entrancelogs | [closed] i saw the light, i saw the light

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[closed] i saw the light, i saw the light

Who: Regina Mills, her Mirror & Various (Angelus, Robin Hood, Mr. Gold, Rumplestiltskin's Mirror, Zelena.)
Where: Various places throughout the mansion, real and mirrorside.
When: 17/12 + 18/12
Rating: M for magical violence, also Angelus.
Summary: Regina and her Mirror both have very clear goals.
The Story:

RUMPLESTILTSKIN » Mansion Side » Mirror Regina » 17th
[The swap had been sudden, almost violent. Regina's Mirror had lost track of her Real - something she'd never admit to - as she found her way to the Rabbit Hole and subsequently had been forced from the position she'd been adamantly keeping since the Jabberwocky attacked. She had no interest in trying to do battle with a creature that doesn't match up to the tales from her Wonderland, instead she'd been trying to keep her Real from attempting to recover Angel's heart and soul.

Short of attempting to seal the Rabbit Hole, an endeavor she would fail at anyway, there wasn't much else she can do. Especially when there's so much more she can do on this side of the glass. If her Real wants to risk being swallowed by the Jabberwocky for a fool's errand, so be it. There's any number of people on this side of the glass she could destroy, even make into her puppets, but there's only one person who is actually a threat.

So, naturally he must be destroyed.

She isn't foolish enough to approach him in his room; the Dark Castle had been bad enough, he doesn't need home field advantage here too. Instead, she makes her way to the Checkerboard Hills, not too far from the Scar.]

Rumpleschtiltskin, I summon thee.

[Yes, she botched the name on purpose. Memories.]

MIRROR RUMPLESTILTSKIN » Mirror Side » Regina » 17th
[Crossing voluntarily is rather different from being forced over in her sleep. More than a few people had the same idea, yet she can only assume that they're throwing themselves into the Jabberwocky's jaws instead of trying to find a needle in a haystack. Maybe if she'd fully evolved into Hero Regina, she'd take a crack at that too. Character development only goes so far, though, so instead she's stuck trying to find Angel's heart.

Unfortunately, that leaves the entire Mirror side to search with no idea where to begin. It isn't like she can just search door by door, they're kind of infinite. Still, she needs to try.

The sounds of the Jabberwocky ring in her ears as she searches, doing her best to avoid a grisly fate. The halls are mostly empty; every now and then a door slams or a scream pierces through the air. It isn't until she comes across a familiar face that she stops.]

Rumple?

[The fuck is on your face, good sir.]

ROBIN HOOD » Mirror Side » Regina » 17th
[This side of the glass is absolutely insufferable. The last time she was here, she'd ended up sealing herself and the Once-ler in a tea room until they'd been switched back, and honestly that doesn't sound like a bad idea right now. Instead, she's trying to find her way back to the Rabbit Hole. Searching without any sort of help had failed miserably, so she needs to regroup and maybe break into Angel's room and steal a coat.

Normal hero type things.

She's only been on this side of the glass for a few hours at most, but she's already exhausted. Avoiding the Jabberwocky while searching every possible nook and cranny for a heart takes a lot out of a person, so when she comes across Robin Hood, initially she thinks it's his Mirror. Because really, why would he be throwing himself into danger like this? (Granted, he's more of a hero than she'll ever be but still.) Averting her gaze, she tries to brush past him without initiating contact.

Regina doesn't have time for your shenanigans, "Mirror" Robin.]

ANGELUS » Mansion Side » Regina » 18th
[She'd done it. She'd done it. Regina had found the heart, and a few other select body parts in the Queen's chambers. They couldn't be taken, but the heart could and that's all that matters. A quick trip back through the Rabbit Hole and she was ready to restore Angel to his rightful self. At least, she hopes that's all it takes. It had been enough to displace him, so hopefully it will be enough to fix this and give the victims some piece of mind.

So naturally, when she makes her way to the converted prison cell, he's gone.]

Of course he's not here.

[Talking to herself, nbd.

Spinning on her heel, she storms out of the room. She's already spent one day on a wild goose chase, she doesn't really want to spend a second as well. With every intention of making another locater spell to end this once and for all, Regina begins making her way down the hall with the chest tucked under her arm.

It sure would be a shame if someone tried to steal it.]

ZELENA » We Just Don't Know » It is a Mystery » ???
[There was a starter here. It's gone now.]

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[He smells her coming from what seems like a mile away. Regina, the real one this time, heading towards him with some kind of purpose -- something he can only assume is potentially bad news for him in the long run. Thankfully, he's not afraid of one little witch -- strip away all of the royalty crap and that's all she is, same as Buffy's little friend. Great potential in both of them, but nothing immediately threatening. Not to him.

Unaware of the locator spell, he lets out a whistle as he steps out of the tearoom he'd been lurking in, moving only once her footsteps are close enough that he manages to appear a few feet in front of her, smiling from ear to ear.]

Hello, gorgeous. Knew you wouldn't be able to stay away.

[He hasn't been out of the cage long, after all.]

Miss me?

[The sudden appearance might startle her if she hadn't spent a large chunk of her life dealing with exactly that from Rumplestiltskin. So 4/10 Angelus, try again later. That said, it still puts her on her guard. Magic or not, he's still an incredibly dangerous vampire.]

Hardly.

[They could keep up the witty repartee until they get sick of it.

Or Regina could throw Angelus down the hall with a thrust of her hand.]

Let's cut to the chase, shall we?

[Oh, come on, Regina. It was at least a 6.]

I'm hurt.

[He lays a hand over his heart, or the place where it's supposed to be-- just in time for her to throw him back with a simple gesture, magic propelling him towards the first bend in the hall, where he hits the wall with a sound thud, harder than any human could have handled without incident. They'd at least have walked away from it with broken ribs. He, on the other hand, just gets to his feet, letting out a wheezing chuckle as he shakes his head.]

I do love that spark you've got, Regina. Love the ones who play rough.

[Attempting to talk yourself into a higher grade will result in a demerit.]

Admit it, you just like to hear yourself talk.

[She stalks down the hall towards him, doing the fingers thing from The Heart of the Truest Believer when they storm Pan's camp but Henry is actually Pan because for some reason he stole his great-grandson's clothes? Anyway, she's prepared to break some bones if he makes any sudden movements.]

Let me guess, we're going to do this the hard way?

[Though, is there any other way?]

Takes one to know one, doesn't it? I get the feeling you like the sound of your own voice too, sweetheart.

[She certainly does seem to think she's important. He takes a few steps back-- only a few, eyeing her carefully as she draws closer, fingers a-wagging.

What are you doing, Regina.]

I find the hard way is usually more fun, don't you?

[Bring it.]

[Well, he's not wrong. But at least she actually is important. Mother, queen, ~~hero,~~ villain.]

It has a certain charm, I'll admit.

[And then she twists her wrist, filling the gesture with magic and bringing Angelus' legs out from under him.

By snapping the bones as if they're twigs.]

But I'm sure you find it more fun when you're on the other side.

Have to agree with you there. I'd like to hear it make all kinds of sounds.

[And then his legs go beneath him-- a crippling move that will heal in a matter of minutes, he knows, but the pain is still a splintered kind of stabbing, causing him to grunt loudly as he crumples to the ground. He looks up at her from his heap, propped up on one hand, smiling all the while, as though she'd done nothing at all.]

Baby, I knew that you cared.

[Were she anybody else, her skin might crawl from his tone, his words, his general demeanor. Instead, she gives him a blithe smile as she comes to a stop in front of the heap.]

You really are pathetic, aren't you.

[The word of the day is: Contempt.

Using the Force Choke gesture, Regina lifts Angelus off the ground at the throat, before pinning him to the wall using the wall. Remember that time she made the ground itself hold Jefferson and Robin Hood's feet? Yeah, like that but with cuffs around his wrists.]

I'd ask if you have any final words, but I honestly don't care.

[Another grunt, this one louder and more defiant as he slams against the wall, finding himself pinned there, legs hanging fractured and useless beneath him, though he can feel the bones already beginning to right themselves, to slowly knit themselves back together. It'll be a long while before they're strong again, but they'll be usable soon-- if he's not dust by the end of this.]

And you've got this cold bitch act down almost perfect.

[Almost.]

But your insides are squishy like everyone else's. I don't know what you think you're about to accomplish, sweetheart, but I'm feeling awfully inspired to pop in on that kid of yours once we're done.

[She'd always known that Henry could be in danger from this psychopath, but she hadn't worried because the sheer size of their family in Wonderland meant he would always be safe.

But it appears that Angelus needs a lesson in Things You Just Don't Do.]

Do you really think you're the first person to threaten my son to my face?

[She grips his face with her hand and leans in real close. Angelus, you fucked up so bad.]

I've killed people for less. I've torn out hearts and driven a man to madness because he dared to act against me. If you so much as think about hurting my son, you will wish for death.

[She releases her grip, but to drive her point home she twists her hand once more and snaps his neck.]

[It had to happen eventually, right?

The longer the mirror spent on the real side of things, the sooner or later she'd run into her counterpart's sister. Sure, she didn't have the same undying grudge the real Zelena had, but she did. And despite the fact that she's somewhat over that (hence the not being green thing), she's not going to be attending any family reunions any time soon.

Even without going into the whole mirror situation, she's good, Regina's evil. It's as simple as that.]

Hello, Regina.

[She'd be lying if a part of her wasn't disappointed that Regina's on this side, and not potentially dealing with the Jabberwocky.]

[For a moment, Regina wonders if Zelena had finally been returned home to experience the curse and been welcomed to Storybrooke. She's honestly not sure if that would be good or bad at this point, with how much Zelena knows of her future now; a trip home might be all she needs to figure out a way to stop Wonderland from hiding the memories.]

Zelena.

[How to put this.]

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that you're not green.

Haven't been green in years. Though how you'd know that, I have no idea.

[Unlike her counterpart, she doesn't make it a habit to show up all the time and make a big deal out of everything around her sister. Because for the most part she doesn't...okay, deep down, she probably does care and is probably still having issues with Regina's...everything, but not to the point where she's literally turning green with envy because that's a thing that can happen.]

Congratulations.

[Does she actually mean that? We just don't know. Maybe on some level she does, but it's pointless because this isn't the real Zelena so it doesn't really mean anything that she overcame some of her issues.]

What do you want.

[Even if she's dealt with her issues, Zelena never just... comes to say hi. Threaten, yes. Chit-chat, no.]

What do I want?

[Good question.]

Honestly, what I want is to get back to Oz and help protect it, but for now I'll settle for being on this side of things instead of over there.

[Can't help Oz if she's being eaten by the Jabberwocky now can she?]

[Hold up.

HOLD UP.

HOLD THE FUCK UP.]

You want to protect Oz.

[IT DOESN'T COMPUTE.]

Of course I do. Not called the Good Witch of the West because I willingly abandon it in its time of need.

[Yeah that's uh...said with a completely straight face there.]

If you were expecting anything else, you're going to be incredibly disappointed.

[...admittedly she's just sort of like SEE HOW YOU LIKE BEING DISAPPOINTED BY LIFE REGINA on the inside, but at least she's not making a big deal out of it?]

[Congratulations Mirror Zelena, you've actually managed to render Regina speechless.

For about 15 seconds but it still counts.]

The Good Witch of the West.

[So Regina's Mirror is her at her worst, and Zelena's is hers at her best. For any given value of "best" at least. For the briefest moment, Regina is proud of that, it means she's good.

Of course, that's dashed a few moments later when she remembers that so many mirrors don't fit the true meaning of the term. God damn it Zelena this is all your fault somehow.]

So how did you get over Cora and not Greenie?

It wasn't easy.

[There's a frown and...maybe a glare, because look, she's still mad on some level. And always will be. Which was mentioned before, but this is Zelena, so let's be real here, it's going to come up again and again and again.]

But eventually, I came around to the idea that Glinda was right. I didn't have to be wicked. Or green. Or spend my entire life trying to turn back time and get rid of you.

[She shrugs.]

Besides, it's impossible. No way to do it.

[Yeah, she's...kinda bought into that. If all four of their powers combined couldn't do it, well then, it simply can't be done.]

Good for you.

[The shocking part is that she actually means it. If Zelena -- the real Zelena -- had shown up like this instead of breaking into her castle, stealing her clothes and trying to make it so she'd never been born, maybe they would've gotten along.]

But what exactly does Oz need protecting from? If you're not wicked, I doubt there's an infestation of flying monkeys.

[...that's a good question. Presumably some sort of...external force. Like another Walsh. Or some sort of evil Dorothy. Or alternate universe Zelena with a Star Trek beard and even worse CGI. Who knows?

Not like she's answering since well, her answer is..]

Why do you care what affects Oz? It's not any of your business.

[Yeah, see. She's still definitely Zelena.]

[Maybe There Must Always Be A Wicked Witch and they end up with like, Good Council vs Wicked Council.

Her reaction doesn't surprise Regina in the least.]

Well, I can hardly ask the other Zelena about it.

[She shrugs.]

Call it curiosity.

No, you can't ask her, can you?

[Look, even if she was here Regina wouldn't be able to ask her, but her point's more along the lines of...]

I'm afraid she's far too busy over there seeing if the forces of wickedness are a match for the Jabberwocky.

[They're probably not. To the surprise of no one.

And she still didn't answer that question, nope.]

[Wow you're kind of a huge bitch aren't you, Mirror Zelena.]

She may as well throw a book at it, for all the good it's going to do.

[Not even Regina is dumb enough to think she stands a chance against the Jabberwocky. Either version, really. The tales of their Jabberwocky are enough to deter any attempts at ever taking it down.

That and the fact that it would involve going back to Wonderland and haha fuck that.]

While you're over here, you should consider visiting Rumplestiltskin.

[Just a friendly tip because he'll hate it so much.]

[Well, duh. She's Zelena after all. Unless they diverge from before she went off to see the wizard, but after Cora abandoned her, odds are she's going to be like that.]

Maybe I will. Been a while since I've seen him. In fact, I don't think I have since...

[...oh. That's right.]

Since he chose you.

[Ugh.]

Don't tell me you're going to start in on that, too.

[LOOK JUST BECAUSE SHE'S THE SUPERIOR SISTER DOESN'T MEAN THERE'S ANYTHING WRONG WITH YOU, REALLY....]

You wouldn't want to undo all your progress.

[Not that she actually cares but you know.]

[You know for a second, she genuinely considers starting it again. But, loathe as she is to admit it, Regina's right. She doesn't want to throw all that away. Not right now anyway.]

Hardly. I have no interest in dwelling on his poor decisions. He chose you. Clearly his loss.

[...okay, that doesn't really count as taking the higher road, but she's not turning green again, so that's still a win in her book.]

[On the other side of the Mirror, Zelena is having a heart attack.]

Clearly.

[As dry as the Sahara.]

Run along now, you wouldn't want to waste any time you could be spending rubbing his face in it.

[Fine. She'll teleport away.

But not because you told her to. Because she wanted to.

That's totally it.

Yup.]

[There are far too many Reals on this side who recognize him for Rumplestiltskin to ever be truly comfortable with. He has too much riding on all of this to be concerned whether he's going to be stuck on the Real Side for the duration of this fight and while it would certainly be safer, safe isn't a thing he goes for.

At least Reals are blatantly obvious.] As I live in breathe, the Evil Queen's calling me by a pet name. [It's hard to keep the dryness out of one's tone when you share a realm with your Mirror, Regina. And to make the lip caterpillar situation more ridiculous, he reaches up to scratch it. Just to prove it's really there and this is not a Madoka acid trip hallucination.] It must, indeed, be the end of the world.

[For what it's worth, Regina's current train of thought is very simply: why is this happening to me.]

Cute. Really.

[It's nice to know he's annoying no matter the universe, though. Some things just stay constant.]

So, what? You're the hero to his villain? [She eyes him carefully; he might live in the same realm as her Mirror, but the real Regina knows far more about Rumplestiltskin than she ever will.] Or maybe you're just better at hiding it.

I don't hide, Your Majesty. [He's not going to question the labels, however. He's been called both, occasionally in the same breath. It all depends on who is telling the stories of his exploits today.] I suppose that would be the main difference between us.

Interesting. [A beat.] That you would choose cowardice over the more obvious difference.

[Even without the scales, it's easy to notice the complete lack of dark magic.]

I believe one led directly to the other. [If his Real weren't such a coward, maybe he wouldn't be a vicious Dark Sorcerer...] Remarkable how a single act of cowardice can change a person's life. [He shakes his head.] But you'd know something about how certain turns of events can break a person, wouldn't you, Your Majesty? I think your story starts the same way regardless of which version of you I meet.

[Except for, you know, the fact that he never met Regina AT ALL in his so-called world.]

[Her eyes narrow, as she contemplates ripping out his heart. She can't kill the Real Rumple for the way he's perfected getting under her skin to poke at the nerves underneath, but this one...]

Every story has to start somewhere. It's the ending that matters. [She pauses for a moment, before her lips pull up into a cruel smirk.] Not that Mirrors get an ending.

[She might be a villain who won't get a happy ending but AT LEAST SHE GETS ONE YOU MUSTACHED LOSER.]

[wow is that supposed to be offensive.

because it is. mildly. but he still has a point to make] Honestly, I think the middle's more important than anything. What we do between where we begin and where we end up. Of course that's all a Mirror really gets, so what would I know?

[Gold had a feeling this was going to happen and that's the only reason he comes out to the field. He's prepared inasmuch as one can be prepared for a Mirror of indeterminate power with sketchy backstory as it relates to him.

Also he's offended as hell. REGINA, YOU KNOW HOW TO PRONOUNCE HIS NAME.

So here he is, irked and on the defensive.] That's not how you say it, dearie. [He even brings back just enough of The Voice to get her all nostalgic, since she's the one dredging up the past. He scoffs and flicks a wrist.] But, then again, you knew that, already. I didn't realize you spent all your time on the other side of the Mirror, longing for days past.

What can I say? They were simpler times.

[Where the Dark One is irked and defensive, the Evil Queen is ready for the kill. He's done so much to her and her family that getting to kill him a second time is the greatest gift she could possibly ever receive.]

I must say, I didn't actually expect you to come. Or did you finally realise that trying to stop the Jabberwocky is a fool's errand?

[They both know why she summoned him, after all.]

Oh, I think we both know I don't do anything if there's someone else willing to do it for me. [That's really not going to change, regardless of what a "changed man" he allegedly is. He'll get his hands dirty if he feels he's the only one with the stomach for it, but he won't engage in hero's follies when heroes grow thick on the ground like weeds.]

And, honestly, I'm impressed with your gall.

[Oh yes, he knows why, and what cowardice chokes his soul can't compete with his pride. Whatever Regina's Mirror did to him once upon a time, he can't fathom a world where she succeeds a second time.]

[ This can't be counted as one of the smarter decisions Robin's ever made. Rationally and logically, he knows it's actually quite foolish, particularly as he was encouraged by the Dark One himself. And yet, Robin can't ignore the reality of their situation here in Wonderland, and though he might have nothing valuable to contribute when it comes to magic, he's skilled in other ways.

He can steal from the best of them, and that's his purpose today. He's not naive, he knows this might end badly, but he trusts his instincts, and he'll be careful. And if it means saving others - especially Regina and Henry - he won't hesitate. That's...ultimately why he's here. For them.

Which is why he stops in his tracks when he sees... ]

Regina?

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[closed] i saw the light, i saw the light

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