge.”

Arthur seemed to be thinking hard on this, something sharp coming up and catching him in the chest like a fishhook. He swallowed, looked away, squeezed his eyes shut. He hands were winding together anxiously now.

“Arthur,” she said. She began to wonder if she’d said too much, gone too far.

Then he spoke, but he would not look at her. “Who am I?” he said.

“What?”

“In the story,” he said. “Am I the hero? Or am I the fool.”

He was serious, defeated. Last time she’d seem him look like this, it was when he was talking about Eliza, up on their camping trip, somewhere in the grassy canyons of Ambarino. She shook her head. She put her hand on his back, like she always would have, even when they were just friends. “I don’t know that one, Arthur.”

“Why not?” he said.

“Because I'm in love with you,” she said. “That part of the story I can’t see. It’s too close.” She thought she might cry. She got closer to him, linked her arm in his. His arms were big and warm and full of welcome for her and her alone. She placed her head on his shoulder. “You’re my hero,” she said, shrugging against him. “If that means anything at all. I ain’t forgotten what happened up at O’Creagh’s Run. You saved my life, Arthur. You saved us both.” She had one hand on his chest, feeling his heart beat, his breathing. Time passed, and you could hear the ticking of the clock as it did. You could hear the people outside on the cobblestone streets, the clomping of the horses. You could hear the piano downstairs, somebody singing to the tune.

At some point, Arthur put his arm around her because of this. He kissed the top of her head, and held her like that, just for a minute to show her his gratitude. He didn’t have much to say. Not to that. What do you say to that? There was nothing. He turned toward her. He pushed all of the hair off her shoulders to see her skin and her millions of freckles. Her hair was all undone. It was all a mess, a rat’s nest, just how he liked it. He looked right down at her, full up even though he did not smile. He studied her, all the different parts of her face and how they fit together. “Thank you,” he said.

“It’s gonna be okay, Arthur,” she said, like she meant it. “We’re gonna figure it out.”

“I know,” he said. He was calm now. “I know.”

He kissed her then, finally, a long kiss. It started deep and then it became something else, though that was not necessarily what he had intended. They were both so tired, and the night had been forever, but soon their hands grew frantic, and then it was inevitable. He undid the laces of her chemise, and it slid off easy, but the bodice was new and too sturdy, and he lost his patience. He ripped it open like a shell. Like he was cracking her open. That was the sensation. Like she had many layers, and he was cracking them all wide open until he got to the soft parts, which he held and kissed in generous ways. He took her in the sheets like he was both thanking her and reminding her—sometimes smooth, sometimes gentle, sometimes hard enough that she became feral and needful as she held him close, said his name, vindicating his long held though latent belief that there was good somewhere, out there left in the world and that if he just held on long enough and did not let his grief and his anger consume him, some share of that good would come back around and become his.

He was lucky.

After, the room felt stifling hot. Arthur got up, threw the french doors open to let the air come sweeping in and cool their skin. He went downstairs and came back with a pitcher of water and a very fine bottle of Bordeaux, which the bartender gave to him for free as a thank you for his continued patronage. He and Mary Beth drank it out of the glass cups provided and drank the water right out of the pitcher, passing it back and forth until it was empty. The hour was either very late or very early. They could no longer tell the difference. At some point, Mary Beth remembered something important, and so she found her blue dress on the floor and reached into the pocket of the skirt, fishing around until Arthur asked her what the hell she was doing down there.

He was leaning against the headboard, naked, drinking his wine, waiting for her. She had thrown on the blue over shirt he’d been wearing the day before. She liked wearing his clothes. “What’s that?” he said.

Mary Beth climbed back up onto the bed and showed him—it was Angelo Bronte’s pocket watch. “I stole it back,” she said, handing it to him. “When you wasn’t looking.”

She didn’t meet his eyes at first, worried he’d disapprove. But when she finally did look at him, he was holding the watch. He set his cup down on the nightstand and looked resigned but also pensive. She was proud of what she’d done. She didn’t regret it. Still, he sighed. “You should not have, Mary Beth.”

“Ain’t no fence gonna bat an eye,” she said. Then she grabbed the watch to show him more closely. She clicked it open, showed him the face. “See these? These is diamonds, Arthur. This watch is platinum, with diamonds, and that’s a ruby there, and that there’s a trio of emeralds.”

“He’s gonna notice,” said Arthur.

“So? As to who took it, he ain't none the wiser, and you know he’s got ten more just like it. But for us, this watch could bring in a couple thousand dollars, Arthur. Easy.”

“And?”

“And we can put it toward our lily farm,” she said, giving it back to him, closing it inside his big palm. “In Wisconsin, whenever we get there. Or, maybe not a lily farm. Maybe a horse ranch, or general store. It don’t matter. We’ll put it toward something, something of our own. One rich asshole’s watch for a whole new life. Seems worth the risk, don’t you think?”

Arthur stared at the watch, and then he stared at her—always full of her surprises and many directions at once. He gave in. They were still outlaws, after all. He gave her back the pocket watch and sighed. He closed the watch inside of both her hands, and then he closed her hands inside of his. “Best we fence it at a distance,” he said, “in Emerald Station, just in case.”

She smiled big, like the sun.

They left St. Denis the next morning in the carriage with John and Charles. The weather had cooled off, and there were more clouds in the distance, creeping inward off the water, looking like more rain. John seemed full of tension and happy to be getting back. He and Abigail had made their decision, it seemed, and he had told Arthur about about during a quiet moment as they both sat up front in the carriage. Arthur smoked, hands on the reins as John said that they were with him, that they were ready when the time was right, that they could be ready tomorrow if that’s what Arthur wanted. To even his own surprise, Arthur had become the de facto patriarch of their arrangement. John deferred to him on every instance and gave him his word.

“We’re loyal to each other now,” he said. “I mean that, Arthur. Okay?”

John had an ironic sensibility, it was true, but he could be sentimental as all fuck when he was sincere about something, and Arthur believed him. Arthur nodded, seriously, then put his eyes back on the road. Truth be told, he was still uneasy from the night before and yet unwilling to speak on the matter and this put a strain on almost everything. He had not yet had the opportunity to decompress his feelings about Dutch beyond those moments with Mary Beth. He needed to speak with Hosea.

He flicked his cigarette as John took to wiping down the barrel of his shotgun. He then looked out past the edge of the horizon to the endless waves of the Lanahachee and where it dumped off into the wild sea and the green clouds that swirled above it. He turned around and glanced back to where Mary Beth was in conversation with Charles about the weather, and he smiled as he listened.

“I ain’t seen no tornado since I was a girl,” she said. “But they used to rip through Shawnee like no tomorrow.”

“Shawnee. That’s where you’re from?” said Charles.

“Yes, sir.”

“Did they hit the city?”

She shook her head. She was eating a plum. When she finished, she tossed the pit out the side of the carriage and wiped her hands off on her skirt. “They’d dance around the city like ballerinas. It was so strange.”

“I’ve never seen one,” said Charles, chewing on a piece of leather and whittling a little polar bear out of wood with a carving knife. “A tornado. It must be spectacular.”

“They sound like freight trains.”

“Yes, well. I can imagine they’d be pretty loud.”

When they approached the tree tunnel that would eventually take them off the main road and through an arboreal vortex to Shady Belle, a chilly wind came through with some rain on its edges. They all shivered. They then saw a strange sight grazing on the turnips growing wild by the edge of the trees, a great big draft horse, a mare, all alone, hanging out and saddled with no rider, looking like she had wandered in out of nowhere. As they got closer, Arthur straightened up. He pulled back on the reins to put the carriage at a full stop. He tossed his cigarette and studied the horse, which he dearly recognized.

“What’s going on?” said Mary Beth. She stood up and put her hands on his shoulders, leaning forward to see what he was seeing. “Is that Diana?”

“It sure is,” said Arthur.

“What’s she doing out here?” said John.

“I got no idea,” said Arthur.

He hopped off the carriage then, and he began to approach Diana, his old Ardennes who had retired a month back. He was careful, just in case she'd been spooked. He held out his hands and spoke to the horse in a calming fashion, but she recognized him immediately. She did not start or stir. She licked his hand as he got closer. He patted her behind the ears and smiled at her softly. “Hey, girl,” he said. “What are you doing out here?”

Mary Beth climbed off the carriage. She was coming toward Arthur cautiously.

“That’s weird,” said Arthur. “It ain’t like Diana to wander.”

“Strange,” said Mary Beth, looking around.

“Didn’t you mention that Kieran was taking her out, a few days back?”

“Yeah,” she said. “Before the storm hit. He hadn’t returned by the time we left for St. Denis.”

“Kieran wouldn’t have let her wander out the camp like this.”

“I know,” said Mary Beth. She bit off a hangnail, looked around again, a little frantic this time.

Arthur watched her fretting. “You worried?”

John and Charles were getting antsy now back at the carriage. “What’s going on?” said John.

Arthur dusted his hands together. “Did either of you see the O’Driscoll boy before we headed off for St. Denis?”

“No,” said John.

“I don’t think so,” said Charles. “Why?”

Arthur turned back to Mary Beth. “Do you know where he was headed?”

“Rhodes,” said Mary Beth. “Oh gosh, Arthur. Do you think something bad happened?”

“Let’s not jump to conclusions,” he said. “We’ll head into camp. He might be there.”

“And if he ain’t?”

Arthur took a deep breath, placed his hands on his hips. “If ain’t, then we’ll deal with that then.”

Arthur gestured for John to take over the reins on the carriage after that. Then he mounted Diana and rode at a trot alongside them the whole way back to camp. When they got there, he hitched her up at the horse station and fed her an apple, and then he, Mary Beth, John, and Charles commenced their way up through the yard and back to the house. It was business as usual, with Pearson preparing the stew for the evening and carving a deer hung up by its haunches. Abigail ceased her knitting by the dried up old fountain and greeted John in a bashful manner that suggested she was happy to see him but was unwilling to openly express herself. Jack and Cain came running around front. Sadie was feeding the chickens and Javier was chopping firewood. The Reverend was passed out on the grass by the gazebo while Tilly tried to nudge him awake, concerned for his health. Karen and Lenny had been on perimeter duty, with their shotguns resting on their shoulders, drinking whiskey out of tin cups and discussing the foreboding weather, while Mrs. Grimshaw was scrubbing the floors inside the house. Uncle was passed out against one of the covered wagons, and Micah nursed a hangover by the fire, drinking his hair of the dog. Dutch, Hosea, and Bill had not yet returned from St. Denis.

Mary Beth, Arthur, and Charles went around, asking if anyone had seen Kieran. Had anyone seen the O’Driscoll boy, they asked. Was he somewhere in Shady Belle, hanging out where they could not see? Did he ever find his way back after the storm. They asked everybody, one by one, and the universal answer they received was no. Nobody had seen or heard from Kieran in three days. He was missing.

Mary Beth became sick with worry after that. They stood at the scout fire as the wind picked up in the swamps all around.

”Arthur, we gotta find him,” she said. "This ain't good."

Arthur looked at her, and then he looked at Charles.

Charles nodded. “I’ll ride with you,” he said. “We can do our best to track him. But the rain ain’t gonna make it easy.”

Arthur nodded. “We should wait it out,” he said. "Hope the rain don't do too much damage. No use getting caught in a storm.”

”I agree,” said Charles.

But Mary Beth was hurried. “I wanna come with,” she said. "To find him. When you go."

Arthur have her a look. “No.”

”Why not?”

”Because,” he said. “We don’t even know what we’re looking for, Mary Beth.”

“Then there ain’t no set reason I can’t,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Somewhere over the water, thunder cracked. Arthur glanced, and then he sighed, sounding torn. “It might not be safe, Mary Beth,” he said. “I won’t put you in danger.”  

“He’s my friend,” she said, sensing his ambivalence, softening. She uncrossed her arms. “I been out robbing with you before, and you just took me on a ten-day hunting trip up into the Roanoke Valley. I can do it."

"Mary Beth."

"Don’t make this something it ain’t," she said. She was reading his mind. "Arthur. Please.”

He felt a cold pain in his chest, a tug. He sighed. He could no longer tell. How dangerous was it? What were they even hunting anymore? Up at O'Creagh's Run they'd been hunting moose, and they got hunted instead. By psychopaths. Everything had become so unpredictable. Everything was wooly. It felt like he was dreaming again. He looked at Charles, who shrugged. “It could be nothing, man,” he said.

Arthur closed his eyes. He placed his hands on his hips, hung his head so that his chin nearly touched his chest. He had a bad feeling, but he relented. “Fine," he said. "We leave as soon as the storm passes.”

“Sounds good,” said Charles.

“Thank you,” said Mary Beth.

He gave her a long, worried look, tried to smile. Little raindrops started falling from the sky. “We best get inside,” he said.

Mary Beth watched him go on to the house. She said she'd be right there. Then she sort of waited back, and Tilly came along and wanted to hear from her all about the party. Mary Beth was eager to talk to Tilly, but Tilly was a bit of a gossip. She wanted to know all about her and Arthur, even more so than Abigail, but Mary Beth felt private about her and Arthur. She wasn't ready yet to tell anyone about her and Arthur getting married. It still felt like something secret, something new to nourish, an intimate truth between them, and she felt like if they let it go too soon, it would slip away. So much of their lives they had to share, and that can make things feel diluted, less real. She wanted every moment she spent with him to be as real as possible. So she hung out with Tilly in the gazebo for a little while, protected from the weather and talking only about the glittering fools of St. Denis. She smiled demurely all the time and thought about Arthur. She knew he was protective of her safety. It was another part of him that she appreciated, like his stoicism, but that she was not always so sure on how to navigate. Sometimes it was good, sometimes it was bad. From the gazebo, she saw Charles prepping the horses for the coming rain. She saw the rest of the camp begin its lazy migration to the indoors. Tilly was so eager. She wanted to see Mary Beth's dress from the party. Mary Beth blushed. It was all in a pile in a canvas sack, getting soaked in the back of the carriage, by the storm.

Meanwhile, Arthur felt pressure on all sides. He was thinking about O'Creagh's Run, all those things he got from talking to the veteran Hamish Sinclair, the subtext about starting the rest of his life as soon as possible. He felt sucked back in now. The distance provided to him by their time up in the Roanoke Valley and nights talking with the Wintersons in Emerald Station was feeling more and more like an illusion. He didn't want to lose it, wanted to get back there but the more he reached the more it all seemed to fade out of reality and into the scenery of dreams. They were out on a limb. There was no rest here. It was a constant balancing act and all he wanted to do was rest.

When he got back to his quarters, Arthur sat by the window and listened to the advancing rain in solitude. He heard a bit of scrambling outside as Mrs. Grimshaw and Mr. Pearson got into some sort of argument over the stew. He smoked and opened his journal for the first time since they returned from their hunting trip.

The O'Driscoll boy has disappeared, he wrote. He ashed his cigarette directly into a tin can as the rain got steadier and the thunder rolled. His pencil was dull. He sharpened it with the tip of his knife and then he continued. I will admit that I don't feel good about that. Charles said it could be nothing.

But it could be something.

He thought he heard someone coming up the stairs but it could have just been another illusion. He smoked.

#red dead redemption 2 #rdr2 #arthur morgan #rdr2 fanfic #mary beth gaskill #mary-beth gaskil #arthur x mary beth #arthur morgan x mary beth gaskill #john marston #charles smith #kieran duffy #the lily farm

[theonceoverthinker]

OUAT 4X08 - Smash the Mirror

Am I reviewing two episodes at once, or is this just a MIRROR-age?!:?! XD

...Told you I was funny. 

Okay, I’ve said it before, but the best thing about this rewatch are the little surprises you find along the way while watching. This is one of them and I had a LOT to say about just how good it really was. So, if you want to join me under the cut, maybe we’ll have some fun!

Main Takeaways

Past

I love how this episode holds to the spirit of “Frozen” in that Anna and Elsa’s love is more powerful than Ingrid’s manipulation. I think it was a great writing decision that allowed for the actual story of the episode to go in a much cooler (pardon the pun) story with a much more tragic twist to take place as a result. Additionally, the reveal scene of this story twist is such a fantastic moment! It’s beautifully orchestrated for the intense mood the scene starts out with. And the acting as Elsa plays the guards is just so real and hysterical in hindsight! Even still, once the ruse was revealed, I was grinning like a fool.

Really, Anna and Elsa are the heart of this segment (Favorite Dynamic was next to IMPOSSIBLE for this two-parter). Literally EVERY scene that they share bathes us is their love for one another. In every scene of this flashback, these two were either holding each other close, goofing off, throwing bits of wit at each other, or some combination of the three. We see their post-”Frozen” sisterhood and because “Frozen” ended just as they reconciled, that’s something we didn’t get to see a lot of at the time of this episode’s airing. But here, their dynamic is celebrated and given a giant fireworks display!

And I LOVE how this extends to the tragic ending of the story. Elsa, faced with so much anger and resentment from Anna and Ingrid egging her on, fucking REFUSES to betray her sister. Even as this is an ultimate loss, it is still a triumph! And that’s because Ingrid basically had to cheat to win. It took what basically amounted to Deus Ex Machina’s next door neighbor to split these two up and that’s just too beautiful!

Present

There’s a real solid heart to this episode that for me, was somewhat lacking in the past few episode, either due to a lack of focus or just a lack of understanding of what was needed to do with their characters for the stories they wanted to tell.

Now, I’m going to talk about what I found to be the two biggest aspects of this segment, but first, I want to take some time to address some of the smaller bits.

First off, a relatively minor moment, but something that was important to me was Snow’s call in Part 1. I really appreciate that not only was Snow the one to answer the phone, but she wasted NO time apologizing to Emma for her behavior in the last episode. That was so necessary and upon seeing this episode again, it really restored a lot of my love for Snow. And the way Snow insists that this apology matters when Emma says it doesn’t was incredibly heartwarming! AND the way that this attitude prevails throughout the episode is even better!

Second, also from Part 1 is the conversation Snow and David have in their bedroom about whether or not Emma should give up her magic. It’s a scene like this that makes me happy that this episode was done in two parts. It’s allowed to be a slow, semi-detailed, character filled conversation. David and Snow can be fleshed out in regards to their thought processes. Snow is so full of regret and really wants to learn from the mistake she made in the last episode. For her, taking the opposite approach to Emma’s magic is that (And rightly). And David cares about Emma’s autonomy, showing support for her choice. Both approaches are done out of love, well meaning, and supportive, and while Emma doesn’t give up her magic, the validity and love from her parents on display in this scene. And I also love how Elsa becomes a third party in this scene. Elsa knows as someone who has powers that they can be something that makes someone special and more importantly can be controlled. She doesn’t want Emma to give up her magic because she knows that this is just as much an act of self-loathing as much as it is a means of protection for those she loves. And that determines her to, upon hearing the conclusion Snow and David reach, take fate into her own hands.

Third, ALSO from Part 1 (And sort of Part 2), while I hated “The Apprentice,” I LOVE the resolution to it. Killian’s voicemail apologizing to Emma is something that’s so amazing to me. Killian holds nothing back as he exposes how he knows what Rumple’s capable of thanks to that hat. His remorse and regret is so strong and sincere and it shows how despite Rumple’s claims, he really does want to be and is becoming a better man. And as further evidence, Killian tries to actually morally persuade Rumple not to hurt Emma. He’s not just spewing threats at him, but is actually starting to use his heart to convince even his greatest enemy not to hurt someone. As for the rest of this scene, I’ll see you shortly to talk about that. ;)

Fourth, now onto Part 2, I want to do something different and combine two scenes: Regina and Henry’s talk upstairs and Regina’s subsequent takedown of Snow and David. I find that these two scenes are deeply connected and while talking about them apart would be great, talking about them together might be better! Regina’s words about denying Henry his specialness is made so much better because of the Regal Believer scene it soon follows. You see how Regina has come to not only respect that specialness of Henry’s, but to adore it and regret shunning it before. This is some fantastic evidence of all of Regina’s growth and fills in an important piece of the Regal Believer puzzle. You see her criticize that past action and Lana sells that calm regret that Regina has so well! And then Regina passes the advice along to Snow and David. This might be one of my favorite instances of Regina reflecting her teachings onto another because the specific circumstances of the situation she’s relating are a lot more domestic in their origins and yet equal in a sense between the points of comparison. I’ll illuminate my point a bit better in the next spot, but it’s important when making comparisons for common ground between two characters to be common in both substance and impact and the impact of Emma giving up her magic is painted with an urgency that brings that and Regina’s behavior towards Henry in Season 1 to a point where that commonness is felt.

Fifth, we gotta talk about Snow and Regina’s talk on the road. First, I wish Regina’s line about whether or not doing good things in order to be redeemed truly has the value of doing good been expanded on more. It was the most interesting thing to come out of Snow and Regina’s conversation and just like the conversations and scenes I gushed about above, I think it had the potential to be just as good a diving more into Regina’s redemption arc. Second, ”You know how selfish and shallow I could be as a child.” ...I hate this line. Being a pain in the ass child is not in the same legion as Regina’s crimes and in a conversation that has so much more potential for depth, I hate that this was the narrative point they decided to go for. Hell, why didn’t Snow instead vaguely allude to what went down with Maleficent? We’d have gotten better foreshadowing and an example of evil from Snow that would serve to put them more on the same level, making the conversation so much stronger. BUT that all having been said, I really like how the conversation ends. It’s not that deep, but it does touch upon the point that while change isn’t happening as fast as Regina wants it to, her choice to make good decisions rather than poor ones is how she’ll change her life for the better.

Finally, sixth, the heart stealing. You KNEW I was gonna talk about this and YES! Let’s do it!!! In many ways, the start of this scene feels very much like an ending. Killian’s celebrating Emma’s safety and looking to free himself while Rumple mourning his loss. BUT I love the sharp turn this scene takes as Rumple slowly reveals what’s next to come, namely for Killian. @lillpon did an AMAZING analysis of this scene that I can’t find, but does SUCH justice to the slow and methodical way Killian’s realization and subsequent horror plays out. Seeing Killian wiggle around terrified, panicked, and desperate is a horrifying experience to watch, but not a narratively poor one at all. It’s the real star of the Golden Hook arc of Season 4 for me and the best chunk of narrative that they get throughout the series (I’ll have some explaining to do in season 7, won’t I? Not saying it’s bad, but not as good as what we see now). There’s such menace in Rumple’s voice with every line spoken and unlike in “The Apprentice,” the promise of this scene is completely delivered on and that’s why I love it. We see the torture Rumple inflicts on Killian’s body and morals over the course of the next few episodes and it hurts because we see how Killian tried to change his ways. But it doesn’t matter. Because he’s Rumple’s puppet now.

Okay, now onto the big points about this segment, namely, our two real mains: Rumple and Emma.

Rumple is amazing in this episode. His villainy blossoms in such a spectacular way that it’s really something to behold! First off, let’s start with his introduction. I LOVE the reveal of Emma’s presence in Rumple’s shop. While it’s a slow moment and honestly probably could’ve been cut from the episode, it’s nonetheless a COOL moment. I love how all of Rumple’s baubles slowly go off one by one as we build to the reveal that not only is Emma in the shop, but that Rumple’s not at all surprised nor freaked out by it. He knows what Emma’s up to and he uses his knowledge of Ingrid’s scheme as well as the story that Emma tells him about Henry to his full advantage. Rumple presses just the right buttons as to maximize Emma’s fear and get her to agree to whatever it is that she needs to in order to protect those that she loves. His most every move is sinister, whether he’s gloating at Ingrid, manipulating Emma, or torturing Killian. Scary Rumple is honestly my favorite Rumple we get this in droves. When Rumple CAN reveal his plans or intentions, he becomes terrifying and Robert Carlyle sells every terrifying chuckle, word, and sneer and when he needs to play it cool for Emma, the shift to acting like someone not entirely unselfish but not entirely selfish either gives this story a perfect pinch of dramatic irony.

It’s sickening, but in the absolute best way. Rumple’s the Iago of this story and while not entirely bereft of nuance, the narrative makes no qualms about that fact.

There’s this great moment in the mansion where for all that Rumple’s manipulating Emma, he’s also being so honest with her about who he is. Perhaps it’s because he believes she’s gonna die soon or just because of the dynamic they’ve had so far, but Rumple is refreshingly honest and praising of Emma and how she’s different from him. And it’s a risk on his part. It’s possible his words might convince Emma to be selfish or that Ingrid’s words might still play a part in her decision over what to do or that Emma might just ask too many questions, but he’s confident she won’t and he has this self loathing that for better or worse, does need to come out to someone inconsequential. And he chooses Emma. That “thank you” that she gives him guts me, as does his response. It’s a scary scene that is also full of soul.

And Emma...just Emma. For all the talk of Emma running away, I feel like this is just as much about Emma not wanting to run and doing what she can to not have to. She keeps her family posted about what’s going on with her, regularly expresses her love to them, and makes a decision about her magic so she can go back to them. Her love for her friends and family is made so evident by Emma’s every move and Jen’s acting here is fantastic in showing that balance of love and fear, giving an extra layer of nuance to the character.

Finally, let’s talk about Emma and Elsa’s talk. The speech is so well nurtured by who these two characters are. Their understandings of fear, rejection, powerlessness, and sense of being overpowered by themselves are big parts of common ground between them, making Elsa the absolute best person to relate to Emma’s troubles. Additionally, the conversation discusses self love in this fantastic and tangible way. When it comes to themes, this is the most an episode can give me. Elsa points out the personal responsibility in loving and accepting yourself. Loving both the good and bad parts of one’s powers and destiny is a hard thing in the universe of OUAT, especially when those things can risk causing real harm. But it’s something that can be done and for yourself and all those that love you, must be done. This scene emphasizes this and Elsa and Emma’s bond raises everything to new heights.

That woosh of acceptance and control that results of this conversations is BEYOND earned. It feels like another hurdle that Emma’s overcome and her pain throughout the episode makes it such a strong accomplishment. Emma and Elsa are True Friendship and True Love!

All Encompassing

This is such a dynamic episode in terms of aesthetics, too! We see cool effects like the mirror lakes reappear, and great bits of editing and cinematography that enhance the writing by showing things like distance and loneliness through camera and even prop angles. And the cuts and usages of lighting, particularly as they pertain to Emma’s rampant magic are really exciting! They leave a constant tension and sense of danger across the span of the episode and really bring the entire experience of watching this two-parter to life.

Stream of Consciousness

-It’s always a sign of a fun time when you have a motherfucking mirror lake of editing goodness!!!! Hell yeah!

-Ingrid, when you need someone’s help and you can’t threaten them, it doesn’t do you well to insult them by calling them “past your prime.”

-”Especially those that have succumbed to the darkness…” Ingrid hasn’t really done anything like that. Killing Helga was an accident, defeating Hans’ guards was self-defense, and while imprisoning Anna was dark...I mean, have you MET the people in this universe?! XD

-”Do you think I was foolish enough to bring it with me?” RUMPLE, TAKE NOTES!!!

-”My sisters could never accept who I was because they were...ordinary.” Helga accepted you and Gerda did too until she falsely thought you murdered her sister!

-Damn, Sean rocks that tank top! <3 Like, I want him in that tank top in a remake of “Die Hard.”

-”Hey, this isn’t your fault.” Well, it’s more her fault than it is yours.

-Now I just want to know just what that spell Rumple threw out actually WAS!

-”I will never take this off again.” I teared up at this fucking line. Anna loves Elsa so much and I’m LIVING for it!

-”You may want to finish buttoning your shirt first.” This moment had me laughing HARD!

-THE MIRROR LAKE SHOWS UPPPPPP!

-Speaking of mirrors, I ADORE the shot of Elsa and Anna looking into the shattered sight mirror for the first time. They’re in the same shot, but because of the way the mirror is shattered, there’s this sense of distance created and it’s reflected in the main shot of the two sisters too. The editing team did a GREAT job here!

-”Unless...you simply like watching me.” Did Ingrid just make a pass at Rumple?! XD

-I love how Anna and Elsa, while being sneaky, are just having the BEST time on this mission and Elsa can’t even fully hide her amusement at Anna’s quip.

-Opening hours until 10? “Very generous” indeed!

-I really love the Regal Believer scene we see! Regina’s speech to Henry about his usefulness and contributions is really heartwarming and connects with Henry in a loving and intelligent way!

-Going back to my point about Ingrid and Rumple, the Netflix still for Part 2 is Ingrid and Rumple getting all up in each other’s business!!! XD I feel like other people need to start shipping this!! Golden Frost?

-Ingrid’s “surprise” was so adorable!!!

-When we see Rumple walk to meet Emma in the mansion, it looks like he’s in a freakin’ church! XD

-I’m HC’ing that Rumple turned on all of those lights as to spook Emma even further.

-I know it’s more of a matter of convenience, but why didn’t Rumple just go for the fairies’ first? Like, he says basically that Emma’s not his first choice to die for the hat, and he HATES the fairies, so why not?

-Elsa offering Anna all the chocolate she can eat is the most beautiful thing in the world!

-”Eventually, everyone sees me as a monster.” YOU LITERALLY JUST FORCED ANNA TO TRAP HER SISTER AND KRISTOFF SAID HE WOULDN’T HURT YOU IF YOU LET HER GO! FUCK THAT NOISE!

-I like that Ingrid apparently spent hours playing what basically amounts to Patty Cake with the magical barrier, all the while probably never sitting while standing in heels! XD

Favorite Dynamic

Swan Believer. While there were SO MANY good dynamics in this episode and Emma and Elsa’s dynamic especially is a really great moment of understanding for Emma’s character and a great heart to the episode, I feel like that moment is only as great as it is because of how well it was set up by Emma and Henry’s opening scene. I love that they chose Henry as the person to find Emma and be injured under her powers. It’s not only an organic and really heartbreaking scene as Emma freaks out about how she hurt Henry, but it really does make Emma’s mood throughout the rest of the two-parter make so much sense. It’s a hard scene to watch, but I mean that in the best way possible. Emma is doing everything she can to explain how she can’t be with Henry at the moment and Henry, the believer, of course, will not bend down so easily. The scene, like Emma’s rampant magic, is pulsing with love and danger. And the moment where Henry finds blood on himself is so crushing because it erases any hope that even Emma’s biggest source of support can turn her around right now. And this moment between them creates a tragic and urgent tone that follows the present segment of the episode throughout its run. Emma’s desperation and panic all comes from that moment between the two of them. I only wish that their reunion was a liiiiiiiiittle stronger, but I do find it forgivable. Given how happy Emma and Henry are and their hug, it works well enough.

Writer

David Goodman and Jerome Schwartz are a fucking dream team here! The name of the game in this episode is strength. These two took advantage of every second they had in this double episode to give each of their dynamics the strength they needed to support the story. The stories in both the past and present are actually so simple in their broad strokes -- Emma tries to give up her magic and Anna and Elsa work together to stop Ingrid -- but the simplicity of the narrative allows for much deeper conversations to take place. And they’re all given the time to reach that organic conclusion and as a result, I love each and every one of them.

Rating

DOUBLE GOLDEN APPLE!!! WHAT AN AMAZING EPISODE! I’m not gonna lie. I GROANED at the thought of covering this double episode because of its length, but this episode kept my attention and love practically the ENTIRE time! We get two fantastic stories that really involved their present casts, superb conversations across the span of the episode. I was floored by just how much I ended up liking this one, but it really touched me in just the right way!

Flip My Ship - The Home of All Things “Shippy Goodness”

Captain Swan - I love the two second shot of Killian when David says that they need to pour the locator spell over something of Emma’s! XD Yup that’s accurate! Golden Hook - Rumple chains Killian up and literally takes his heart. Jenna’s very happy now and that’s really all I need to say about that! XD

Golden Frost (Ingrid/Rumple) - When I woke up today, I didn’t expect to end my day shipping Rumple and Ingrid, but it fucking happened and I love it! Seriously, Ingrid and Rumple all but dry hump in this episode. They constantly get all up in each other’s businesses and the threats don’t take me out of that as much as you’d think!!! XD

Outlaw Queen - I love the bit of banter Robin and Regina have at the library where Regina points out that Robin stole Henry’s book from her and Robin says “you knew I was a thief when you met me.” I know it’s such a small thing to point out, but I LOVE that bit of wit exchanged! It’s cute, flirty, and fast!

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The best part of doing these reviews is finding episodes like these. They’re episodes that I don’t remember that well apart from a few scene and expect to not find all that much apart from said scenes, but end up doing so much for me emotionally. This, while an exhausting review to write for its meatiness, was so worth every exhausting second of it.

Thank you SO much for reading this if you did! This review was a pleasure to write! And thank you to the fine folks at @watchingfairytales and @daensarah for being the coolest human in existence! (And hey, if you want to be on the tag list for these reviews, hit me up!) Anyway, I can’t wait to see you all during “Fall.” TTFN!

Season 4 Total (69/230) Tee-hee! XD

Writer Scores: Adam and Eddy: (16/60) Jane Espenson: (10/40) David Goodman and Jerome Schwartz: (30/50) Andrew Chambliss: (14/50) Dana Horgan: (6/30) Kalinda Vazquez: (14/40) Scott Nimerfro: (6/30)

*Links to the rest of my rewatch will no longer be provided. They take posts with links outside of searches and I spend way too much time on these reviews to not give them that kind of exposure. Sorry for the inconvenience, but they still can be found on my page under Operation Rewatch.

#ouat #once upon a time #watching fairytales #ouat 4x08 #ouat rewatch #jenna watches ouat

[flslp87]

A Happy Ending Begins With Hope A Season 7 Canon Divergent

Summary:   Revenge, Kidnapping, Curses, and Redemption all revolve around an unlikely source…Hope.

You can read the parameters I used for this story here.  

Thank you @linda8084 @jamif   @juliakaze and @duathadun  for being my guinea pig readers.  

Can be found on AO3 and FF.

Tumblr -  Chapter 1   Chapter 2  Chapter 3  Chapter 4 Chapter 5   Chapter 7

Chapter 6 (7 on FF and AO3)

Words ~ 7600 

Wish Realm/Enchanted Forest II 

Hope didn't want to open her eyes as with them closed she could continue to relive the events of the night before. 

Hope heard the minute Gideon stepped foot on the Jolly Roger, and thought about running up to him, but at the last minute forced him to come to her.  That didn't keep her from opening the door as soon as he knocked and throwing herself into his arms, "Now that's a greeting I can get behind." he murmured just before his lips covered hers. 

"How was work?" she asked as they left the Jolly behind, "Did you have a good day?"   

As with every other time they were together, their conversation was easy, moving from her job as a teacher to his at Storybrooke hospital. They talked about her family and his and the fact that their fathers no longer hated the idea that they were dating but had moved up to tolerating it.   

Once dinner was over, Gideon led her into another room in the restaurant, this one reserved for dancing.  The lights were low, and the small orchestra was playing a slow number, but for them, it was empty. Gideon didn't immediately pull her into his arms, but when she opened her mouth to say something, he kissed her, and sat her on the arm of a chair, "Trust me." he whispered going down on one knee.

Hope closed her eyes, savoring the moment that she had been wanting to happen for longer than she could remember.  When she opened them, the man she loved was on one knee, holding a ring, "Hope, I have loved you forever.  Will you make me the happiest man alive by becoming my wife?" 

She swallowed the lump in her throat, barely able to see as the tears filled her eyes, "Yes, I'll marry you.  She cupped his face, kissing him tenderly. 

Gideon slipped the ring onto her finger, and pulling her gently into his arms, gave her a kiss so sweet and tender she had just about melted at his feet.  "What do you think our families will say?" 

He grimaced, "I don't care, Hope.  I'd go anywhere, do anything your father wanted, just to prove to him that his Princess will be loved and cherished every day as if it were my last." 

They had danced long into the night before coming back to the Jolly where they made love four hours.  Today they planned to go tell their parents and while she knew that her parents would eventually trust her decision, she also didn't relish the hoops that her father was sure to make Gideon jump through.   

She opened her eyes slowly, expecting a pair of dark brown ones to be sharing her pillow... 

"Damn!" Hope exclaimed opening her eyes, not to the Jolly Roger she had been living in, but to another one located in another place and another realm.  Slowly, the events of the day before came back to her and she remembered three Rumples, Alice and Robyn defeating Gothel and then seeing Henry bent over Regina. "The curse must be broken." She pushed herself up off the bed, her eyes catching the ornate ring on her finger. "What the..." In Hyperion Heights she celebrated her twenty-first birthday, but she wasn't twenty-one any longer, she was twenty-eight and engaged to Gideon Gold. Where did the time go and where was WHook?" 

~~~ouat~~~ 

WHook woke on the deck of the Jolly Roger, his men scattered around him, "Hope!" he cried realizing immediately that she had been the last person he had been talking to when the curse was broken, but she was nowhere to be seen. "Hope!" he cried again, running to the other side of the ship to look out over the docks.   

"WHook?" he heard her melodic voice calling as she came up from the cabin below. 

Without conscious thought, he ran to her, wrapping her in a bear hug, "I thought you were lost." Logically, he knew that she had to go home, but emotionally he wasn't ready to let her go.  She had become the daughter he never knew he wanted until the opportunity was presented to him.   

"I'm right here," she stepped back, "but where are the others?  Regina, Henry, Mr. Gold?" 

"Mr. Gold?" he asked as that name was unfamiliar to him. 

"Yes," she nodded, "you know, Weaver." 

The image of his partner, Weaver coalesced in his mind, superimposed over one of the man he had vowed revenge on many years before. "Crocodile! I'll kill him!" His memories of their time in Hyperion Heights were flowing through his mind and he knew that the Dark One was awake long before the curse was broken. "Why didn't he kill me when he had the chance?" He pondered. 

"A truce?" She offered a possibility. 

Her bright blue eyes sparkled when she smiled and the sun glinted off the auburn highlights in her hair, "My mum," he lightly touched the side of her head before cupping her face, "that was the memory that I couldn't grab onto when cursed." 

"My dad says the same thing." She squeezed his hand, "But we need to find the others. Where could they be?" 

He frowned, deep in thought, "What were you thinking just as the curse broke?" He had been thinking of going home, could that be the simple answer, especially since he had woken back on the Jolly Roger, his home? 

"I was thinking of home," she murmured softly, "but..." 

He lifted a brow, "But, what?" 

Hope didn't immediately answer him, but nibbled daintily on a fingernail, as if debating something over inside her head.  Her decision made up, she frowned, "This is going to sound odd, but in Hyperion Heights, I was twenty-one, here, I’m twenty-eight." 

He shook his head, "How can you know that you're suddenly twenty-eight years old?" 

"Well, I remember having several birthdays, including my twenty-eighth and before I woke up a memory of last night was just after that birthday." 

Her cheeks were pink, and she kept scuffing her toe back and forth on the deck, convincing him he did not want to know exactly what she was remembering, "And?" 

She didn't say anything, but held up her left hand that sported a ring on the third finger, "You're engaged?" 

"Yes." 

"To the young man, this Gideon?" 

"Yes." 

"What is it you're not telling me, Hope?"  There was more to the story, of that he was certain. 

"His name," she swallowed audibly, "is Gideon Gold." 

"What? And your father is alright with this?" He bellowed. 

She stared off into the distance as if she were trying to bring back a memory forgotten, "I don't remember telling them." Her admission came hesitantly, "I remember everything up to the day after getting engaged and then nothing...it's as if that part of my life is yet to be lived." 

He wondered what her father would think of his baby girl marrying the Dark One's son, but as there was nothing he could do about it now, let it go.   He did, however, promise himself he would say something to her parents once he had gotten her home.  "Come on, Princess," he sighed.  Let's see what we can find out about Henry so we can get you home." 

"And Mr. Gold and Regina?" she casually tossed out there. 

His growl earned a giggle from her as they stepped off the ship to search for the others. 

~~~ouat~~~ 

Regina opened her eyes, not to the Henry that she had just seen in Hyperion Heights, but to the one she had said goodbye to in Storybrooke; eighteen-year-old Henry who set out to discover his story.  "Henry?  You look...different.  What happened?" 

"You don't remember?" He frowned, "maybe you hit your head harder than I thought." 

"No, Henry," Regina sat up, looking around for something to show him his reflection.  His motorcycle was laying on its side, slightly rusted, but once she had brushed off the dirt, she pointed at the mirror, "Look." 

Henry gave her a sheepish smile but did as she asked and glanced in the mirror. The surprise and shock that crossed his face said it wasn't what he'd expected, but what was?  "Tell me what you thought you would see." 

He dropped back down onto the ground, hanging his head dejectedly, "I screwed up, didn't I?  But I swear I was only trying to help." 

"What did you do, Henry? You're scaring me." Regina couldn't imagine what he was going to say, but he looked exactly like he used to when he was getting ready to confess wrongdoings.   

"I tried to write my happy ending, and I think I might have taken someone else's, and I added you, and WHook, and then a look of horror crossed his face, "Mom, who is Hope in the Enchanted Forest II or is she from the Wish Realm? 

Regina swallowed hard, looked away, and took a deep breath before finally answering, "Hope isn't from the Enchanted Forest II or the Wish Realm." She told him quietly, "She's from Storybrooke, just like you." 

Regina waited for several seconds for him to process what she had said but couldn't decide if she wanted him to guess who Hope was or if it was better for him to be kept in the dark.  "Should I know her?" he finally asked. 

Regina tipped her head, "Well, that's a little more complex than you might think." 

"Just tell me, Mom.  I need to know if I've messed with someone else's story too." 

"She's your sister, Henry.  Or, I guess, technically she's your half-sister."  Watching the emotions crossing her son's face was almost more than she could bare.  He looked so lost, so scared and very much like the little boy she used to read bedtime stories to and tuck into bed.  But if he did what he confessed, then he had to live with the consequences, just like she did.  She couldn't make his transgressions disappear any more than she could make her evil deeds disappear by removing her evil half.   

"My sister?" He frowned, "but I remember her birthday party in Hyperion Heights when she turned twenty-one.  How can that be?   And how did she end up here?" 

"I don't know all the answers, but she is your sister who was born less than a year after you left. You didn't bring her here, Henry. We should find her and WHook, Rumple even.  Maybe they can help us figure out our next step. 

They started walking, soon passing the statue of Snow White and Prince Charming and without any warning, WGranny stepped in their way, her crossbow pointed directly at Regina's chest.  "Well, look who's paying us a visit. If it isn't the murderer we've been after for years." 

When it happened, Regina told herself, 'they aren't real' and as long as she stayed in Storybrooke and didn't come face to face with the Wish Realm, she believed it.  But then, being here, meeting WHook, knowing that when she and Emma left, their lives had been given pasts gave her a sick feeling in her gut over her actions. "I'm sorry, WGranny.  I didn't mean for them to die.  Snow and I are friends...family." She hadn't wanted them to die.  She wanted to help Emma snap out of her cursed state, and as usual had resorted to her old habits. 

Suddenly, a warring was going on inside of her and she felt as if her skin was splitting and something or someone was trying to get free.  Regina blinked and the WEvil Queen was standing in front of her laughing and with a wave of her hand, she sent WGranny flying through the air, landing unconscious.

Regina gasped, running over to check on her, "What do you think you are doing?" 

"Oh, relax." the WEvil Queen chided, "the old wolf will be fine."  With another wave of her hand, Regina was transported to the dungeon of the Wish version of her castle, bound in chains. 

"Why are you doing this?  Let them have me." Regina cried, "I was wrong and deserve whatever they plan to do to me." 

"But you've been after Snow White for years.  Why would you be sorry?" The WEvil Queen paced back and forth in front of where Regina was chained, apparently trying to understand the change in her other half. 

"You wouldn't understand even if tried to explain." Regina really wished she could make the WEvil Queen understand just how she had changed over the years, and that it had very little to do with Regina and more to do with those around her.  Henry who always...always believed the best of her and told her repeatedly that there was good in her and that her good side was stronger than her evil one. Snow White...the girl who told a secret that set her on her dangerous path but then defeated her with kindness, by being her friend.  Robin Hood, by loving her despite all her flaws and accepting her for who she was and not for whom he wanted her to be.  And even Zelena who was always jealous because she thought that Regina had gotten everything that should have belonged to her, but in the end sacrificed to save her child.  They had their differences, but they were sisters and there for each other.   What did the WEvil Queen have? 

"Look," the WEvil Queen sighed and rolled her eyes, "stop punishing yourself for something you didn't do." 

"What do you mean?" Regina cried angrily, "I had their hearts in my hand.  I crushed them."   

"No, you didn't" the WEvil Queen laughed, maniacally, "I was there.  You were such a weakling.  Trying to wake the Savior and she just wouldn't hear you.  But, just like always before, instead of finding another way, you fell back on methods that always worked before; threats.   You were giving up, were going to put their hearts back and I couldn't let that happen." Her agitation rose the more of the story she told, "I wanted to kill Snow White and that awful Prince Charming for years, and I couldn't let them live, so I allowed myself to converge with your dreary self and I finally was able to get rid of them once and for all.  And you know what?" Her dark eyes shone with something, but what Regina wasn't sure, "It felt... glorious."   

Regina couldn't believe what she had just heard.  Was it possible for you to be two people, but not know?  Rumple talked about thinking that Henry had jumped into someone else's story and Henry had pretty much confirmed that.  Did she have more than one story or once she split from the Evil Queen, did she get her own book?  If that were true then, how did one go back together?  And when it happened was it something you were aware of, or did you just proceed as if nothing had happened?   

Thinking about the possibilities made her head hurt but it also reminded her of something the Dragon had said when she was trapped in the mirror with Emma.  He said, "Everything’s a balance, both good and bad,” which made her think that while under the curse, she had been converged with the WEvil Queen in Hyperion Heights her 'good' side was stronger? "Hey WQueenie," she inquired, "were you the one who had the past with Facilier?  When I was around him, it was as if I knew him, but now, I’m not so sure." 

"Maybe," WQueen smirked, "he is quite nice to look at and much more exciting than that dull Robin Hood.  Steals from the rich to give to the poor.  How boring is that?" 

"Now, no more talking," the WEvil Queen continued, "I've got plans to make." She disappeared leaving Regina alone in the dungeon with nothing but her thoughts. 

~~~ouat~~~ 

GRumple opened his eyes to find that he was lying in the exact place where he had first stepped foot into the Enchanted Forest II and saw Alice.  This time though, WRumple lay not far away as did Alice, but this girl was young, maybe fifteen or so. "Same age as Bae when he left me." he murmured the thought quietly, but then WRumple roused and nodded his head.  "We've both many regrets, don't we?" 

WRumple sat up and solemnly nodded his head, "That we do. We've both changed over the years, you, because of your Belle and your son, and I," he glanced fondly at Alice, "because of a young girl who reminded me of Belle." 

"The curse is broken but there's still evil in the air, can you feel it?" GRumple checked on Alice who slept the sleep of youth. "Where's her father, I wonder? We're not merged, or I would feel him."   

"We were separate when the curse broke, but why we're together and KRumple isn't with us, I don't know, unless," he snapped his fingers as if a new thought just crossed his mind, "it has to do with being Dark Ones. But to answer your earlier question, yes, I feel the evil and by the looks of young Alice here, the curse that affects time is still in effect." 

"This curse that affects time," GRumple told WRumple," reminds me of the Dark Realm, where the Black Fairy lived for all those years.  You don't think she...no, she couldn't have." She couldn't have come back as the last he had seen of her, she was dust, but then he had killed Zelena and she came back, leaving him with a cursed heart. 

"Spit it out, GRumple," WRumple snapped, "we don't have all day for your addled brain mumblings." 

GRumple told him about the Black Fairy kidnapping his son and casting a curse on Storybrooke.  "She wanted us to be a family, her, Gideon, Henry and I, but I used her wand and she turned into dust, effectively breaking the curse.  I don't believe she returned, but," he shrugged, "with magic one never knows." 

"All magic comes with a price," intoned WRumple as they woke Alice and set out to locate KRumple.  They were in agreement that one, or even two of them wouldn't be able to destroy the evil that surrounded them. That would require help. 

~~~ouat~~~ 

Hope followed WHook back into the Wish Realm, past the tower where she had been kept, and along a path that led in and out of both the Wish Realm and the Enchanted Forest II.  They saw several individuals they recognized from their time in Hyperion Heights, but not the ones they needed.  He had been quiet since learning that she was engaged to the Dark One's son, making her wonder what he was thinking, but the scowl on his face kept her quiet.  Her father often needed time to work through problems on his own, and she assumed WHook would talk when he was ready.   

Instead of talking about Gideon, she kept up a steady stream of chatter, telling him silly stories of growing up and life in Storybrooke. He responded at the appropriate time and asked questions, but when he made eye contact, she couldn't help but notice, his smiles no longer reached his.  Was he mad at her? Was he annoyed she was still around?  This man was harder to read than her father.  He didn't wear his emotions but kept them safely tucked away and protected and she was a little unsure how much to probe. 

The conversation veered away from Storybrooke and without conscious thought she brought up Liam, both Liam’s.   WHook was surprised to hear about her family's journey to the Underworld and how Zeus had stepped in giving her father another chance at life. He asked several questions, but just as before, his responses were lukewarm, frustrating her even more.  She finally decided she couldn't handle it any longer and tugged on the sleeve of his jacket, only then realizing he was wearing a different one than she had seen before. Neither the long, leather duster nor the short jacket he wore in Hyperion Heights, but one much like her father's.  "This is new." escaped before she could hold it back.  

He looked down, but while he seemed surprised, he just shrugged, "Aye, a changed man, a new jacket." He answered nonchalantly, and then quipped, "But I'm still devilishly handsome," which even fell flat. 

Hope needed to get a reaction from him that was real, and not robotic, and did the only thing she could think of, she magicked his sword to her hand and raised the tip toward his neck.  "Knock it off, Hope." He groused impatiently, "let's find Henry," and kept on walking. 

She stood her ground and thought about using her magic to knock him over but decided that was going a little too far.  Thankfully, he didn't take too many steps before realizing that she was no longer following him, "What has you vexed?" 

"You." 

"Me?" He exclaimed, "What did I do?" 

"What have you been thinking?" she finally asked, "are you mad at me?  Mad that you promised to take me home?" 

~~~ouat~~~ 

WHook studied Hope's face, only then realizing what she was feeling, "No.  No," he shook his head, "Remember that picture of that woman in Henry's book?" She nodded her head, and there was something in her eyes, that made him curious. "You recognized her, didn't you?" She nodded again, this time a guilty look crossing her face.  "Who was she, Hope?" 

"My mother," she whispered.   

Her answer, for some reason didn't surprise him, "I met her once, you know?" 

"I know.  It's in my mother's book." She replied quietly, before giggling, "That was when my father knocked you out." 

"Knocked himself out, more like it." He brought the conversation back to her mother, "Then I saw her again." His thoughts jumped back in time, and he finished quietly as if talking to himself, "The image of her I kept in my head made me think I could live again, but being with you, Hope," he swallowed trying to clear the tightness in his throat, "being with you has convinced me that I can let go of my need for revenge and love again.  You've become like a daughter to me, but I don't get to keep you." 

"Are you sure about that?" The voice of his oldest enemy joined the conversation. 

WHook had drawn his sword and was pointing it at the throat of the Dark One before he realized there were two, "Bloody hell." He growled watching Hope as she hugged both men. 

~~~ouat~~~ 

WRumple hugged the young woman back, pleased to see she was looking fit after their adventure, "The time spell affected you too, I see." 

"But not you," she teased, "you're still as sparkly as ever." 

"Aren't I just?" He preened a bit, but there was trouble in the air, he could feel it.  

"Enough of the reunions," WHook interrupted their moment, "explain what your comment meant, Crocodile." 

WRumple met GRumple's eye and knew he was feeling it too and quickly gave WHook a brief overview of how he had been formed and the concept of converging and diverging.  "Do you intend to escort young Hope all the way back to Storybrooke?" 

"Of course," WHook snapped, "I wouldn't send her into the unknown alone, why?" 

Well," GRumple picked up the story, "there have been times when I have been merged with him," he pointed at WRumple," and when he has been merged with KRumple.  So," he shrugged, "when you are in the company of Hope's father, your paths might once again go back together.  It's impossible to predict with certainty, but just know, it's a possibility." 

"Lose my life to be a part of hers?" WHook asked as if for clarification. 

"It's possible." Both Rumple's answered, but any more conversation was cut short as the turbulence around them sent them on their way.   

Hope and WHook turned one way to try to locate Henry and Regina and they turned another to try to find KRumple.  Whatever was happening would make its presence known soon. 

~~~ouat~~~ 

The stage was set for the final showdown; all that was needed were the main attractions.  The Watcher took the prized dagger and held it aloft, "Dark Ones, I summon thee." 

~~~ouat~~~ 

Interestingly enough, KRumple was located in the sacred spot that GRumple had built to honor Belle.  Alice saw him standing just inside the mouth of the cave and ran his direction, "Papa, papa, we've been looking everywhere for you." 

"Alice," KRumple wrapped his arms around her thin frame, "You're home." 

"How did you find this place?" GRumple asked KRumple, knowing that his old behavior would have been kill and not worry about the answers.  He thought maybe Belle would have approved of this man.   

KRumple glanced inside the cave where somehow the candles were still glowing, "When we worked together to defeat that Gothel, the same one I had fought for years, I kept thinking of something my Belle used to say.  She would tell me, “But you're the light one.  Whatever this force is, you'll overcome it. You're a hero, Rumple." He stopped and wiped his eyes, "And I felt like a hero and when the curse was broken, I was brought to my Belle." 

GRumple felt the pull of the dagger and one look at WRumple told him he was feeling the same thing. There wasn't much time now. "I think Belle would have approved, KRumple." he barely got out before he felt his body being pulled away. WRumple vanished, the call of the dagger too strong, "KRumple, the evil has our dagger.  Find Henry, WHook and Hope and then find us.  We all have to fight together." Before he could even be sure if KRumple understood and agreed, the dagger pulled GRumple away too. 

~~~ouat~~~ 

The WEvil Queen felt like she was two different people as she had plotted and planned her revenge on Snow White and her family for years!  Years! And yet she had been thwarted at every turn, and now when she had the opportunity to actually kill Regina, or trade Regina for Hope, her mind had come up with another idea.  One that sounded so simple, but if it happened, who won? Would it be Regina?  Or would it be her? 

The plan had come about after spending all that time in Hyperion Heights converged with Regina.  During that time, she had experienced feelings that she couldn't ever remember feeling before.   There had been the love of a mother for her son, of a grandmother for her son's daughter, love of a sister, of a friend.   Acceptance, something that she had longed for, but never deserved. Regina deserved those things because, even though she had made mistakes, she still worked to be better.  Could that be her?  Could she give up her revenge to be one of them? Could she learn to love who she was, just as Regina had? 

~~~ouat~~~ 

(Now that you’ve found out that the Henry from Storybrooke jumped into Wish Henry’s story, you will meet both of them.  To keep them separate, I am going to use Y, for younger Henry and W, for Wish Henry but if you were to see them YHenry is 18 year old Henry played by Jared and WHenry is the older one from S7, played by Andrew.)   

YHenry was pretty sure the WEvil Queen had taken his mom to her castle, and he was pretty sure she wouldn't kill her, but he wasn't sure what his next move should be.  He had eventually ended up at the castle where WHenry lived after he had become King upon Snow White and Prince Charming's death.  That his mom had supposedly killed them and WGranny wanted to kill her, as he was sure did others, was another part of the story.   

YHenry found WHenry talking softly to WGranny when he pushed the cart full of books into the War Room.  WGranny took one look at him, and the color drained from her face, "It's okay, WGranny." WHenry put his arm around her, "I know him, and he has a lot of explaining to do." 

Here goes nothing, YHenry thought as he laid the books in front of WHenry, "I screwed up and I know I screwed up, and that's on me, but," he took a deep breath and opened his mother, Emma's book to the page where she was in the hospital and Killian was standing next to her, holding his little sister in his arms.  I missed this, he thought blinking rapidly to clear his vision.  "My mom just had a baby, look what they named her." 

WHenry didn't immediately look down, but instead studied him for several minutes.  Finally, he slowly looked down, read the passage, then back up, "Oh, crap!" 

"Exactly!" YHenry agreed, "and the WEvil Queen has my mom.  Have you been looking for Regina to kill her too?" YHenry knew that at one time WHenry blamed Regina for the death of his grandparents, but after living inside WHenry's body, he also knew that he had come to love Regina.   

WHenry sighed heavily, as if the weight of the world rested on his shoulders, "After the death of my grandparents and the disappearance of my Emma, I have to admit, I went off the deep end and slid toward revenge pretty easily." He rubbed the back of his neck, as if wanting to loosen the muscles, "But then living my story, but with your heart and beliefs counteracting mine, was an eye-opener.  I learned that my actions can have consequences that affect others, especially if someone we love is in trouble. If I had it to do over again, I would possibly make different choices.  So, in answer to your question, no, I don't want Regina to die.  I get that it wasn't intentional on her part." 

YHenry's entire body relaxed with WHenry's answer and he opened the story to where he had interfered, "I'm happy to hear that and, according to your timeline, you have just met Cinderella.  Perhaps you'll do things differently this time." 

WHenry ran his finger over a picture of him and Ella dancing at a ball, "Perhaps, I will," he said with conviction. 

Now that they were on the same page, it was time to work together to makes everything right, YHenry gave him a timid smile, "Will you come with me and help rescue my sister and find my mom? 

"Why don't you just write things back to how they should be?” suggested WHenry. 

YHenry pulled his author's pen from his bag, "My pen went out," he admitted, "I broke the rules, as an author can't write his own happy ending." He shrugged, "I messed up." 

WHenry closed the books, "Let's go find Hope." 

~~~ouat~~~ 

WHook hadn't said much to her since they left the Rumples, but Hope knew he was thinking about what was said.  After being with GRumple in Hyperion Heights and learning of the multiple books and a person's ability to converge or diverge, Hope had looked at people differently.  She wondered about Regina and the WEvil Queen, the Rumples, Zelenas and Henrys, but WHook, not so much.  Yes, he had taken a different path than her father, but that was years ago and that it might be possible for them to converge at this time; not something she had considered.  She couldn't ask him to sacrifice his life for her.  She wouldn't ask him to sacrifice his life for her. 

"WHook," she forced him to look at her, "I can't ask you to do this.  It's crazy. Help me find my brother and Regina and they can take me home." 

A look of pain crossed his face, "Princess, you know I would just chase you, right?" 

Hope studied his eyes, reading every feeling he had in them, realizing that he would just follow, whether he was taking her alone or not. "I know," she whispered around the lump in her throat, "but..." 

"It's alright.  I'm alright with my decision because you are worth it.  I already think of you as the daughter I never had and Hope," his voice dropped, grew more serious, "I don't want your parents to know in advance, okay?"   

Her eyes filled with tears, Hope bowed her head and rested it against his chest, "How can I promise that?" 

"It's my wish, but also," he tilted up her chin, "if it doesn't happen and they want me to leave, then you have to abide by their wishes." 

"That's so not fair," she muttered." 

"Want me to warn them about your engagement?" he threatened. 

"That's definitely not fair." She pushed away, trying to keep her temper under control, wondering if she could come up with a loophole. 

"I just want to do what's right." 

His words rang true but there was such sadness behind them, she was confused, "You sound sad, but what do you want to happen...really?" 

"Well, that's easy," he confided, "I don't want to lose my happy ending." 

She frowned a little, "But if you don't want to lose it, that means you've found it.  What is it?" 

His smile was so tender, it touched something deep inside, "Don't you know, Hope?  It's you." 

Hope walked into his arms, silently sending messages to the fates in charge to grant him his wish because if it wasn't her heart might very well break into pieces. 

~~~ouat~~~ 

KRumple's desire in life been to live his life with his family, helping others when needed.  But when the threat of his happy ending being ripped away by others had knocked at his door, he had done the very thing he promised his wife he wouldn't; took the easy way out.  Ultimately, he had been the one to decide his fate, and by association, the fate of his precious Belle and their daughter.   

But then by some miracle, he had been given a second chance to be the papa to Alice that he longed to be, and once again that was ripped away. That time, it hadn't been anything that he had done or not done, but simply by being in the wrong place at the wrong time.  But now, there was an evil who was targeting him and his family, as well as everyone who resided in the Wish Realm and the Enchanted Forest II, and it was up to him to make the right choices.  The choices of a hero.   

Living in that other land, he had been part of a whole, both light and dark, and together they had fought against a villain who wished to destroy them all.  Their unity had defeated her and her followers and upon returning to his land Belle's presence had greeted him with, "You are a hero, Rumple."  For her, he wanted to get back to being that man. 

KRumple was worried about Alice, but he knew that she was safest with him and the others. She had been unusually quiet since they had left the sacred place, making him wonder how much one child could endure. "Alice, dear, are you feeling well?" 

"I'm fine, Papa.  Will we be there soon?  I'm worried about the others." 

"There's a good girl," he put his arm around her shoulder as they walked, "we’re going to save them, Alice.  Your papa's going to be a hero." 

"Just like mama wanted you to be.  Right, Papa?" 

"That's right, Alice.  Just like Belle wanted."  He just wanted to make them both proud. 

~~~ouat~~~ 

WHook watched the expressions cross Hope's face as she stared up at the statue of Queen Snow White and Prince Charming. "What are you thinking?" he couldn't help but ask. 

She dimpled, "Do you know how the Wish Realm came to be?" 

He hadn't ever thought about it as for him, it was just the place that he lived after he decided not to work with Cora.  He found he didn't really care what she talked about because he just enjoyed listening to her talk. "Tell me." He grinned when her eyes sparkled at the prospect of telling him a story. 

"Well," she began, "the story goes that my mom made a wish that she had never become the savior and then the split Evil Queen wished that my mom's wish would be granted and poof, my mom ended up here in the castle with Queen Snow and Prince Charming.  It was her birthday, you know." 

"Oh, it was, was it?" he teased. "You know, I saw her in the woods when she was here." 

"I know," she laughed, "you're in my mom's book.  I wonder what she's going to think when she sees you now." 

"She'll think I'm devilishly handsome, of course." 

"Of course," she rolled her eyes, "that's exactly what my dad would say." 

"I do that a lot, don't I?" He couldn't help but wonder how much she compared him to her father...and how many times he came out on the losing end of the comparison. 

"What?" She frowned slightly, "say something my dad would say?" 

"Aye." 

A faraway look crossed her face, "Yes, but, while it makes me miss my family, it also makes me feel closer to them." She squinted up at him, a small smile playing across her lips, "does that make any sense?" 

He studied her a few moments, trying to read more into what she was saying. When he couldn't come up with any hidden message, he just nodded that he understood, and she went back to studying the statue. 

"You know," she suddenly broke the silence, "while the curse sucked, for my mom, grandparents, everyone really, it all turned out alright.  My mom had Henry, she met my dad, had me," she grinned, "but because of the curse, the women in my family became who they are." 

"Where are you going with this, Hope?" He interrupted quietly. 

"I believe things happen for a reason..." He nodded his head in agreement. "So why did this happen to me?  What purpose was there to my kidnapping?" 

"Oh, Princess," he hugged her close to his side, "I can't tell you that.  What I can tell you, is your being here saved me."  She leaned her head against his shoulder, and sniffed, causing him to hug her a little tighter, "you're not home yet, Hope.  There might be more out there waiting for you." 

"Think so?" 

Before he could answer, her name was called, surprising them both. 

~~~ouat~~~ 

Hope heard her name and knew it was Henry but when she turned in his direction, she hadn't expected to see two of him.  One Henry looked exactly as he looked in pictures right after she was born and the other was the one she had gotten used to seeing around Hyperion Heights.  Which one was her Henry?  Or where they both her Henry? 

Unsure what to do or say, Hope slowly walked in their direction, her eyes bouncing from the younger Henry to the older one.  When she was a foot away, she could see tears form in the YHenry's eyes and knew he was the one.  With one last step, she was being hugged by her big brother, a man she could remember everything about and yet, he knew nothing about her.   

"I'm so sorry, Hope.  I'm so sorry." He kept chanting over and over, "I really screwed up.  I didn't know that I brought you into the story too." 

Hope took a step backward, "YHenry, you didn't bring me into this story.  The WEvil Queen did." 

"But," he sputtered, "how?  And your age?" 

"I know," she sighed, "I don't get it either.  I'm hoping Rumple can figure out who cast the spell and how to break it." 

"Well, the WEvil Queen took Regina.  We're on our way to rescue her." 

~~~ouat~~~ 

When they arrived at the WEvil Queen's castle, WHook was able to lead them to the dungeon while avoiding the guards.  They found Regina chained to a rock wall, unable to move far in either direction.  "Mom," YHenry ran to her, "are you okay?" 

“She didn’t hurt me. Can you pick the lock on the chains?" 

"I think I can help with that," Hope stepped forward and with a wave of her hand, the locks popped free." 

"Well, look at you," Regina beamed, "you've been practicing." 

"Oh, you're a good teacher," Hope assured her. 

But once freed, Regina didn't immediately grab their hands and run.  YHenry watched her study WHenry's face, until finally she took both of his hands in hers. "I'm so, so sorry about your grandparents, WHenry. I...I just didn't know.  The wrong decision was made.  I should have tried another way to wake Emma." She hung her head, expecting, YHenry was sure, for WHenry to punish her in some fashion. 

"Roni...er...Regina," WHenry stuttered, "I will admit that I'm not 100% sure about what happened, but I got to know you and spend time with you in Hyperion Heights.   I know that killing my grandparents wasn't something you set out to do." 

"Oh WHenry," she cupped his face, "that's probably more generous than I deserve." 

"As touching as this reunion is," WHook cut in, "we need to get out of here before Her Majesty comes back." 

"WHook's right, we should leave." YHenry put his hand on Regina's shoulder, needing to touch her to assure himself she was okay, especially after everything his mistake had put her through. "Mom, are you alright to move?" 

"I'm fine, YHenry." She took his hand allowing him to help her up and with WHook leading the way and WHenry in back, they left the dungeon the same way they had arrived. 

~~~ouat~~~ 

They had only walked a few feet when footsteps from up ahead had Regina leading them into a hidden alcove and through a door.   The minute they stepped through, Hope knew she had been there before, but she wasn't sure when. 

"Hope," Regina asked worriedly, "what is it?" 

"I've been here before," Hope pointed at a picture hanging above them, "That picture is freaky." 

Regina laughed, "It's just Daddy, but I agree, the way his eyes move is a bit disconcerting. When were you here?" 

Hope shrugged, "Sometime after the WEvil Queen brought me to the castle."  A pink light shining from one of the rooms had her walking away from the group, into a bedroom adorned with furniture and decorations meant to entice. "This was for me," she found her blanket draped over the bed, "but why?" 

Regina tucked her arm through Hope's as they made their way back into the hallway, "Loneliness? At least that's what it all boiled down to with me.   When my mother killed Daniel and I married Snow's father, I was lonely, but too...oh, I don't know...stupid, to realize that what I really needed was right in front of me." 

"What?  Love?" guessed Hope. 

Regina inclined her head, "Partly, because I did love my daddy.  But I was talking about a friend.  Your grandmother, Hope." 

"Snow," breathed Hope. 

"Yes, Snow.  She never gave up on me.  Every time I took a step backward all in the name of getting my happy ending, she was there for me.  Supporting me and pushing me never to give up...spouting her," she gave Hope a watery smile, "hope speeches, and eventually I had no choice than to let go of all my anger.  Your grandmother is a better friend than I could ever imagine having.  I just wish I would have let go of my need for revenge sooner.  I would have been much happier." she sighed, the regrets weighing heavy on her mind. 

~~~ouat~~~ 

The WEvil Queen listened to Regina's impassioned defense of Snow White and wondered if it was too late for her.  Had she gone too far to turn back?  She had held on to her hate for so long, she didn't know how to behave differently.  Could she learn, just as Regina had done? 

She materialized in front of the group, "Leaving so soon?" she jeered.  "Weren't you even going to say goodbye?" 

WHook stepped forward, his sword pointed in her direction, "Goodbye, Your Majesty," he mocked, "we'll be going now." 

"Come now, WCaptain," she magicked his sword from his hands, "you know it's not that simple. After all, you joined these," she indicated the group, "hero types just to get your revenge, didn't you?" 

A muscle ticked in his jaw as he clenched his teeth, "These hero types," he glanced at the young girl, "have shown me that there are more important things than revenge." 

"Oh?" She never thought she would see the day when WCaptain Hook would give up his need to kill the Dark One, for a girl. "It was you," she pointed her finger at WHook, "you're the one who freed the girl." How could she have been so stupid to not realize that he and the girl shared blood.   

"Aye. Now are going to allow us to pass?" 

~~~ouat~~~ 

Those fools, the Watcher thought, they have no idea what is in store for them.  A double dose of dark one power, and the most powerful weapon of all, the dagger, is just waiting for me to command them. 

With the dagger at ready and flanked by WRumple on one side and GRumple on the other, the Watcher started forward.  It was time to start the show. 

"Not so fast, WCaptain Hook.  The party's just getting started.  I hope I'm not late."

~fin

#Hope Swan Jones #WHook #Rumpelstiltskin #Henry #WRumple #Regina

[sieben9]

“unforgiven” impressions

{Quick request to anyone reading: I'm watching OUaT for the first time, and I want to avoid spoilers. So, if you want to discuss something spoilery, I'd be grateful if you could start a new post for that. Thank you!}

Today on Once Upon a Time: Really Judgey Trees

Seriously, whatever mystical entity lives in that thing should probably re-examine its decision-making process, because for one, I would assume that everyone has the potential for evil (and the show's own philosophy seems to back me on this one) and also, more importantly, the baby didn't ask you anything you stupid tree.

Also, I'm sure there's a portion of you wondering what my opinion about That Thing near the end of the episode is, and honestly, I'll just let Nick take this one for me.

The only thing I will say on the matter is that a six month jump would have helped here. Not much, but it would have.

Anyway, on to the plot and me shouting at fictional characters under the cut.

OK, before I get into anything else, I have to give an amused nod to Rumple 100% commiting to the "death-death devil-devil evil-evil" look while lurking in a darkened cave over the ashes of a twice-killed dragon-shifter.

you have magic again, my dude, you can afford a coloured tie

Also, yes, deflecting annoyance with humour. Moving on.

As for the alleged main plot... looks like Snowing did a bad.

on a level from 1 to "made my kid's rattle look like the end of my evil sceptre" how extra are you?

Actually, I wouldn't mind someone clarifying if "lost her child" is meant in the literal "misplaced it" sense or the euphemistic, more depressing "that pregnancy did not end well" sense. Like... this is not something that I need to be kept in suspense over.

I'm fairly sure the flashback was meant to set up the background for that, but all I got was "judgey tree" and the fact that there seem to be at least two semi-competent guards in the Enchanted Forest; if I saw Snow and Charming running around with these three, I'd assume some kidnapping or mind-control debacle, which means I absolutely should not let them pass. Good on you, random bridge guards.

doesn't scream "trustworthy," does it?

Also, it's nice to know that potential for good and evil is determined prenatally. And by "nice" I mean "I hate it and am going to ignore it, thanks."

And I call this the "alleged" main plot, because while it sure seemed to be the focus, Snow and Charming sneaking around for unknown reasons and being uncharacteristically shady just... didn't grab my interest. At all. Sorry, guys.

What mainly came out of this plotline is the thing I mentioned earlier--that they hurt Maleficent greatly--and some rather sinister foreshadowing surrounding whatever Snow and Charming did and the way Emma is going to react to it. Going out on a limb here: it has something to do with Snow's and Mal's concurrent pregnancies, so it has to do with Emma; they won't tell her, she'll find out anyway, and shit's going to blow up in a major way.

Just throwing that out there.

Oh, also, Maleficent is alive again.

Which is fine. It's fine. Sometimes you kill off a character and then you realise you'd rather still have them around. I just wish "dead is dead" hadn't been established as such a Major Thing early in the show, because now this will bug me every time it happens.

In the slightly more interesting plot: Regina terrorises nine-year-olds.

"And you didn't shave!"

Look, pal, you know I love you, but maybe tone it down a little. Shouting a child into thinking harder pretty much never works, and I'm almost sure you know that.

Joking aside, I really enjoyed the scene where Regina went to apologise to Geppetto, by the way, in part because it clarifies the arc she seems to be on.

perhaps the true happy endings were the apologies we made along the way?

Put simply, I think an important part of this plotline is just a) Regina becoming the sort of person who would "deserve" a Happy Ending™ anyway or b) demonstrating that she already is. It also contrasts nicely with the scene earlier in the diner, where Cruella brings up Regina's past, so we get a reminder just how much she's changed since those days.

In completely unrelated news, I've been thinking about the concept of redemption a lot lately, and how it overlaps with, but is still different from atonement. It's been a weird weekend.

Anyway, there seems to be an actual lead on the Author now, which I... well, I have mixed feelings on that. Because on the one hand, that plot sounds pretty interesting, but I'm dreading another 4A situation where there's so much going on that it all just becomes impenetrable noise.

And, of course, there's that final scene with Snow, which I adored.

what is it with dramatically-lit conversations in the rain this season?

Less for the actual content of Snow's request, and much more for the spotlight it set on their relationship and, again, how much it has changed over the last... years? Months?

I'm also deeply impressed the acting from Ginnifer Goodwin in that moment where she asks Regina for help, and to keep a secret for her. There's so much going on in those words. She clearly has to psyche herself up to ask for this. She (silently) admits that her own inability to keep quiet caused Regina immense pain (even if it wasn't Snow who did the actual hurting.) And then she asks anyway, because that's where they are at, and because she trusts Regina to help her with this. And a kind of help that will probably be personally difficult for Regina, too.

Not sure what I think about the whole "help me cover up my mistakes" business, but as a character moment, it was great.

Tiny little non-sequitur appreciation for Belle “one wrong move and you’ll hop out as toads” Gold

the face of a woman with not a single ounce of patience left in her body

#ouat #once upon a time #ouat unforgiven #sieben watches ouat #please read this knowing that 80% of my brain was still screaming about infinity war when i watched this #looking back that may not have been the best timing i could have had #ah well #bygones #sieben talks