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lilacmoon83 · 5 years

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Finding You Always

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Chapter 195: One Heart

Snow and David appeared at home in their living room and they looked around in confusion.

"Why would he send us here? It's hardly hiding," David said and Snow looked out the window, only to find Regina and Emma there, putting up a shield.

"That's why...they know they can't hide us," she said.

"So we're prisoners now?" he questioned in irritation. She crossed her arms over her chest and looked at him.

"If it means keeping you safe from...from…" Snow said, as she struggled to say the words.

"Snow…" he started to say, as she crumpled into his arms.

"She's going to hurt people…" Snow cried.

"We'll stop her," he promised.

"How? We can't banish my other half. We tried that with the Queen and now she's back!" Snow cried.

"The only way to deal with my other half is to…" but the words died on her lips.

"Don't…" he hissed.

"Don't even think that!" he said in outrage.

"I need you...I can't live without you…" he said, his voice thick with grief just at the possibility of losing her again.

"If she gets to you…" she started to say.

"I'll be fine…" he finished for her.

"Will you? Can you honestly tell me that your other half isn't fighting to get out and go to her right now? Because I know us...we are them. He wants her as much as you want me," Snow said fiercely. He sighed.

"I won't hide...so we hide the chalice," he replied.

"How?" she asked.

"Good question...that's what we need to figure out," Regina said, as she and Emma appeared in the house. They sighed in relief, as the rest of their children and David's father appeared as well. Summer and Bobby ran to their parents and they hugged them fiercely. Snow and David looked up at Regina, knowing that they also had to discuss what Bobby had just done and what it could mean.

~*~

Aphrodite covered her mouth in horror and felt the bile rise in her throat, as they arrived on the smoldering Mount Olympus. They had no warning and never had a chance. She knew for a fact that Athena had been in her Temple and wasn't surprised when she appeared alongside Hermes and herself.

"How could I not foresee this…" she uttered sadly. Aphrodite and Hermes hugged her.

"You couldn't have known...and Seth would have been in your blind spot. He's a Titan," the blonde admonished.

"She's right," Poseidon said gravely, as they saw him beside Zeus' charred Throne. There wasn't much left of him, but the body was clearly that of his youngest brother and Athena's father.

"Father and I rarely saw eye to eye...but I did love him," Athena said.

"Of course you did. Zeus was difficult at best, but not even he deserved this," Hermes agreed. Aphrodite sniffed and felt James' arms around her waist. She turned to him and finally collapsed in his embrace. He hugged her fiercely against his chest and rested his head on hers, as he stroked her back.

"I'm so sorry, my love…" he whispered to her. She pulled back and looked at him with wide eyes.

"I...I need to get you and the children out of Storybrooke," she said in a panicked tone.

"We're not leaving you…" he protested.

"James...I can't protect you and our babies from him! My magic is no match!" she said frantically, as she turned to Hermes.

"I need to take them to another sector...far from here," she said.

"I can speak to Fandral...I'm sure his home realm could provide a safe place," Hermes agreed.

"Hold on...I'm not leaving you here with that monster!" he protested.

"James...you have to. I can't lose you and our children," she cried.

"And I can't lose you...I won't," he replied fiercely, as he kissed her passionately.

"We will face this, but we will do it together," he admonished. She didn't like it, but did not press further at the moment, as they tried to determine the other deceased.

They found a corpse near Zeus and determined that it was Hera. Among the other dead was Ares, Hestia, and Hephaestus. They would have all died instantly, without warning or a chance. Seth had returned for revenge and enacted it with a vengeance. And they knew this was only the beginning for him and none of them knew how they would ever be able to win against the most powerful Titan to ever exist

~*~

Rose came out of the bathroom that evening in a long, red satin nightgown and had forgone her white robe. She saw her husband, standing on the balcony just outside their chambers, brooding as he usually did when he was troubled. She padded out to join him and slipped her arms around his waist, as she rested her head on his back. He turned and swept her into his embrace, as he held her tightly against him. After a few beats she lifted her head and caressed his face.

"Talk to me, my love…" she requested. He looked down shamefully and she cupped his handsome face in her hands.

"I know you have a past...and there is nothing in it that you could tell me that would make me love you less," she promised.

"My love for you only grows, every day and that will never change. My love for you could never fade. It can only become stronger," she added. He sighed and placed a kiss on top of her head.

"You know that woman," she said, making a statement rather than asking it as a question.

"Unfortunately…" he answered, as he took her hand and led her inside. He sat down in a comfortable, oversized chair and pulled her down into his lap. They had spent many evenings in this chair by the fire in their chambers, curled up together, holding each other, kissing and even making love. They had read there together and he had told her many things about his past, but never this story in detail. Not because he had been hiding it, but rather he didn't see the point in such details. She knew he had a past and she knew he had been with other women. He was over fifteen hundred years old, after all. It would have been unreasonable to think otherwise and she never cared to make him dredge up the unpleasantness in his past. Their life was so happy and full of love that she was just fine leaving his past where it lay. But now it seemed that a piece of it had arrived and she would now need to know about it.

"That woman...her name is Amora and she wields a particular kind of magic that is very destructive, not physically, but rather the worst kind of destruction. Emotionally, mentally...even spiritually," he said.

"Amora...she is the Enchantress I read briefly about in one of the books from stories of your realm," Rose recalled. He nodded. Her memory was nothing short of impeccable.

"Yes...she delights in destroying relationships and marriages, so naturally I was not her usual mark," he explained.

"I guess something about me drew her to me though," he added.

"Well...you are strikingly handsome," she mused, as she caressed his face and pecked him on the lips.

"Anyway...I didn't know who she really was obviously and we entered a relationship. I was not in a relationship with anyone else at the time, which is why it was puzzling that I was a target for her at all," he continued.

"And you fell in love," Rose deduced, but he looked at her sharply.

"I thought it was love...it was nothing compared to what we have. Not even close, you must understand that, my angel," he stressed and she gently caressed her hand along the back of his neck in a soothing manner.

"I know...I know that what we have is beyond anything ordinary," she assured.

"When I found out who she really was...I was heartbroken at the time. I asked her why she did this and she claimed that she wanted to add an Asgardian warrior to the notches on her bedpost," he said shamefully.

"I'm so sorry, my love," she cooed.

"Don't be...it taught me a very needed lesson. I realized that I had broken many hearts myself in my frivolous love life. I vowed then and there that I would never take pleasure in the flesh if my heart was not in it," he said, as he caressed her face gently.

"I vowed that if I was lucky enough to find love...real love...that I would cherish it," he continued.

"It was only a few years later that I fell through that portal and found my way to you," he added, as he pressed his forehead against hers.

"And I know how much you love me. Are you really worried that she might use her powers to tempt you away?" she asked. His eyes widened.

"No...never!" he refuted.

"What we have...our love is too powerful for her. You are everything to me, my darling Rose," he promised.

"I never thought for a second that she could lure you away...but you still seem so uneasy. What is it then?" she asked. He sighed.

"Because she does not take rejection well. Those that have rejected her advances in the past...she then goes after the ones that she has been rejected for," he explained.

"Then you fear she will come after me and the children," she surmised.

"If she does...then it is not banishment she will suffer this time," he promised.

"Unfortunately...she is not the only problem it seems," Rose mentioned. He sighed.

"No...our friends are facing an even more dire situation and this Seth...if he can kill Gods, then I fear for us all," he said.

"Oh Fandral…" she fretted, as she rested her head on his chest.

"Don't worry, my angel. I shall protect you and our children to my dying breath," he promised.

"I know you will...but I cannot lose you," she fretted.

"You are my life," she confessed and he caressed her face.

"As you are mine and I promise that I plan to try my best to survive any battle ahead," he said, as he gathered her in his arms like she weighed nothing and stood up, as he carried her to their large bed.

"No more of any of that unpleasantness tonight, my love," he said, as he lay her down on the bed.

"Mmm...I agree," she purred, as she pulled him down with her by his collar. Their lips parted briefly, as he stopped for a moment. He sensed something amiss, but it quickly faded.

"What is it?" Rose asked. He smiled at her.

"Nothing…" he promised, as he joined her in bed and for the moment, all that mattered was them and their love.

Outside their balcony, Amora smirked deviously and once he had sensed her, she wisely disappeared and then reappeared in the garden below their room.

"You may have moved on, Fandral...but I never quite did. Never has anyone affected me the way you did. Your Rose is a lucky woman...I do hope nothing happens to her," the Enchantress said, with a devious smirk, as she disappeared.

~*~

Blue worked late in the office at the convent, doing the books, as this was her role these days. After the debacle with the Black Fairy, she had effectively been stripped of her leadership role and was lucky to even be allowed to keep her wings. Tinkerbell was head of the fairies now and had reduced her role to this. She knew she should be grateful for that even and not in a prison cell. Snow and Charming had taken mercy on her and even returned her wand to her. But without a leadership role, it didn't do her much good and she was watched very closely these days. She would never return to power; they had promised that, but opted not to lock her up. She knew she should feel grateful, but she was bitter. Most of the other fairies shunned her now, which was why she chose to work in the evenings after most had retired for the night.

"I guess being a night owl is more appealing when everyone hates your guts," a voice said, interrupting Blue, as she did some filing. She recognized the voice, but somehow it was different and there was an edge to it that made the hair raise on the back of her neck. She turned to find Snow standing there, but her hair was short again and she was wearing a short, black leather dress and stilettos.

"Snow…" Blue uttered, but then she realized that this was not the Snow she knew.

"You can call me Winter to save confusion," she said nonchalantly.

"You're her dark half…" Blue deduced.

"Yes...the Evil Queen has returned and decided to separate us. I think she somehow thinks Snow and I will destroy each other, but she's going to end up regretting this," Winter responded.

"Because now that I'm unhindered by the other half, who insists on forgiving everyone that's wronged her in favor of giving hope speeches...I'm going to go after everyone that's ever wronged me and my Charming," she hissed, as she glared at the disgraced fairy. Blue swallowed thickly.

"I never wronged you…" she refuted, which made Winter let out a bitter laugh.

"Don't tell me you actually believe that, you deceitful gnat!" Winter growled, as she slowly walked toward her, while Blue backed away.

"Firstly...you tried to sabotage mine and Charming's true love…" she reminded.

"I thought I was doing what was best!" Blue argued.

"Best for you!" she snapped.

"You wanted me to leave the Kingdom after he saved me that day from the Woodcutter. You were scared of the true love sapling that was born between us that day and its power, because you knew we would eventually have far more power than you; power you couldn't control," Winter continued.

"I had a reason to be scared! Look at you...look at all the strife you both have had to endure for love. You may have a powerful true love that few can comprehend, but from where I'm standing, the price of that love is far too high," Blue retorted, which made Winter furious and her hand went around the fairy's neck.

"I should cut out your tongue for that…" she hissed.

"Our love is worth every bit of strife...our children are worth it all, you fluttering nuisance," she growled. Blue glared at her.

"Well...you defied me and decided to fight back that day. You got your Charming," she growled back.

"Oh, but your treachery didn't stop there, did it?" Winter questioned.

"You lied to us about the wardrobe," she raged.

"You know why I did. Gepetto was desperate to save his son. Just as desperate as you and Charming were to save your daughter," Blue countered.

"Emma needed us! She was the only one that could break the curse and save us all, including you," Winter spat.

"I didn't know you'd go into labor early. I thought you'd go through the wardrobe still pregnant," Blue reminded.

"Without Charming, because to hell with our love, right?" she growled.

"You can stop with your melodramatics. Your daughter fared far better than we thought she might. Merlin gave her the book and David ended up outside the curse. She came to us at ten instead of twenty-eight," Blue argued.

"No thanks to you…" Winter snapped.

"I can't believe my good half forgave you!" she raged, as she stepped back momentarily and released her hand from Blue's neck. As expected, the fairy dodged toward her desk and scrambled to get her wand out of her desk. Winter laughed and kicked her away from the desk, easily confiscating the wand for herself.

"You did exactly as I knew you would. Thank you...it saved me the time of tearing this place apart for it," Winter said, as she looked at the wand.

"You see, until Charming separates and we can wield the Chalice together, I need a little magic to help me with my revenge," she added, as she wrinkled her nose at the color.

"Not really my color though," she said, as she shook the wand, willing it to do as she wanted and it turned white in color. Winter smirked.

"Much better," she purred, as she pointed the wand at the first person on her revenge list.

"What...what are you going to do to me? Kill me? Blacken your half heart even further?" Blue taunted.

"My black heart? That's rich, coming from you, but I can assure you that everything I do will be justified. I may be the dark half of Snow White, but you are the light half of the Black Fairy...and your goodness is highly questionable," Winter retorted.

"But to answer your question...no, I'm not going to kill you. That's too good," Winter said, as she waved the wand. They disappeared and reappeared outside the convent in the garden.

"I was going to turn you into a blue flea...but I like animals, so I'd rather not make you their problem," Winter mused and then smirked deviously.

"No...I think you'll make a far better lawn ornament for the birds to land their droppings," she continued. Blue opened her mouth to scream, but she was silenced, as Winter used the wand to turn her to stone. She grinned in satisfaction.

"Much better...no one has to listen your grating voice anymore," she said, as she waved the wand and disappeared. She reappeared out by the Toll bridge and idly walked across it.

"Yes...this place will do perfectly," she mused, as she used the wand to clear enough of the trees away and with another wave, a castle rose into the sky. It wasn't overly large, but it didn't need to be. There was enough room and luxury for her and Charming, as well as their children. She knew they would resist at first, but eventually would come to realize they were their parents as much as their light halves were. The bridge now served as a walkway over the babbling creek into their castle and she went inside.

"Soon my love...you'll join me here and help me make everyone that has wronged us pay…"

He couldn't resist separating forever, for just like Snow and her Charming shared one heart, so did she and her Charming...

~*~

"Well...your vault is definitely out since the Queen is back and I'd say maybe we could put the Chalice in Aphrodite's Temple, but I'm guessing that's no longer an option either," Emma mentioned, as Aphrodite and James appeared in a puff of orange smoke.

"You'd be correct," the Goddess said, as Snow went to hug her.

"Everyone that was on Olympus when that blast hit is dead. So far, it seems that me, Hermes, Poseidon, Athena and a few others have survived," she said.

"I'm so sorry…" Snow told her.

"Thank you...but there is little time to mourn. We have much greater problems," she said gravely.

"Are you talking about what Bobby did?" Snow asked a bit fearfully.

"I'm afraid so," she replied.

"But...he doesn't even know what he did," David argued, as he put his hands on his son's shoulders.

"It doesn't matter...this is uncharted territory and if Seth thinks there is someone that could stand against him...he'll seek to eliminate them," she said. Bobby's eyes widened in fear.

"I'm sorry sweetheart...I don't mean to scare you, but I also need you to know how serious this is," she added.

"I have a feeling you have hidden powers that we have only begun to realize," she continued.

"Does that mean that I might have to fight him?" Bobby asked.

"Oh that's not happening," David refuted.

"Absolutely not," Snow agreed.

"He's just a little boy...we can't put this on his shoulders," Snow refuted.

"I'm with Mom...if this falls to anyone, it's me. I'm the Savior," Emma added.

"You're also pregnant and your mother and I are done relying on you to fight these battles Emma," David argued, as he looked at the Goddess.

"We have the Chalice...we'll face him," he said bravely.

"That would be preferable and though you are both more powerful than any of my charges...we're talking about a being that not even Zeus could defeat," she reminded.

"Zeus didn't have true love's magic," Snow reminded in return.

"We still need to assess the lengths of Bobby's powers," Regina said, as Snow and David looked at her incredulously.

"I'm just saying that if he really has some hidden power, there are ways to release it and it would protect him. I think we all know that Seth doesn't care if he's just a child," she continued.

"She's right…" Leo realized.

"And it's not like he'll be alone. We all have magic and we all helped take down Gothel. It might come down to that again," Emma agreed.

"I want to know about my powers," Bobby said, as he looked up at his parents.

"The mountainous region to the east, just beyond Bald Mountain is isolated and abandoned enough that it would be a good practice ground to test his powers," Hermes offered.

"I don't like this," Snow fretted.

"Me either," David agreed.

"Mom...Dad...I want to do this. It's okay. Emma was the Savior that broke the curse. Maybe I'm the Savior for this," Bobby told them and they knelt down before them.

"Sweetheart...your father and I do not want you burdened by such a weight on your shoulders," Snow said.

"Your mother is right...we never wanted Emma burdened with it either," David told him.

"I know...but it's okay. I know I'm still a kid, but all my siblings have a pretty clear path. Emmy is the Savior and the Sheriff of Storybrooke now. Leo has animals. Eva is a healer. Summer has her dancing. And then there's me. I want to learn more about my magic. I want to be a Knight...like you Dad," Bobby told them and David took a deep breath at that.

"If I have hidden powers...I wanna know," he added and Snow recalled the last time she was in a sleeping curse. She had taken that curse voluntarily to escape Jekyll and buy her husband time. And instead of the red room, she had spent her time during the curse in Morpheus' Temple, with her youngest grown son, who had only been a baby at the time. She had never received any good explanation at how that was even possible and now she was wondering if it was connected. Were Bobby's powers far beyond just that of wielding the element of earth? Had he used his hidden magic, even as a baby, to come to her while she was in the nether realm? Was Bobby meant to stand on the front lines against the strongest evil they had yet to face?

"If that's what you really want, sweetheart. I think I hate it...but I love you so much that I won't deny you what you want," Snow said softly.

"Me either buddy...but you have to know what's required here. You'll be training almost non stop with Regina, Aphrodite and probably Rumple in magic," David warned. He nodded.

"And when you're not learning your magic, you'll be with me or Fandral to learn the skills you need to become a warrior," he added.

"I'm ready Dad," he promised, as his terrified parents hugged him between them.

"Then you better get a good sleep, because we start bright and early in the morning," Regina said, as she disappeared in a puff of violet smoke. James and Aphrodite left next to return to their mansion in Storybrooke, while Leo returned to Arendelle and Eva to her home at the loft with Paul. Emma and Killian retired to their room in their apartment-like quarters in the finished basement, while Snow and David saw their youngest children off to bed, before retiring themselves. The United Realms was supposed to have been a new beginning, but it would seem that it had also brought some very new problems.

~*~

David gently put his hands on her shoulders, as she twirled her ring and stared out the window of their bedroom.

"I'm so sorry, my love," he offered, as he pressed a kiss to her hair.

"This was not how this evening was supposed to go," he mentioned. She turned to him and sought comfort in his arms, as he cradled her head against his chest.

"Is she calling to you? To your darkness?" Snow asked.

"My focus is here...on you," he promised, as he kissed her tenderly.

"I just can't believe any of this is happening," she said, as she relished the warmth and strength of his body against hers.

"I know...I wish I could make it all go away. I wish we were still dancing the night away at our anniversary party, without a care in the world," he agreed. She smirked.

"But that's just not how our lives usually go," she joked.

"I guess not…" he said.

"I have never been a revenge driven person…" she mentioned.

"I know…" he said.

"But it's always been there. I bury it well, but it's there. The resentment, the anger, the urge to punish those that have hurt us or tried to keep us apart," she admitted.

"Snow…" he started to admonish.

"No Charming...I need to acknowledge this part of me, because now she is free and she is going to do some things that I will be very uncomfortable with," she continued. He sighed.

"Okay...I'll be honest too then. There is part of me that would feel great satisfaction if a few people that wronged you were made to pay for hurting you. Hell...there's a part of me that wants to deliver that justice for you and as much as I hate to admit it, it is stirring inside me like it never has before," he admitted.

"Your dark side...it wants free to be with mine," she reiterated. But he shook his head.

"I won't let him out...we can't go there," he promised. She sighed.

"As much as I wish that were true...I think we both know that it's only a matter of time before she finds a way. I know her, Charming...I know what I will do to be with you so I know what she will do to have you too," she reminded.

"You know it's not in me to leave...you can't ask me to leave," he stated. She nodded.

"I know...I was just so scared earlier. You know me...my first instinct is to run," she mused.

"Even after all these years...it's a hard habit to break. But just like it did not stop the Queen's evil back then...it won't stop it now. I know that running isn't the answer," she stressed.

"But I certainly did not think it was having our youngest baby stand on the front lines with us," she added. He sighed.

"I know...I hate it as much as you," he promised.

"But you and I will be there with the Chalice and fight right beside him," he added.

"Charming...this is a Titan we're talking about. Someone who is not just a little more powerful than Zeus was...but infinitely more powerful," she reminded.

"Zeus didn't have true love's magic on his side and as much as we don't like it, maybe that is the reason our children have magic. As much as we don't like it sometimes...I think we both know that this is destiny," he stated.

"You really think true love can defeat even him?" she asked. He smiled.

"I know it can...and it will. We will...together, as we always have," he promised. She knew it wouldn't be that easy, but she had faith in their love. It had been momentarily shaken, but she knew that there was truly nothing that they could not overcome and though the road ahead of them was likely very rocky, she knew that love would win. She melted into his kiss and he swept her into his arms. She smiled at him.

"It's late…" she reminded.

"I know...but it is still our anniversary and I intend to make love to my beautiful wife of forty years…" he responded. She smiled and bit her bottom lip at that. Even if it was just for a few hours, she would relish becoming lost in him and their love...

~*~

His subordinates wisely stayed out of his way, as he stomped around the courtyard of his dreary palace. They rarely saw him anything other than calm and composed so it was very unnerving as he was practically losing his mind over a child.

"This cannot be...no one rivals my power…" he growled.

"Sire...I doubt this brat could ever do that. He'll just be another in a long line of foes that you have vanquished," Mim boasted, but he glared murderously at her.

"You don't understand!" he snapped.

"That brat should not have been able to nullify my sonic spell...I once paralyzed Zeus with it. I would have killed them all years ago had it not been for some clever trickery on his part," Seth raged.

"He's just a boy...he can't be that large of a threat," the Queen refuted, but he glowered at her too.

"A boy that you are protecting!" he lashed out.

"He's my grandson!" she argued.

"No...he is the son of your enemies!" he argued in return.

"I don't understand...he's just a boy! He wields the element of earth and that should hardly be a threat to you," The Queen admonished.

"You are for the brat...I knew you weren't really one of us," Mim accused.

"Keep talking and you won't need to worry about being banished again, you old hag," the Queen warned.

"Enough!" Seth bellowed.

"It is not just his elemental powers that concern me, though I don't think you quite understand how powerful the element of earth truly is," he continued.

"Then enlighten us, my Lord," the Queen requested.

"To control fire or thunder is an explosive, with obvious strength and power," he lectured.

"Wind and water are often a more subtle force and wildly underestimated, for sometimes, they can be far more destructive than the obvious powerhouses of fire and thunder," he continued.

"And then there is Earth. It is more than moving rocks and shaking the ground beneath one. It involves the incredible ability to connect one's soul to the earth and move it at will. It is not normal magic that allowed him to do this. That's why he has no idea what he did!" Seth explained.

"Then what was it, My Lord?" Mephisto inquired.

"An ultra instinct...a hidden power that could have catastrophic repercussions for us all. The boy must die…" he announced. The Queen frowned and felt a spark of fear ripple through her.

"I don't understand...what is this instinct? And we cannot be sure that Bobby really has hidden power. He is the product of true love…" the Queen said, but he cut her off.

"The product of the truest loves and this ultra instinct connects him to his earthly element, which in turn will allow him to wield not just unprecedented magic, but all the elements," Seth informed. That shocked the Queen to her core as well.

"That will make his parents quite desperate to protect him," Mephisto mentioned.

"Indeed...he will not be easy to eliminate, so I expect you to exploit that angle if possible," Seth ordered and the other being nodded.

"And you…" he said, as he turned to the Queen.

"Whatever affection you have for this child had better not cloud your judgement. He must be eliminated before he comes into his full power," Seth warned. She swallowed thickly and nodded.

"I understand...you'll get no interference from me," the Queen lied, as the lot of them dispersed. The Queen walked away and Mim called to her.

"Where do you think you're going?" Mim questioned. The Queen seethed at the other woman's intrusive inquiry. She definitely needed this one eliminated so she wouldn't be able to whisper in Seth's ear. She couldn't do it herself, lest she wished to incur the Titan's wrath, but she knew someone that would be willing to do so for her.

"I just unleashed my nemesis' darker half on this town and I suspect dear, sweet Snow is a mess over it. I want to bask in her torment, of course. Plus, I need to keep tabs on her dark side as well," the Queen said, simply, as she disappeared and reappeared inside Rose and Fandral's library. It was the middle of the night and the two guards on duty fell asleep at the wave of her hand.

In her time learning magic, she recalled seeing many books in Greek in the Dark One's library. And she recalled, upon using her magic to translate the title, one called Ultra Instinct. She had never paid it any mind, but now she needed to know what this was all about. She was almost positive that he wasn't telling her everything and educating herself on this might be the only way to save Bobby.

~*~

The last thing David remembered before falling asleep was Snow spooned against him, both of them bare and sated from some very passionate lovemaking. He held her warm body against his own, but when he suddenly felt the absence of her warmth, it startled him awake.

"Snow?" he called, as he opened his eyes and found himself in their bed, but not in their bedroom. Instead, the bed was in the a Temple that looked like Aphrodite's, the same surroundings that he and Snow had found themselves in the first time they met her. He got up and then quickly realized that he was still naked. He started to grab the sheet to put around his waist when he heard a voice.

"Mmm...no need to cover up. I'm very much enjoying the view," Winter purred. He turned to find her standing there, scantily clad in a glittering white negligee that left little to the imagination.

"Hello my love…" Winter purred.

"You're...I'm not your love. You're not Snow," he refuted with a quiver in his voice. She sighed.

"I am...and you know I am or you wouldn't be so hot and bothered by the sight of me right now," she mused, with a smirk, as she was enjoying his obvious reaction to her state of dress or rather lack thereof. He sighed in frustration and grabbed the sheet, before wrapping it around his waist.

"I know all the right moves with you, my Charming…" she said.

"Doesn't matter...I know what you want and you're not getting it," he refuted.

"Well, if I don't get my way with you...then that would be a first," Winter teased. He sighed.

"Okay fine...you want to play that way, then we will," he said, as he faced her.

"You're right...you are my wife and you're the part of her that wants revenge for all the terrible things that have been done to her and no one understands that better than me," he stated.

"I know...I know that part of you wants to make them all pay for me," she purred, as she caressed his handsome face and pressed herself flush against him.

"But it won't make you feel better. You think it will...but it will only leave you feeling empty," he argued.

"I would usually agree with that, except I'd never feel empty with you by my side. We deserve justice against those that have wronged us," she argued in return.

"Justice yes...but that's not the same as revenge. We get justice every day just by being together and so in love that no one that has wronged us can even comprehend it," he continued.

"That's what we've been telling ourselves all these years. Meanwhile, evil has never let up on trying to tear us apart. It's time we strike back against those that have meant us harm," she implored, as she took his hands in her own and then caressed her face.

"I know that there is part of you that agrees with me and that is warring inside you to get out. You need not fear your darker half. He means you no harm, just like I mean no harm to Snow," she added.

"But you mean harm to others," he refuted.

"Only to those that deserve it," she retorted.

"It's a slippery slope. When you're done serving up your own brand of justice...you'll look for other injustices to right and by then, the lines will be too blurry and our heart would too blackened. What is wrong would become right and there would be no returning from that," he warned.

"Our love would anchor us...I know it would," she disagreed.

"We deserve this…" she urged.

"Maybe...but that doesn't mean we should do it," he argued.

"Mmm...I've always admired your sense of righteousness," she mused, as she caressed his face and drew him into a kiss. He kissed back and his hands found their way to her waist, as she kissed him with wanton passion and almost aggressively. It was exciting and like always, she was like a drug to him. He was an addict that couldn't get enough and she was his drug of choice. He felt his darkness stirring in him in response and his eyes widened, as he quickly pulled away.

"No…" he refused, as he backed away. But she remained unfazed by his denial. She knew it was only a matter of time until she lured his darkness out, especially now since he had tasted her own darkness himself, even as he disappeared back to the physical plain.

"Soon my love…" she murmured.

~*~

Paul awoke in the middle of the night and glanced at the clock. It read three-thirty in the morning and he found Eva's side of the bed empty. It wasn't entirely unusual. Sometimes his wife experienced insomnia, especially in times of great strife. It was because she felt things so deeply that often led to this. He got up and padded out of their bedroom and down the loft stairs. Sure enough, he found her curled up on the couch with her phone, listening to something and as he got closer, he realized it was one of those intrusive podcasts that had popped up in the last five years since the events in Seattle. Five years to the outside world of course and only weeks for them.

"And if you're just joining us, we're discussing the events of that day in Seattle. Who were they and was that really magic that we all saw? Many theorists have suggested they are not of this world, whether that means from space like extraterrestrials or another dimension, which actually seems much more likely. Many theorists are more interested in the why than who though. Why were they here and with that kind of power...should we fear them? Then there is the where. They disappeared five years ago without a trace and yet it is thought to be naive to think that the danger is over. Of course, the who is the question everyone keeps returning to and if you follow this podcast, then you know the theory I aspire to. I believe they are exactly who the tabloids claimed they are just weeks before that day. Snow White and Prince Charming. That's right. Fairy tales, people. Some say that's crazy. But is it any crazier than aliens or lizard people? Any crazier than those that believe the earth is flat or that we never went to the moon? I don't think so and neither should you. And before you say that the tabloids are hardly credible sources, I have it on good authority that some of their information came from the dark web. It turns out that this theory has been out there for a while, people. There is talk on the dark web that there is a place on this planet where these people...these fairy tale characters live. It's hidden by magic and it's hidden in Maine. That's right people...a town in Maine. So if you seek the truth like I do...then you'll join me next week for a live broadcast in Maine. That's right...from a little town in Maine called Misty Falls. Rumor has it that strange things happen in the woods around this extremely small town and word has it that the land of fairy tales is hidden near here. So join me and seek the truth…"

Eva looked up and saw her husband standing there. She looked at him sheepishly and turned the app off.

"Hi…" she said. He smiled at her.

"Hi...what are you doing?" he asked. She shrugged.

"Couldn't sleep...so I decided to freak myself out more and listen to the crazies on the Internet," she replied. He sighed.

"Eva…" he started to say.

"Except they're not so crazy. Misty Falls is only seven miles from here! It's the town that Dad and Emma arrived in on the bus from Boston all those years ago, before they found their way to Storybrooke," she reminded.

"I know...but they're not going to find us," he promised.

"Stranger things have happened, Paul," she argued and he couldn't refute that argument.

"This Seth...what if he decides to destroy the barrier? I mean, he doesn't seem like the type that will stop at just ruling the United Realms. There's a whole world out there for him to conquer," she surmised. Damn...he hated that she was right.

"Maybe not...but whatever happens, we'll deal with it. But you will drive yourself crazy if you keep listening to those conspiracy nuts on the Internet," he chided. She huffed.

"I know...but seriously, once you start listening, it's hard to turn away. Like car wreck," she complained. He chuckled and took her hand, as he pulled her up.

"Be that as it may...you need to get some sleep," he said. She agreed and allowed him to lead her back upstairs to their bedroom. She knew he was right and they literally had to be ready for anything, for they had no idea what the next day would bring. With all that was facing them, it could literally be anything...

#Snowing #SnowxCharming #Charming family #OC Charmings #AU #The United Realms #Rose Red #Fandral the Dashing #Dashing Rose #original season 8 storyline #Dark Snow #Dark Snowing #The Evil Queen #romance #adventure #family #Finding You Always #the epic continues

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