Villains

Weakness

The corridor was infinite. It was large enough to fit all of them together and the walls were made by the same material as the Temple's first room. It was a rare kind of ebony marble, mixed with ancient stones. It was beautiful, yet slightly creepy. Sure, as a dwarf, he was used to being in the underground, spending his time in the mines surrounded by all sorts of precious stones. Still, he didn't feel at ease in there. He felt a strange heaviness in the air, a tangle sensation on his skin. He kept feeling nervous since they arrived at the island. The place was built in magic. There were charms everywhere. Now, however, it was almost as if he could touch the incantations in the air, taste it in his tongue. There was some sort of heavy magic in the Temple and he knew it was the stone. A small part of him feared their success. If the mission was complete, they would have Regina, the Evil Queen, possessing a tremendous source of power. Or maybe it would be worse and Rumplestistkin would end up with it. The Dark One. Or maybe Maleficent, Ursula or Cruella. None of the options pleased him. Still, Snow believed the queen had changed and perhaps it was true, but it didn't change the fact that the woman was unpredictable and dangerous.

Sighing, he pushed his thoughts away. No one would listen. His feet moved faster than usual, trying to keep up with the others. He was used to doing so by now. He and his dwarf brothers spent their whole life following these royals and they never disappointed him. He liked to believe they weren't about to change that.

The group was silent since their last fight. David picked a torch from the ground and Tinkebell helped him light it up. Now, he guided the group quietly. They were all avoiding the big elephant in the room – the fact Regina and Hook were no longer with them. Nobody had the courage to bring it up, especially after Robin joined them alone wearing a stern expression on his face.

"Is this corridor supposed to be this long?" Grumpy asked eventually, finding the silence intolerable.

Belle, who kept quiet after Hook accused her of many things, glanced at him carefully. "I don't know." She commented.

"So, what is the plan now? We'll just walk though this place randomly and pray to find the stone? What about the queen?" Sneezy, who walked next to Grumpy, asked.

"Yeah, we don't even know if this is the right way." Sleepy added, letting out a small yawn.

"Look, if the stone isn't there, we'll come back." Charming answered, frustrated. "We know it is in here somewhere. Let's take a good look around." He added, impatiently.

"What about Regina and Hook?" Granny questioned in a wary tone.

"They don't need us to babysit them. They can take good care of each other, Regina particularly. Besides, we'll probably meet them anyway. It's a temple, there aren't many places to go." The prince answered in a cold tone.

Snow took a deep breath. She knew something wasn't right. She had a large share of argument with Regina for a lifetime already, but this outburst wasn't common. "Regina wasn't acting like herself." She said.

"Of course she was acting like herself. You trust too easily, my princess. Maybe the queen truly is trying to change, but you must not forget she once was the Evil Queen. The terror she put this realm into. I cannot forget all I lived effortlessly." Grumpy reasoned.

"Trust me, if she still was that woman, I wouldn't be here." Snow insisted.

"The Regina I met all those years ago was a monster. She held no light within and did everything she could to bring misery to those who had happiness. She would choose to destroy what she could not have." David murmured, sighing. "Ever since the curse broke, I see her fighting her destructive impulses every day. Trust me, Grumpy, she is a woman doing her best to change. I just fear her will isn't enough." He added darkly, receiving an angry glance from Robin.