Who is this mystery man? Take a guess! Think carefully, I'd like to think it's a challenge, but not impossible. There are clues, well, at least one clue. What about this act that Cora tried to prevent? What exactly happened to Graham? What is the deal with Emma? So many questions.

4 months ago

A knocking disturbed the usual silence that encompassed the Mills' Mayoral Mansion. Cora's head snapped to the side, dragging her intense gaze from the darkness of the garden that she had been watching. The outline of the grand apple tree faded, now free from her calculating eyes.

"Are... are we expecting a visitor?" the hesitant voice of her husband asked.

She spun on heel, placing her intense gaze upon him instead for several moments, causing him shift uncomfortably under her glare, before then turning to a clock; 10:34PM. "No," she said sharply, angered by the disturbance this late at night. "We are not."

"Sh-shall I get the door?"

"No. Retire for the night Henry, I will take care of this. Make sure that the girls are in their rooms" she demanded. "Lock their doors," Cora added as an afterthought, a shiver shooting down her spine, a sure sign of her sudden apprehension at what would follow this visit.

She quirked a brow as Henry hesitated at her final words. Noting her expression, he continued up the stairs to follow through with her wishes. Wearing a stern mask, she made her way to the door.

Upon opening the door and coming face-to-face with an unfamiliar man, Cora found herself ashamed to admit that she was filled with confusion. "Who," Cora speaks, harshly, bored, "are you?"

"Who I am is unimportant."

"Then why should I waste my time on you?" she asks, a heartless chuckle escaping her lips. She moves forward, raising a hand to press against his heart, nudging him back and off the doorstep. She studies his face carefully, searching for an identity. His face shows lines of age, but still holds a youthful essence. She is able to ascertain that though they may not be familiar, they have certainly crossed paths before. The faint presence of her that lingers in his heart is evidence enough.

"Because I know who you are," the man responds coyly.

She shows no response, caught in an equal state of awareness and disbelief. "Do you now," she states, managing to retain her blank mask. She did not allow her voice to shake with the sudden wave of fear that washed over her, but instead laced her words with curiosity.

"I must admit, I am amazed at the feat you have managed to achieve. You played God, and in doing so, you managed to destroy so many possibilities, shattered so many timelines, even my own, with your irreversible act. But do not feel comforted by my wonder and disbelief Cora Mills, for the one act you attempted to prevent, to destroy, will come to pass."

Cora could only stare at him, her calm exterior giving away none of the panic that flooded her body. "Who are you," she whispered menacingly, punctuating each word carefully, "what do you want?"

The man smirked, "all in good time. I have some demands to make of you, well, only one as of now."

"And why should I do as you want little man, what makes you think I fear you? You are nobody," Cora snarls at him, anger cracking through her mask. The man however does not react, "you do not scare me Cora Mills. Once upon a time, but no longer." He then, before Cora has a chance to react, moves suddenly forward, pushing her backwards. "Why should you fear me, wouldn't you like to know," he all but growls in her face. "You will meet my request, and when I call for you, you will come."

He turns and walks down the few steps that lead up to the doorway. As he begins to make his journey down the path, he is stopped as she calls out to him, the anger and disgust clear in her voice.

"And what exactly is your request?"

"Free Emma from her shackles."

Cora's eyes widen, he couldn't...

With a final glare in Cora's direction, the man leaves and fades away into the darkness.

Sure enough, when daylight comes, Cora has Emma ready and waiting for her daughter.

Silence echoes around the four girls as they take in Regina's words. All too soon however, they are drawn from their thoughts by a loud buzzing. Oh no... Regina mouths, barely visible, as she realizes that the buzzing is emanating from her pocket. Dread wraps itself around her as she removes her phone, Ruby and Snow watching her with eager eyes.

Regina licks her lips, her eyes scanning over the text again and again. The dread only intensified at her mother's words.

She looks towards Emma, but she's not looking at Regina. She's looking at the floor off to her right. It's almost as if she knows what's coming next, Regina muses. I only wish I knew what was coming next.

"So, what does it say? Who's it from?" Ruby asks, leaning forward, an action mimicked by Snow. Regina rolled her eyes. "It's from my mother," she says looking towards them with an irked expression. The duo gave a silent "oh" at the situation, and leant back. Turning to address Emma, whose gaze is still trailed on the ground, Regina takes a deep breath.

"Mother wishes to speak with you before she leaves."

The three girls watch as Emma's walls rise again, high and mighty. She nods her head and jumps from the wall, all without even sparing a glance at the others.

Snow looks to Regina to convey her worry, only to find that Regina herself has her eyes glued to Emma, forehead knitted with concern.

"What the hell is wrong with your mother Regina?" Ruby asks, breaking their trance. Regina tears her eyes away from the retreating Emma, and looks to Ruby with a sad gaze, unable to offer any explanation.

Ruby grunts in frustration. "If she can turn someone like Emma, someone like you, with so much fire, into something so... docile... why do you stay with her?!" Ruby asks. Her frustration surrounds her like an aura, and Regina briefly wonders if she were to look close enough, would she be able to see it?

"Where else would we go Lucas? We are children. My... she may be heartless, but she puts a roof over our heads, she feeds us, she clothes us..." Regina trails off, a familiar prickling sensation behind her eyes causing her to look away. "She's the mayor..." she finally whispers. She has all the power, and we are nothing but her pawns.

It only takes mere seconds for Ruby to form a reply, but the tense silence seemed to stretch on for so much longer.

"She feeds you." Ruby licks her lips, taking a step closer to Regina. Confusion fills Regina's face. She doesn't get it, Ruby realizes. "She feeds you Regina," Ruby states. "Haven't you noticed anything... where the hell was she Regina. 18 years. Where the hell was she?!"

"I..." Regina stutters, shocked as Ruby invades her personal space. "I don't know..." she finally admits. "Even now... we don't get to talk at home. She never eats with us. She... it's like she's not even there."

Ruby and Snow share a look. They both move even closer to her, taking a side each. "Regina," Snow says softly, "how much longer can this go on for. How long is it before... before..." Snow falters. Ruby picks up where Snow left off, deciding to be blunt about it, "how long is it before what happened to Graham happens to Emma?"

Regina's eyes widen and she pulls back, shaking her head side to side. "No, we can't, we can't let that happen!" She sends pleading glances to her companions, who nod back at her. "We'll call a meeting," Snow decides.

The sound hits me long before I begin to feel the sting. The familiar burning sensation begins to work its way through my body. There's ringing in my ears, and it takes me a moment to realize that she's speaking. I'll pay for that.

Sure enough, I feel myself yanked from the floor and pressed against a wall, my cheek resting against the cold stone.

"When I speak you will listen," the harsh voice commands.

As the hands squeeze and push against my already tender skin, a tear escapes from my eyes.

A laugh follows. A heartless laugh that rings around the room.

I find myself flung against the floor once again.

"Poor little baby, poor little thing," the harsh voice taunts. "You know why you deserve this, right? Because you're a sinner. You're a demon. You're evil."

I don't move. As usual, I allow the words to soak into me. Don't respond. Don't move. Accept it.

Footsteps echo closer and even without looking, I can feel the body kneel down beside my unmoving one. A hand strokes through my hair in a tender caress. You wouldn't even believe that this was the same person. "I'm doing this for your own good dear, I want you to understand that" the voice soothes. A kiss is planted on the top of my head. "Don't worry about school tomorrow, be good while I'm gone." The body leaves, the coldness of the room seeping into my skin. Clack clack clack clack clack, bang.

When the door finally closes, the crumpled figure on the floor manages to curl into a ball. Now finally alone again, Emma allows her tears to fall.