𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐒𝐄𝐃 ★ 𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐮𝐩𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 ⁵

•Chapter 13: Regret?•

As we sat in Granny's to try and figure out how to help Emma, I was watching Killian looking out the window at her when he turned back to Merlin and sulked over.

"So you can really do it?" David questioned, "take the Dark One dagger and put it together with Arthur's sword to recreate the original Excalibur?"

"I hope so," Merlin responded.

"And we can use it to save Emma?" Mary Margaret asked.

"Perhaps, but I need two things," Merlin answered, "the magical means to unite the two blades, that's mine and Emma's quest. From you, I need-"

"The two blades," Regina realized.

"We're pretty much at the open-warfare stage," Robin stated, "getting the partial sword from Arthur won't be easy."

"As long as you're looking at the future," Killian said, "any hints on how?"

"Well, the future isn't exact," Merlin told him, "there are many parts-"

"Of course there are!" Killian interrupted, "you're willing to send us behind enemy lines, but when it comes to specifics, everything's a little fuzzy, isn't it?!"

"Killian," I said, "Merlin's just trying to help."

"Is he?!" he shouted, "she's sitting out there right now, making things to pull memories out of people's heads because that's what she does now instead of sleeping! I'm not quite seeing the helping!"

"I understand," Merlin calmly responded, "I know what it is to lose someone you love to the Dark One. All I can ask, of all of you, is that you bring me that sword...and that you have patience with Emma. Her kind of power, for good or evil, it is a weight on the soul. And love is a great help, if you can find it."

And, with that, Merlin left Granny's to talk to Emma about her journey while the rest of us sat in silence at the tables around us. Eventually, I got up and walked out the back door, not being able to stand the silence anymore, before I found a patch of grass and lay down to look at the clouds in the sky. A few minutes past when someone sat down next to me and I looked to see Robin.

"Hey," he greeted, "how are you feeling?"

"Fine," I responded, "other than the fact that we have to steal I sword from a crazy king."

"That's not what I meant."

"Then what do you mean?" I asked as I gave him a confused look.

"Roland told me what happened the other night."

"What happened the other night?"

"The Harry situation."

"Yeah. He left Camelot the second he saw us."

"That's not what Roland told me," Robin stated.

"What did Roland tell you?" I asked.

"That you saved him by hurting Harry. But I assumed you did more than that after you sent him to me."

I was silent as I thought about that night, not really able to pull out any details.

"Do you remember that night?" Robin asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"Not...not really," I answered.

"Maybe you should talk to your friends because what Roland told me isn't matching up to your story and Roland doesn't lie."

"Are you calling me a liar?"

"All I'm saying is you might not know the whole truth. People will do anything to keep things the way they are."

He then got up and walked back into the diner just as Sam and Katherine were walking out.

"You okay?" Sam asked, "you look more confused than usual."

"Yeah," I answered, "I just have a question."

"What is it?" Katherine said.

"What happened the night Harry left?"

"We already told you," Katherine answered, "he ran."

"That's not what Robin told me."

"What did he tell you?" Sam asked.

"That I...I killed him."

When they sat in silence, unable to make eye contact with me, I knew that Robin was right and began to feel anger rise within me.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked.

"We didn't want anything to change," Sam explained, "we thought that if you knew that you wouldn't act the same."

"We thought we were doing what was best for you," Katherine added.

"What was best for me?!" I yelled as I got to my feet, "what would have been best for me would have been to know the truth!"

"Everly," Katherine said, "you need to calm down."

"I am calm!"

"Have you looked at your eyes," Sam replied, "you're anything but calm."

At his statement, confusion quickly replaced the anger before I looked down into a small puddle to see my eyes turning black. Fear began to rise within me before I turned back to them to see Sam with my heart in his hand.

"You need to calm down," he stated, and I did.

As soon as all negative emotions vanished within me at his command, I just stood there with a look of betrayal on my face.

"You could have trusted me," I whispered, "you didn't have to take my heart."

"You told us to," Sam responded, "to keep us all safe."

"Do you want to remember what happened?" Katherine asked, "we can let you remember. It's completely up to you."

I was silent before I looked back down to my reflection in the puddle to see my eyes were back to normal.

"I need to remember," I answered, "I need to know I did the right thing."

I watched as the two exchanged looks before Sam whispered something into my heart and I remembered everything from that night as tears formed in my eyes before I looked to the ground.

"What's wrong?" Katherine asked.

"I was hoping Roland got the story wrong," I answered.

"Do you regret what you did?" Sam questioned.

"That's the part that scares me the most," I admit as I look up to them with no emotion, "I don't regret a thing."