CHAPTER FOURTEEN; THE SNOW QUEEN, PT. 2

➳

TERESA SAT NEXT TO ELSA in the station, looking at a book of Arendelle, learning about her family's kingdom, while Elsa searched for more information on Anna with the help of Emma.

Emma walked over and placed a book down in-between them. "Belle found something in here...a spell. It may be able to work against the Snow Queen."

Teresa's eyes widened. "You don't mean kill her?!"

Emma quickly shook her head. "No. No one's killing anyone. It's just to neutralize her powers. Maybe."

"Maybe?!" Teresa exclaimed. "Listen, I just got my mom back so I'm not letting you, or anybody for that matter, kill her."

Emma placed her hand on the young blondes shoulder. "No one will kill her Teresa, you have my word." Teresa stared at her for a moment before nodding and releasing a breath.

"Can you read this?" Elsa asked, stroking the page of the book she was reading.

"Elvish? No, I didn't even see Lord of The Rings," Emma replied.

"Lord of the what?" Teresa asked, both her and Elsa utterly confused by her response.

"It's a — Never mind. Belle translated it. It tells us how to enact the spell." She handed Elsa a piece of paper with Belle's handwriting.

"With both hands, hold the candle and then use your magic to light it. And then when you blow on it..."

"Then bam, she's right back to selling ice cream. My guess is business will be down."

"Maybe without her powers we can talk to her. We can find Anna. We can get some real answers," Elsa said.

"Does your sister have magic?" Teresa asked.

"No, and I think that's why your mother is so interested in Emma," Elsa replied, standing from her chair.  "Does anyone in your family have magic?"

"No," Emma answered.

"It's hard when they look at you differently, isn't it?" Elsa asked.

Emma shrugged. "They don't."

"You're lucky," Elsa smiled sadly. "Okay. Should we try this?"

Emma waved her hand, lighting the candle. She then blew on the flickering candlelight as Elsa held her wrists out. The spell failed; Emma sighed.

"I'm sorry. Should we try again?" Elsa asked.

"Later. I have to meet Mary Margaret. I'm supposed to babysit tonight," Emma replied, placing the candle on the table.

"Life goes on," Elsa said.

"We'll find her," Teresa reassured Elsa, gently taking her hand.

Elsa smiled, squeezing her hand. Emma looked hesitant about leaving. "It's okay. Go. We'll be here."

➳

"If you don't mind me asking, what's Anna like?"

Elsa smiled and glanced up from the book to look at the cousin she was quite excited she had found. "You'll love her. She's so kind, funny, caring...and she's always full of positive energy. She'll be excited to know we have a cousin."

Teresa smiled. "Do you think when this is all over you can maybe help me control my magic? I mean, I'd ask my mom, but who knows if she'll have her magic after all of this is over. Plus, it'll give us time to get to know each other."

Elsa grinned. "That would be lovely. I'd be happy to teach you, though I must admit, I'm still getting used to controlling them myself."

"Thanks, Elsa."

All of a sudden, the two cousins could hear the door burst open and footsteps. They jumped from their seats, watching as Emma ran into the room, slightly out of breath.

Teresa's eyes widened when she seen the look on her face. "What's wrong?"

"David called me, your mom's at the clock tower. She's up to something," Emma replied.

Without a word uttered, Teresa ran from the station toward the clock tower she seen the other day. She could hear footsteps behind her, but that didn't stop her. Teresa bolted through the doors of the clock tower, only to realize she had no idea how to reach the top. Emma and Elsa ran in and Emma led them straight to the elevator.

Pressing the button, the iron gate closed and they were brought to the top.

"What the hell is this thing?" Teresa asked, gripping Emma's arm so she wouldn't fall as the elevator jolted for just a moment.

"It's called an elevator," Emma replied. "It's quicker than stairs."

The elevator stopped and they finally reached the tower. Teresa ran out first, climbing the stairs as fast as she could. There, she spotted her mother standing before a mirror.

Ingrid turned around and smiled at her daughter. "Teresa."

"Mom, what are you — "

"Emma, now!" Elsa shouted.

Emma held up the candle and quickly lit it with her magic. She then blew, causing the magical yellow flame to the wrap around Ingrid's wrists. The magic glowed around Ingrid's wrists before forming into shackles.

Ingrid stared at them in shock, moving her fingers to try and use her magic. It didn't work, her powers had been neutralized.

"You did it!" Elsa grinned and threw her arms around Emma.

Emma hugged back. "Yeah. I guess I did."

"You got me," Ingrid said, shocked, though silently proud of Emma. She then glanced at her daughter. "Teresa, how could you let them do this to me?"

"This is the way it has to be, mom, I'm sorry," Teresa replied.

➳

Teresa stood in the questioning room with Emma and Elsa. Ingrid was still shackled as she sat in front of them, her eyes on her daughter.

"All right, Queenie, time to talk," Emma demanded. Ingrid remained silent, though she did smile at the fiery blonde that was the Savior.

"Mom, where is Anna?" Teresa asked, voice soft. She wanted her mother to know nothing was going to happen to her.

"She's alive. We know it. We heard her heartbeat," Elsa was quick to add.

"You heard her heartbeat?" Ingrid questioned.

"From Bo Peep's Crook."

"Sounds like someone's grasping at straws about their long-lost sister."

"What happened to her?"

"I'm not sure you should care. I told you...she's the one who put you in that urn. I have no idea why you'd want to find someone like that," Ingrid replied. She was purposely trying to get Elsa to leave the room by getting under skin, though no one could see it.

Teresa furrowed her eyebrows, wondering why Elsa didn't mention this. Then she wondered why, according to Elsa, such a sweet person would ever lock Elsa in an urn.

"Because she is my sister and she would never do what you say."

"Or she's your sister and she couldn't handle what you...what we...are, and she did exactly as I say."

Elsa's nostrils flared and her fists were clenched. "No!"

"Elsa. Please. Take it easy," Emma said, speaking in a calm voice. "She's getting under your skin. Don't let your emotions cloud your judgment. If we want answers, we have to be calm."

Elsa whipped her head towards Emma to meet her gaze. "She knows what happened to Anna."

"And we're gonna figure it all out. You go help David and Hook try to figure out how to take apart her mirror. I got this," Emma said.

"Emma..."

"I got it," Emma reassured her.

With so much hesiatance in her eyes, Elsa stared at Ingrid for the longest moment before meeting Emma's gaze again. She nodded, then turned and left the questioning room.

Emma turned to Teresa next, and before Emma got a chance to speak, Teresa cut her off with a glare. "I'm not leaving, so don't even try."

Emma nodded. "Noted."

Ingrid smiled at her daughter, a picture forming in her mind of only one person in her life who could give off such a glare. That person being her twin, Freya. Sadness filled her eyes at the mere thought of Freya, but she quickly pushed that away before Emma, or Teresa for that matter, could see her saddened eyes. She had to remain strong for her plain.

"Okay," Emma said, hauling herself down in the chair infront of Ingrid. "Now it's just us."

"Good," Ingrid smiled. "You're the ones I wanted to talk to anyway."

"Yeah, yeah. We know. You want us to turn to the dark side and be your...sister-buddy-something or other. Well, we're not interested."

"I'm so proud of you, Emma," Ingrid said, causing annoyance to fill said blondes eyes.

"No, that's not gonna work. I know that we have a past, which we're gonna get into. But you're not gonna push my buttons."

"I'm being completely sincere. Use your super power...you'll see I'm telling the truth."

Emma stared at her in shock. "How do you know about that?"

"You told me. When you were a child. What a lovely child you were. I am so grateful I got to know you then."

Teresa felt the bubble of jealously return to her stomach. She pushed it down, not wanting to explode in front of them.

"Don't talk to me like we're friends."

"We're not friends, Emma. We're family," Ingrid stated.

Emma scoffed and glanced behind her at the clearly angered Teresa. "You would say that in front of the very daughter you abanonded?"

Ingrid's gaze locked on her daughter's, who's eyes showed the hurt she felt. Ingrid felt bad, giving her a guilty look. She went to speak, but Emma cut her off.

"I know that's what you want, but whatever past we had...the past you stole from me... I know enough to tell you about the future. And what you want? It ain't gonna happen, sister."

So very stubborn, Ingrid thought, staring into Emma's eyes. "Oh, but it will. You see, at the end of the day, you'll understand that everything that I've been saying is true. And then you'll do the last thing in the world you'd think possible right now."

Emma stared at her in amusement. "Yeah? What's that?"

"You're going to let me go. Now, then...what would you like to talk about?" Ingrid asked, sitting up straight and fixing the sleeves of her beautiful white dress.

➳

Regina sat in the library with her feet up on one of the tables as she read her son's storybook. It was then that Henry walked in, clad in a nice suit, with a smile on his face.

"Hey, mom. Could you help me with this?" he asked, gesturing to his suit tie that hung loosely around his neck like a scarf.

Regina smiled and closed the book. "Well, look at you all dressed up. What's the occasion?"

"Didn't you hear? Teresa and I are getting married." Regina's eyes widened in shock, causing Henry to laugh. "Work, mom. With grandpa. At the shop. He said if I was gonna learn the family business, I'd have to represent the family business. Which would be fine if it didn't also mean wearing a tie."

Regina walked and began fixing his tie. "Well, I think you look very handsome."

"So, what happened?" Henry asked.

Regina's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"You were tearing through the book with your scary face on. Did something happen with Robin Hood?"

"No. I'm just...I'm moving on. Whatever he and I had, it's over. I just need to let it go."

Henry offered a tiny smile, comforting smile. "I'm sorry, mom."

"But the next time a happy ending knocks on my door, I'm gonna be ready. I'm not gonna let this book stop me again. From now on...Operation Mongoose is my main focus. We will find the author."

Henry smiled. "Good. And I have a few ideas about where to look for clues next in the shop."

Regina finished his tie and patted his shoulders, wearing a smile. "Now get to work."

➳

"So, the spell of shattered sight. Pretty impressive stuff." Emma crossed her arms over her chest as she leaned back in her chair.

"What does it matter? You stopped me," Ingrid said, lifting her shackled hands.

"That's right. I did. We know who you are. We know what you're planning. And we know that for some sick, twisted reason, you want Teresa, Elsa and me to replace your long-lost sisters."

"Well, then, you have all your answers. May I retire to my cell now?" Ingrid asked.

"No, mom. We want to know why," Teresa cut in, planting herself in the chair beside Emma.

"Why have you been tracking me my whole life?" Emma asked, curiosity swimming in her blue eyes.

"I was trying to protect you, Emma."

"Is that what you were doing in the foster home, protecting me? So why did you erase my memories? Because they were just too good?"

"Every family has their ups and downs," Ingrid stated.

"You see, no, you and I...we are not family. I have one of those, and it spans three generations and four-hundred years. Teresa, however, is your family."

"You would be correct, but family isn't about blood. It is a bond far stronger than mere genetics. Teresa, Elsa and I are your real family because we are the only ones like you. We belong together. The family that you think you have...they may love you, but they also fear you."

Emma shook her head. "No. They don't."

Ingrid raised an eyebrow, not believing her. "You've never seem them wince at your power? You've never seen a twinge of panic just behind their eyes? Not even once? I find that hard to believe."

Emma couldn't help but fell like she was right. Like earlier that day, the look her mother gave her when she accidentally boiled the formula and went to reach for Neal...her mother was scared. Of her powers. Of her.

Emma glared at her. "They love me for who I am, including my powers."

"I thought that once, too, Emma."

"What do you mean by that?" Teresa questioned, furrowing her eyebrows. "Is this about your my aunts? What happened to them?"

➳

Hook stood in the clock tower, staring at his reflection in Ingrid's mirror. "This is what we've been worried about? Shouldn't it be shaking or doing something evil?"

Elsa, with her hands on her hips, nodded in agreement. "Agreed. It feels like just a harmless looking glass to me."

Belle climbed the steps behind them, slightly out of breath. "I've found nothing to counteract the spell yet." When she noticed Hook looking at himself in the dangerous mirror, she quikcly got in front of him. "Hey, stop! Do not look in that thing. It'll make you see the worst in yourself."

Hook smirked. "It must be broken. I've been staring at it all day, and I think I'm even more devilishly handsome and charming than usual."

David rolled his eyes, wondering how daughter could stand his arrogant attitude.

Belle furrowed her eyebrows and turned around. She looked into the mirror and it was that she noticed. "Uh...th-this isn't the same mirror."

"Why would the Snow Queen risk coming all the way out here to plant a fake mirror?" Hook asked in confusion.

David's lips parted in shock and his eyes widened in realization. "Because she wanted to get caught."

David was the first one to flee down the steps of the clock tower. Behind him, the others followed. In the elevator, the four of them wished for it to lower then quicker.

As soon as the elevator brought them to the lower floor, they bolted toward the station where Emma and Teresa were with Ingrid.

They stopped in shock as they came the station, finding the front of the building and the doors completly frozen.

"Emma! Emma!" David shouted, kicking at the frozen door.

"Teresa!" Elsa shouted in fear. She only just discovered that Teresa was her cousin and she'd be damned if she was going to lose her like she lost Anna.

"That's a long story for another time, my love."

➳

Henry, broom in hand, turned to his grandfather. "Okay, I've swept the floor twice. Don't you think it's time I learned something a bit more...magical?"

Gold smiled. "Well, Henry, today is your lucky day. Because I am gonna give you a potion that possesses the power to transform something old into something new."

Henry eagerly stared at him. "What kind of potion is that?"

"Furniture polish." Henry's face dropped slightly at the sight of the can of product and the rag. "You can start in the back. Don't touch anything you shouldn't."

Henry sighed and took the furniture polish and rag, making his way to the back room. Though, he stopped short when David, Hook and Belle entered. His heart rate quickened when he seen the look in their eyes.

Henry and Gold immediately knew something was wrong. "Ah, this kind of procession never bodes well," Gold commented.

"The Snow Queen iced over the locks of the Sheriff's Station. Emma and Teresa are trapped inside with her."

"What?" Henry asked, eyes widening. He put the furniture polish and rag down, completly forgetting the task his grandfather had given him.

Belle gave her husband a pleadingly look. "We need your help, Rumple. You must be able to get us in there. Please. Please."

Gold smiled. "How could I turn down the pleas of my beloved wife?" Belle smiled. He motioned toward the door. "After you."

Belle and David left, though Hook stayed and sent a suspicious look toward the Dark One. "All right, Crocodile. What's your game? The last two villains that came into town tried to kill you. But you seem rather unconcerned by this one. Makes a man wonder if you two have a history."

"You can wonder all you like, dearie. My history...my business."

➳

"It's understandable you feel upset," Ingrid said.

Emma rolled her eyes as she paced along the floor. A couple minutes ago, she decided she couldn't sit any longer. Not with Ingrid trying to get to her. "Now you think you know how I feel?"

"I know you better than you know yourself, Emma," Ingrid stated.

"Yeah, because you took...what?...A year from my life?" Emma spat.

"When you lived with me, you talked about your parents all the time. You were so angry with them for giving you up."

Emma was quick to defend her parents, "They had a good reason for that! I know that now." 

"It doesn't change the fact that you felt unwanted for twenty-eight years."

Teresa finally snapped, standing up, chair sliding on the floor, and slammed her hands down on the table. "Enough! You've got no room to talk. You abanonded a six-year-old!"

"I did that to protect you, Teresa. I've explained this already."

"And that makes you think I'm over it?! You abanonded me!" Teresa felt a lump form in her throat. She turned away from her mother, running her hands through her hair to try and clam herself down.

Ingrid turned back to Emma, who was staring at Teresa with sad eyes. "Emma — "

Emma's eyes snapped to Ingrid's and she gave her a glare. "They didn't have a choice."

"There is always a choice, Emma. They could have kept you. They could have figured out something else. They could have tried."

"You could have, too," Teresa voiced, tears falling down her cheeks, breaking her mother's heart.

"They did what they could to save an entire Kingdom. Hell, your daughter saved me, too. She was the one who put me in that tree, well not anymore...I brought her here through a — Nevermind."

"You were their only child. And they used you to break a curse. They're still using your powers."

"That's not true."

"Isn't it? How many times have you saved them? How often have you felt more like a "Saviour" than their daughter?" Teresa glanced at Emma and seen that her mother was getting under her skin and making Emma believe her every word. "And all it takes is one tiny mistake, one accident, and you and your powers go from being their salvation to their worst nightmare."

"You don't know them or me."

"I don't have to know you, Emma. I've been you...different, misunderstood, alone. And now they've chosen to have a new child. And don't you think that they thank their lucky stars every day that he was born normal?"

Emma heatedly glared at her, wanting nothing more in that moment to kill Ingrid. But the promise she made to Teresa forced her to push those thoughts away. "They love me."

"You can't love somebody you don't understand. And do you know what happens when people don't understand something? They learn to fear it. And then they look at it like a monster!"

"Shut up!" Emma shouted, slamming her hands down onto the table. The wall blew up, chunks flying and falling apart, revealing the town.

Teresa stared wide-eyed at Emma. She hadn't really seen her powers before so she was in shock by this outburst. Feared like everyone else, that she was not. Mainly because she had faced the Evil Queen many times in the Enchanted Forest.

Emma stared at her hands in shock, watching as they glowed bright with magic. "W-What did you do to me?"

Ingrid stood from the chair and waved her hands, making the shackles disappear. Teresa stared at her shock. The shackles were never even working at all. "All I did is show you who you really are."

"M-Make it stop," Emma demanded.

"I can't. It's you, Emma, and...it's beautiful." Ingrid smiled proudly at Emma, then turned to her daughter and waved her hand. Teresa felt the familair chill — which she's only felt one before in the snow cave — go down her spine and the same wave of ice cold powers run through her veins. In her mother's hand was her crystal pendant. The pendant that was once her Aunt Freya's.

"No," Teresa voiced. She didn't want to not have her powers right now, for she didn't know how to control them. She began to panic, causing white flurries float around her.

Ingrid smiled once more before waving her hand and teleporting herself away in a blizzard of flurries.

"You okay, kid? I didn't hurt you, did I?" Emma asked with a shaky voice.

Teresa was panicking so much that she didn't even care that Emma had called her a kid. "No," she replied, answering both questions with one answer.

Emma stepped from the building and stared at her hands in shock. "What have I done?"

Teresa joined her, white flurries surrounding her head as she tried to stay calm. She took a few deep breathes and they went away.

"Emma! Teresa! You all right?"

Teresa and Emma whipped around, finding David, Snow, Henry, Elsa, Hook, Gold and Belle.

"We were so worried," Snow said.

"Wait!" Emma shouted, eyes wide, noticing them walking towards her.

"Seems you didn't need my help after all," Gold commented.

"Swan, what did that monster do to the Sheriff's Station?" Hook asked. Teresa glared at the pirate when he said that one word. Flurries surrounded her yet again, and Elsa noticed them.

Emma stared at him, hurt by his choice of wording. "The monster who did this was not the Snow Queen. It was me."

David's eyes widened. "What?" He went to step forward, but Emma took a step back.

"Just keep your distance. I don't know if I can control myself. I don't want to hurt anyone."

"Swan."

Hook stepped forward; Gold quickly warned him. "We should heed her words."

"Emma, we can help," Elsa said, voice calm and caring. Everyone could see the panic and fear and shock in Emma's eyes. Images of her past flashed through Elsa's mind, and in that moment she knew exactly how Emma felt. Scared.

"Just stay away!" Emma demanded. She turned to run, but Hook gripped her arm. She struggled against his grip. "Let me go!"

While shrugging him away, power shot from Emma's hand, hitting a light pole, which began to fall.

"Watch out!" Emma shouted as she watched it fall towards her family.

Hook was pushed out of the way by David. Teresa, however, threw her hands up to shield herself. The light pole collided with the small ice wall Teresa had accidentally built to shield herself and hit David's shoulder.

David grunted and held his shoulder, a pain-filled expression pulling on his fact.

"David!" Snow shouted in worry, appearing instantly at his side. Emma stepped forward, guilt and worry in her eyes. "Emma!" Snow scolded.

The sound of her mother's voice made Emma's heart break. She realized right then that Ingrid was right. They did fear her. She was a...monster.

Snow immediately felt guilty for yelling at her daughter, and her eyes softened. She knew that Emma didn't mean it, as Emma was only just beginning to train with her powers. "Emma...Emma, wait. Please come back."

Emma didn't look back, too scared she would hurt someone else, so she kept running.

"Swan!"

"Mom!"

"It's okay! Emma!" Snow shouted. She watched in sadness as Emma got into her car and sped away.

It was silent for a moment until Elsa quickly rushed over to Teresa, who was staring at David's shoulder with a frown. Elsa gently grabbed her shoulders and spun her around to face her. "Teresa, it's okay. You didn't mean it."

Teresa nodded and took a couple deep breathes. "Just keep yourself calm, that's the key of how to control your powers."

"I-I didn't even mean to conjure it," Teresa said, staring at the ice wall.

"I know," Elsa said. "Don't worry, I'll help, okay?" Teresa nodded and suddenly threw her arms around her cousin. Right now, she just really needed someone to hold her.

➳

Teresa sat on the steps, watching as Snow placed Neal within his bassinet.

"I'm really sorry about the ice wall thing, I didn't mean to hurt — "

Snow turned around to face her young friend. She gave her a small smile. "I know you didn't. You couldn't control it and neither could Emma."

David, Elsa and Hook then walked in. Snow whipped around to face them, asking, "Did you find her?"

David sighed and shook his head. "No. We looked everywhere, which means only one thing."

"She doesn't want to be found," Hook said.

"I've been through this." All eyes went to Elsa as she fumbled with her fingers. "And I saw the same looks on my loved ones' faces as Emma just did. I saw fear."

"David, we failed today," Snow voiced, staring at her husband with sadness and regret. "When our daughter needed us most, she looked in our eyes, and...all she saw was fear. This Snow Queen has some mirror that turns us against each other? Well, she doesn't need it. Look at us. We are doing it to ourselves."

A/N: So, yes, the pendant Teresa wears was her Aunt Freya's. But how did Ingrid get it and what happened to Freya? Well...that'll be revealed soon.

Also, 15k+ reads, you guys!!!!! Thanks so much for the comments, I love reading them...they make my day 😀