Chapter Five

~Wolfsbane~

Biancabella and the Snake. The story of the girl born with a serpent around her neck. The story of a girl who became so beautiful because of that snake-named Samaritana-that when her hair was combed, it shed jewels, and when her hands were washed, they shed flowers. Who unintentionally betrayed her serpentine sister by marrying a king and was nearly murdered for it. But Samaritana returned to save her from the jealous rage of the step mother. She abandoned her snake skin and became a woman, magically building a castle for she and her sister to live in, even graciously accepting the king to come with them as well.

Bigby only learned of Samaritana's fable after he had committed her to the Well. And even then, no one could find her sister, Biancabella. They all assumed she was still in the Homeland married to her king.

And yet here she is.

Standing above Bigby as he bleeds out onto the rooftop.

"Why did you kill her?" Biancabella demands, all the smug smiles from earlier forgotten and abandoned. Now her expression is like stone. Her eyes boring into his with a heat that matches even that the bullet under his skin.

"She was a murderer." He reminds her. "She had to face justice."

"You're a liar." She snarls. "Sam was no killer."

"I caught her red-handed. She was stabbing Rumpelstiltskin as I busted down the door-"

"Liar!" Her kick sends shockwaves of pain through his ribs. "Samaritana was a kind, forgiving, gracious person! She would never kill an innocent person!"

"Look, I don't know what brought her to murder but she was guilty! I presented the evidence in front of the town and and everyone-"

"Everyone? No, not everyone, Wolf. Not me. You didn't think to contact the next of kin?! To even try to-"

"I didn't know who she was! She wouldn't tell me her real name or what her story was. How was I supposed to-"

"Shut up!" Another kick. Another wave of fire. There are tears in her eyes now. "My sister was the only person I had in this world. She cared for me even when my spineless husband was too much of a coward to flee the Homelands to be with me. She was there even when I was too sick to travel. She never abandoned me. But you took her away." She kicks him again and this time he feels a definite crack in his ribs. It's not only his fingers that are paralyzed now. Both of his arms are numb and he can't feel his anything below his knees.

"You're a monster, Wolf." She hisses. "You didn't have to kill the Crooked Man. You could have let Greenleaf imprison him. But no. Instead you put him down the Well. And you didn't have to kill my sister either. But you did. Because as much that bitch Snow White would like to think otherwise, you're still just the Big Bad Wolf down inside."

Biancabella's smile returns now. But it's twisted. Going over to the dead body of her hired gunman, she picks up his pistol out of his cold hand. She releases the clip and pops one of the rounds out into her palm. Holding it up into the sunlight, she shows it to him. "I was going to make silver ones, you know." She says. "But that would have killed you too quickly. We wouldn't have been able to have a decent conversation."

She turns her head to look at him when he doesn't reply. Sighing, she shakes her head at something she sees. "You know what these are made of?"

He doesn't answer her. His lungs feels heavy.

"Copper, like any other bullet." She knees beside him again, this time, her knees become soaked in his blood. "But you see this?" She runs her finger across the butt of the round. It's a slightly different color, as if it was made at a different time. She twists it and it pops off, releasing a little cloud of purple dust into her waiting hand.

Bigby's throat clenches just from being near it.

"I wasn't entirely sure if this would work, to be honest. That's why I didn't just shoot you myself. That's why I needed John. So he could take the fall if it didn't effect you." Shaking the dust from her hand, Biancabella tosses the empty casing over her shoulder and smiles at him. "But I guess the legends are true. Silver isn't your only weakness." She stands up then. "Wolfsbane works just as well. I guess I have Snow to thank for that. She made you less than what you used to be when she cut you with that knife. Maybe if she hadn't, you wouldn't be dying now." Biancabella chuckles to herself as picks up Bigby's dead arm. "Maybe I should send her a thank you note when this is all over with."

"What...are you...doing?" He wheezes.

"I'm not an idiot, Bigby." She says. "I know you're a lot stronger than you appear. Hell, the Woodsman cut your stomach open, filled it with rocks and drowned you and yet here you are. I'm finishing what I started. I won't give you the chance to come back."

With a surprising amount of strength for such a frail-looking girl, Biancabella manages to pull him to his feet. She slips his arm over her shoulders and drags him toward the edge of the roof. "I'm putting you where you belong, Dog. Down the same hole you dropped my sister."

"Bigby!" Snow jolts upright from her spot beside Grimble when Bianca comes stumbling in, the wounded sheriff leaning heavily on her shoulder. A blood stain soaking his shirt. "What happened?!" She demands.

"Don't worry, Miss White." Bianca says. "We lost the shooter's scent about a few blocks from here. Since then, we've been in this little bar called the Trip Trap." At the eyebrow Snow raises in disbelief, Bianca chuckles. "In his...excitement to catch the gunman, Mr. Wolf managed to reopen his wounds. I suggested getting something to drink to help the pain...I suppose he went a little overboard while I was talking to bartender, Holly."

Don't believe her, Snow...

Snow huffs out an irritated sigh and folds her arms over her chest. "Real professional, Mr. Wolf." She grumbles. "Well, go get some rest and sober up a little. We've got to get back on his trail as soon as possible. Should I call Doctor Swineheart to have another look at those injuries?"

"That won't be necessary, Miss White. I do know a few things about medicine, myself. I can handle it and I'll make sure he gets some sleep." Bianca says as she jabs the elevator button.

"Very well. Please see that he does."

The elevator dings and Bianca pulls him inside, the doors sliding shut just as Snow sits back down beside Grimble, her eyes focused entirely on the security monitors.

Dammit.

The Witching Well chamber has never felt so cold. As soon as the elevator doors slide open, Bianca shoves Bigby out. Without the feeling in his legs, he collapses to the floor, his ears ringing as the Wolfsbane poisoning works through his bloodstream.

It's not much further now.

His head is spinning and the fire under his skin has become a raging inferno. It hurts to even breathe. Biancabella grabs Bigby's ankle and drags him toward the Well. He tries to fight. To kick or squirm or move at all...but his entire body is numb. Paralyzed.

He sees the Witching Well through blurry vision, getting closer and closer by the second. He wills his claws to grow in, for grey hair to sprout from his skin, but nothing happens. The poison has muzzled his inner wolf. He's stuck in his human form, paralyzed and getting closer and closer to death each second.

Bianca finally releases him once they've reached the base of the Well. "Bigby?" She asks quietly. "Are you still awake?" It's only then that he realizes his eyes are closed. He doesn't try to open them. Maybe if he pretends to be unconscious, it will buy him some time to think of a way out of this. Unfortunately, Bianca isn't having any of that.

He hears the silenced gunshot before he feels it. But a second later, pain erupts in his leg. He doesn't cry out, he refuses. But his eyes do snap open and he sees Bianca smirking at him.

"Just stay awake for a few seconds longer." She instructs him, leaning down to heft him to his feet. His body goes with her like a rag doll, his head dangling back as she lifts him onto the edge of the Witching Well. "Goodbye, Wolf." She hisses. "This is for Samarita-"

BANG!

Bianca's body jerks forward, her eyes snapping wide open with shock. She turns slowly, touching the bloody hole in the back of her thigh. The pistol reports two more times and finally, Bianca falls to the ground. Two figures rush forward from the door. One of them goes for Bianca, pulling her away from Bigby, while the other runs right for the Sheriff himself.

Snow drops the gun on the ground and carefully pulls Bigby away from the Well, setting him on the floor instead. His head lulls forward against his chest but he feels the gentle touch of her palm on his cheek. "Bigby...?" She asks quietly. Or maybe loudly. Under the ring in his ears, everything sounds muffled... "Bigby? Can you hear me?"

He tries to respond but nothing comes out. He knows how this must look to her... Him all covered in blood, motionless, silent...about to be dumped down the Witching Well. He feels her ear against his chest and then she's slapping his cheeks, trying to wake him. But he already is awake. He just can't move...

"Grimble!" She calls and the other person comes forward.

"Is he alive?" The security guard asks.

"Yes. Call Doctor Swineheart."

Slowly, Bigby's world turns on its side and then he's staring at the ceiling, unblinking. Snow's face hovering above him. "What did she do to you...?" She obviously doesn't expect an answer but he tries anyway. He's able to gather little more than a wheeze... He tastes blood.

"Swineheart will be here in a minute." Grimble says as he returns to the room.

"Good. Thank you." Snow's hand is still cupping his cheek, the other resting just above his heart, which flutters weakly in his ribs. "Grimble-"

"Ughh..." Both the deputy mayor and the security officer turn at the sound of the moan behind them. Bianca squrims for a moment when she wakes up, her eyes blinking open. It seems to take a second for her to realize she's handcuffed... But when she does, she jerks and pulls against her binds, wincing as some blood seeps down from the gunshot on her shoulder. "Ahhh, Snow White, you bitch! You shot me!"

"Don't be such a baby." Snow replies coldly without even looking at her. "You're a Fable, you'll heal fast."

"It still hurts..." Bianca shifts, flinching in pain again. "How did you know...we were down here...?"

"You hit the down button on the key pad." Snow rolls her eyes. "Bigby lives three floors up."

"And the gun...? Do you always just carry that around?"

"It's not mine. It's Grimble's."

"But you shot it. Why did you-"

"You said you were down at the Trip Trap and he got carried away and got drunk. Except Bigby can't actually get drunk." Standing up and turning on her heel, she folds her arms angrily over her chest. "Frankly, you should count yourself lucky I don't feel like the extra paperwork. Otherwise, it might be you down the Witching Well right now. Any other questions?"

Bianca wisely closes her mouth at that. But she continues glaring heatedly at her as Grimble hauls her to her feet.

"Take her to the detention cell but stay with her. One criminal has already escaped, I don't want to risk another."

Grimble nods and pulls Bianca out the door, leaving a thin trail of blood behind. As soon as they're gone, Snow kneels down beside Bigby again. Her hands are gentle as she lifts the hem of his shirt, revealing the blood-soaked wound on his abdomen. Her breath catches in her throat and Bigby nearly blacks out at the sight of it.

The veins around the bullet hole are an angry purple, vining nearly halfway up his chest and-though he doubts Snow can pick up on it-the blood that seeps from the wound smells acidic and poisonous. But also floral. Like the wolfsbane that's running through his system.

Snow covers her mouth and looks away. A second later, Bigby hears footsteps hurriedly coming toward them.

"I apologize for the delay." Swineheart says as he takes Snow's place in front of Bigby, the deputy mayor shifting aside to give him room. Bigby doesn't miss the way the doctor's eyes hang on the injury for a fraction of a second too long before popping open his briefcase and removing a handful of sharp sticks and odd looking tools that he can't imagine have any practical use. "Miss White, I may need your help with this one."

"Anything." She says eagerly.

"Has he said anything to you? Do you know what he was poisoned with?"

"Poisoned...? No. Nothing, I'm not even sure he's entirely conscious."

"Hm, then that makes this a little more difficult." Swineheart takes his pliers and moves for the bullet and Bigby is oddly grateful he can't feel the cold metal under his skin, digging and prying... "I'll need to run a few tests on the casing, to identify the toxin. Although that may take some time..."

Hell...we don't have time for this...

"How long, exactly...?" Snow asks quietly. "Will he...?"

"I don't know, Miss White." The doctor replies honestly. "But I can't very well sew up his injury until I've neutrilized the poison. It would do him no good. Our only option is to proceed and hope he's able to-"

Hell with it... "Wolfs...urgg...bane..." The sheriff grinds out, feeling his mouth fill with blood. Speaking is like dragging a knife up and down his throat... Honestly, he wasn't entirely sure he'd be able to get the word out. Somehow he manages, coughing and spitting the redness from his throat.

Snow gasps, hearing his voice, and stares wide eyed as blood drips from Bigby's lips. She whispers something that might have been his name.

"Did he say wolfsbane?" Swineheart asks, turning to Snow.

"I...I think so..." She breathes, not taking her eyes off of the sheriff.

"Well done, Bigby," The doctor says. "That makes this a bit easier."

Happy to help...

"Alright, lay him on his side." Swineheart instructs, placing the bullet casing and his pliers down beside him. He and Snow carefully turn Bigby onto his uninjured side and immediately breathing becomes easier. Not less painful. Just easier.

The doctor returns to his briefcase then and draws out a little vial of purple liquid. At Snow's questioning look, he explains. "A magic elixir. Expensive but worth it." He uncorks the vial and a puff of steam or mist lifts from the top, spilling over the sides. "It only works with only the most dangerous of toxins. In that sense, it's a good thing wolfsbane was used." Tipping the bottle, the liquid pours over the bullet wound, mingling with the poisonous blood and remnants of dust still left on the sheriff's skin. "Otherwise, we would have had to take him back to my office...or wait for someone to fetch another elixir."

The way he speaks... So casual, so professional. Like Bigby isn't writhing in agony below him. Because he was fairly certain his skin couldn't get any hotter. He was pretty sure whatever the wolfsbane was doing to him, nothing could be worse. Except maybe silver. But this damned elixir isn't silver. So what gives it the right to burn so bad?!

"Doctor..." Snow urges nervously at the sight of Bigby squirming in pain.

"Just relax, Miss Snow. The potion is taking effect."

Snow is quiet for a moment but after a few seconds, the sound of Bigby's tormented groans becomes too much. Standing up, she paces a few feet away and wrings her hands uneasily. "What does the elixir do, exactly?" She asks, just to distract herself.

"It neutralizes all vicious toxins in the bloodstream. Unfortunately, the process does tend to cause a great deal of pain." Seeing the deputy mayor's obvious distress, the doctor adds, "It should be over soon."

Only about three seconds later, the burning heat under Bigby's skin is replaced by a cool numbness. He breathes out a sigh of relief and lets his eyes open so he's staring out across the room. Immediately, Snow is kneeling beside him again.

"Bigby? Are you alright?"

"Ughh...peachy." He doesn't even try to sit up. He knows he won't be able to.

"What do you feel at the site of the injury? Pain? Tingling?" Swineheart quizzes.

"Eh, not much. It's kinda cold..."

"Perfectly normal, then. A few hours rest and you'll be right as rain."

Bigby huffs out another sigh and nods his head. "I ever tell you you're a miracle worker, Doc?"

"Not in so many words."

Bigby snickers quietly as the doctor stands up, placing all of his instruments back into his briefcase. Only now does he attempt to move. But only because Snow is hovering still and despite the light conversation, she still looks beside herself with worry.

He tries-and fails-to sit up, at first. Only managing to get a scolding remark from Swineheart about staying still for now. But, stubborn as always, Bigby finally succeeds in pushing himself up to lean his back against the Witching Well. True, it leaves him dizzy but it's worth it. Snow might chide him for not listening to the doctor but she looks less uneasy than before, knowing he's well enough to be disobedient, at least.

"I'll stay and see you to your apartment as soon as you're able, but once you're settled in, I'll return to my office." The doctor says. "The elixer will fix you up just fine, you won't be needing my help."

"Thank you, Doctor Swineheart." Snow says earnestly and Bigby grunts in agreement.

In all honesty, Bigby is fine after a few hours. The elixer-as hellish as it was at the time-really knocked the wolfsbane out of him and by nightfall, he feels good as new. But it takes two days to convince Snow-and Colin-that he's feeling up to attending the trial. And that night, most of Fabletown is crowded in the Witching Well chamber, Snow and Bigby standing side by side in front of all of them. Behind them, Bianca is handcuffed and looking a little more than pissed...

"Thank you for joining us this evening." Snow begins. "I know each and every one of you have become concerned about the rash of thefts and vandalisms of late. Thanks to the work of Sheriff Wolf, the accused stands before you, ready for the judgement of the town."

At the rumble of accusations that go through the crowd, Snow takes out a folded piece of paper from her pocket.

"I will begin reading the charges. Biancabella," Snow says, firmly. "You have been charged with several counts of theft and vandalism-"

"That wasn't me." Bianca interrupts angrilly. "That was John."

"Yeah. A Mundy who you hired and aided. Not only did you risk revealing all of Fabletown to the Mundane world, you also helped him preform these criminal acts." Bigby snaps in response.

"Bullsh-"

"Face it. No Mundy could have pulled off the stunts it would have taken to get away from the crimes unseen. You provided him with magic."

"Prove it." Bianca hisses.

Bigby shakes his head and holds out his hand to Snow. She places something within it. Holding out the token carved of wood, Bigby raises his eyebrows. "We found this on you, remember? A magic token from the Homelands. A Fable would have no use of it. You gave one to John, right?"

Bianca glares heatedly at him but doesn't argue. There's no point.

"Right then, back to the charges." Snow continues. "Beside the theft and vandal, you are also charged with endangering the integrity of Fabletown by revealing your nature to a human, possession of illegal magical artifiacts and substances, unregistered firearms...and the attempted murder of Sheriff Bigby Wolf." Lowering the list, Snow asks, "Would you like to say anything before the town consults on your punishment?"

Bianca doesn't reply immediately and Snow almost gives up waiting for her. But a few seconds of silence later, and Bianca lifts her head to stare hatefully at Bigby. "Yeah, I would like to say something." The room goes quiet at her words. "I know I'm going to die. Just the first few charges are enough. But I would like to point out that-unlike some people in this room-I'm no monster."

Bigby frowns and folds his arms. But doesn't say anything.

"I did what I did for a reason. Because your dear, beloved sheriff killed my sister. And sure, he calls it justice, claims she was a killer. But I know Sam. She was a kind, gentle person and she wouldn't hurt a fly! I don't believe a word he says about her. And neither should any of you. Because deep down, you all know...he's still just the Big Bad Wolf."

"That is enough." Snow cuts in. "Bianca, I know you loved your sister and I wanted to spare you from ever having to know this but...for the sake of the sheriff's integreity and the sanity of this town, there is something you should know about Samaritana."

"Oh? And what would that be, Princess?"

"She, along with many other members of this community, was under the thumb of the Crooked Man. In order to get you the medicine you needed to overcome your illness, she turned to the Crooked Man for financial assistance. In return, she became one of his hit men. Using her magic, she killed three innocent Fables in his name. Not just one."

At the look of horror on Bianca's face, Bigby nudges Snow, telling her to stop. But she doesn't. The town needs to hear this.

"Sheriff Wolf had been investigating the crimes for months until he finally managed to track Samaritana down. He'd been hoping to stop her before she claimed another victim but, unfortunately, one more fell to her powers before he was able to take her into custody. The town voted on Samaritana's fate and she was commited to the Witching Well, where she belonged. Bigby didn't kill her, Bianca. He's no monster."

Biancabella lowers her head. "Bullshit." The word cracks with her voice.

"I'm sorry." Snow sighs, turning back to the crowd. "All in favor of committing Biancabella's body to the Witching Well?"

A murmur of agreement rumbles through the crowd so Bigby takes a step toward Bianca. His grip is firm but strangely gentle as he takes her arm and steers her toward the Well.

"For what it's worth," He says softly. "I don't think she was a monster either. She was only trying to help you."

Bianca looks at him for a moment. Her expression broken, her eyes watery. She nods. "Neither do I." She steps up onto the rim of the Well and closes her eyes. Not even Bigby's ears are strong enough to hear her hit the ground.

It's four a.m. at the business office when Bufkin finally returns from the archives with the second book of Fable records. He lands clumsily on the edge of Snow's desk, looking meloncholy as always whenever they have to do this.

"Bigby." Snow calls and the sheriff lifts his head from where it had been reclined against the back of his chair. Standing slowly, he shoves his hands in his pockets and makes his way to the desk, where Snow has opened the book to the right page...

The photo of Bianca shows her smiling brilliantly. She's wearing a tank top. And for the first time, Bigby is able to see the snake tattoo around her neck. Snow sighs heavily as she picks up the stamp.

"How did everything go so wrong...?" She wonders sadly as she presses the DECEASED mark over the page.

"I don't know." Bigby replies distantly. He watches Snow out of the corner of his eye as she tosses the stamp back into its drawer and sinks down into her chair, resting her heavy eyelids as she massages the migraine out of her temples. Losing a Fable always hits her hard. He wonders if he should say something to comfort her. He can't think of anything that won't sound like a half-baked attempt at flirting so he decides against it.

Instead, his eyes drift back to the book. His own section is only a few pages away. He's never looked at it. He only gets a few pages away when a pale hand closes around his wrist. Looking up, he finds Snow frowning at him.

"I'd...rather not tempt fate by looking...you know?" She says.

He hesitates, wondering how she knew what he was a doing, but nods. "Yeah." Closing the book, he hands it back to Bufkin, who flaps off toward the archives again. He wouldn't want to see Snow's page in the books, either. Scratching at the stubble on his chin, he chews on the inside of his cheek for a few indesicive seconds before saying, "You look exhausted, Snow. Why don't you go get a few hours of shut eye. Bufkin and I will handle the office until you get back."

"You and Bufkin?" She asks, almost laughing. "No thanks, I'll get a nap around lunchtime, like usual."

Shrugging, Bigby sticks a cigarette between his teeth and heads for the door. But he stops when Snow calls his name. Is it just him or does she look kind of...sheepish?

"We still have a lot of paperwork to catch up on and this whole Bianca-thing set us pretty far behind. And I did promise Doctor Swineheart I'd keep an eye on you until you recover so, if you don't mind that is, I'll, um, stop by your office later?"

Bigby raises his eyebrows but nods. "Sure thing, Snow..."

She smiles at him and then sits down in her chair. "I'll bring coffee."

"Sounds good." The door clicks shut behind him as he lights his cigarette.

A/N: Will I ever get better at endings? Probably not. XD