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Astrid lit a lantern for them in the dark, stone hallway that leads to his cell; She picked it up and moved the lantern around as the glow of the flame lit up the hall. She was wearing her hood on top of her head, also.

"Huh. Rumplestiltskin's cell." Snow said in thought, "I haven't been here since Regina's curse." She currently stood back with Emma and Astrid as Mulan and Aurora searched the inside of the cell for the ink.

Astrid set the lantern down and also joined in searching for the remains of the squid ink while Emma and Snow still talked on.

The teenager placed her foot on the edge of one rock and climbed up as far as she could in search of the ink. Aurora spoke up in worry, "The squid ink-- it's not here."

"My father said that Rumplestiltskin said it would be here and I believe him." Astrid spoke up, her faith in family still there. That's why Snow held a small smile on her face at the moment.

"Was there anyone else in here with him? Could they have taken the ink?" Mulan inquired.

Snow shook her head. "No. Visitors weren't allowed. He was too dangerous to allow any human contact. He didn't even have guards watching him. They were all stationed on the other side of that door."

"How'd he keep from going crazy?" Emma wondered aloud while Astrid was still above them on the wall, searching through every crevice.

"He didn't." Aurora suddenly answered as the teenager hopped down from where she was at and noticed the princess holding a scroll.

"What is it? Is it a message?" Emma questioned.

Aurora nodded and folded the scroll back up and handed it over to Astrid who began to unravel it also. "Yes, and I think it's for you and Astrid."

"Why would you think that-?" Emma started as she and Snow looked over Astrid's shoulders and down at the parchment the teenager just unfolded.

Written over and over and over, there were two names in a very elegant style, Emma Astrid Emma Astrid Emma Astrid Emma Astrid. It was a really long scroll, too.

Astrid let her sister take the scroll from her as she continued to search for the ink; Emma slowly paced away towards the wall as she read the scroll repeatedly, trying to find any sign or any difference in the writing but it was all the same.

Astrid couldn't help but wonder why her name would be on that scroll; She's no Savior like Emma. She's just... Astrid. Why was she important to Rumplestiltskin?

"What does this even mean?" Emma asked while still reading the scroll.

"He was obsessed with you and Astrid, Emma. One of you were going to be the key to breaking the curse." Snow replied as she climbed down from the stone wall.

"We've looked everywhere. There's no ink in this cell." Aurora suddenly said, standing up from the ground where she had been looking.

Snow replied, beginning to panic, "Well, it has to be. He told David." She rushed around the cell frantically while searching the walls.

"Astrid was in a netherworld- maybe something got lost in translation." Emma suggested as Astrid who stood closest to the entrance slightly glared at her twin and replied, "No. Nothing was lost."

Mulan then found something as she pulled her arm from the rock. "No." She said quickly, "She heard right."

"You found it?" Snow hopefully inquired.

"In a manner of speaking, there was ink in the cell." Mulan began, showing an empty bottle.

Emma heavily sighed and swore under her breath, "Son of a bitch."

Everyone was cut off by Aurora suddenly throwing a rock in a seemingly random direction as the rock hit the lever that held up the door; Astrid slid out of the cell, rolling into a flip and landed in a crouched position.

The teenager tried to lift the cell door but just wasn't strong enough. Emma exclaimed, "Aurora, what are you doing!?"

"Helping me." Astrid heard behind her as she spun around and found her now facing Cora and Hook who was leaning against the wall. The teenager quickly withdrew her twin swords and spun them around once in her hands before tightening her grip on them.

"Astrid, be careful." Snow started.

Cora then used her magic to make the compass disappear out of Emma's hand and appear into her own hand. "No." Emma said desperately as she tried shaking the door.

"Don't waste your energy, dear. Rumplestiltskin himself couldn't escape from this cell." Cora remarked at the woman and looked over at the princess, "Thank you, Aurora. We couldn't have done it without you."

The four women glanced over at Aurora who seemed to be about as clueless as they were. "Why would you do this?" "How could you!?"

"Don't blame her. She was only doing what she was told." Cora simply said before revealing an enchanted heart beneath her cloak.

"You took her heart?" Astrid demanded in shock and anger, lunging forward at the witch who stepped aside, which made the teenager get caught by Hook who held her still.

"Actually, I did." Hook told Astrid, still restraining her hostage. "It was a gift." Astrid never would have seen him doing something like taking a heart, especially with what happened in his past.

Cora then proceeded to squeeze the glowing heart as Aurora grunted in pain and a nauseous feeling overwhelmed the teenager. "Stop!" Astrid told her and then Hook, "Let me go!"

Cora chuckled but stopped after glancing over at the teenager and sighed somewhat. "Forgive us we'd love to stay... but Storybrooke awaits."

Astrid then head butted the pirate holding her as he released her and stepped back. "You're not going anywhere." She tightened her hold on her swords again and pointed them at both of them.

Hook rubbed his chin with his hand and then pulled out his sword as Astrid swung her sword towards him who moved out of the way of her blade effortlessly.

She and Hook clanked their swords together, forming an 'X', as Astrid ducked and moved her sword down, thrusting it towards his gut.

Hook moved her blade away just in time and knocked one of her swords out of her hands; Astrid cartwheel sideways and landed in a crouched position again, swinging her leg around and tripped the pirate as he fell on his back.

Astrid flipped forward and stood up, planting her boot over his chest and pointed her sword at his neck. "Better?" She smirked.

"Aye, AJ." Hook chuckled, "But do you have what it takes to actually finish, to kill, to have blood on your hands?"

"I already do." Astrid sadly murmured and started to lift her sword in the air, fixing to kill him, as she stopped and threw her sword aside. "But I'm not gonna kill you. You once meant a lot to me, after all."

Hook just watched her in surprise and shock because he had honestly thought she wanted him dead, that she no longer cared about him. "Get up, Hook. Your fight's not over yet." The teenager remarked with a smirk, twirling her sword in her hand easily as she stepped back.

Cora then grew bored and pinned the teenager in place with her magic. "You must get your charming-ness from your father." The woman started towards Astrid and stopped right beside her, "You can still forget about them and just come with us."

"Never." Astrid shot her down while struggling to move out of her power over her.

"Your loyalty to your family will be your downfall, Astrid. It will. Love is always weakness." Cora replied and then began to walk out of the dim stone hallway.

Astrid finally broke free and lunged at her just as Hook had stood up and blocked her sword with his own. "Give it up, AJ. You're outnumbered." He smirked.

"I'm always outnumbered, and yet, I always best them." Astrid also smirked, kicking him in his groin hard and went after Cora again.

The teenager then felt a pain in her side as she glanced down and noticed a stab wound, crimson red seeping through her shirt on her left side. "ASTRID!" She heard the four women in the cell exclaim desperately.

Hook looked at her sadly as he resheathed his sword while Astrid dropped her sword and put a hand to her side and felt the warm liquid, lots of it too.

Astrid pushed on her side more as she felt the blood pool through her fingers; She knew that Hook slashed her on the left side but no idea what he had hit.

"I'm sorry, AJ, but I can't have you following me to this Storybrooke and stop me from finishing my vengeance." Hook apologized and started to leave also.

"Hook... Wait." Astrid called out to him as he stopped, "Don't- Don't do this. Don't leave me, not again." She whispered the last part.

Hook moved back over to the teenager and remarked, "Well, if you all so desperately wanted to get to the portal, then your sister would have considered everything else before abandoning me on that beanstalk."

"You would've done the same." Emma spoke up towards the pirate who replied to her, "Actually, no."

"Yeah? Liar. You- You bloody abandoned on that island for an eternity..." Astrid commented.

Hook sauntered back over to the teenager who leaned against the large rock behind her as she started to feel the effects of blood loss. He lifted his hand and pulled out a long chain with a shriveled up bean on the end of it. "Do you know what this is, AJ?"

"The bean that the giant kept." Emma answered for her sister and also tried reaching out for it.

"Ah, ah, ah..." Hook pulled the bean away before turning back to the teenager, "A pirate always keeps a souvenir of his conquests, but this... This is much more than a mere trinket. This is a symbol of something that was once magical, full of hope, possibility..."

"Now look at it-- dried up, dead, useless." Hook continued and leaned forward to Emma and whispered to her, "Much like you. Time for making deals is done. Just as I am done... with you."

Hook turned around but glanced over at Astrid. "What? No charming little sarcastic remark?" She smirked as he then gave her a small guilty smile. "Sorry about that, AJ." He nodded slightly to the sword wound.

Astrid weakly stood back up onto her feet and attempted to stand straight to remain looking strong like she always looks. "If you- if you were sorry, you wouldn't have done it." She smirked somewhat.

"You're right. I'm not sorry." Hook also smirked somewhat and followed Cora out of the tunnel.

"H-Hook! You coward! Come back here and finish the fight! I'm not through!" Astrid exclaimed, one arm wrapped around her stomach as her hand tightly pressed on the wound.

"You never are, lass, and I admit I admire that about you." Hook commented, stopping once more but didn't turn around except for a slight glance at the teenager, "But, this time, stop fighting. You'll lose more blood the more you move around."

"You fight no matter what. You don't give up ever. Remember? I do." Astrid remarked, stubbornly picking up her sword and weakly moved over to the pirate.

"Astrid, stand down. We'll find another way to get out of here." Snow started, not wanting her daughter to get hurt anymore than what she already was.

"You're done." Hook simply told the teenager in his scolding-parent tone. Astrid shook her head and replied, "Not until we have the compass back."

"Alright." Hook chuckled some and deflected her sword movements and now had her restrained, a sword at her neck. "You're done, AJ. We won."

"Good always wins." Astrid remarked as she head butted him again and kicked him in his crotch. She took his sword and pointed it at him again.

Cora grabbed Hook's arm, and just as Astrid threw his sword at them, the two of them vanished in a cloud of purple smoke.

Astrid smiled weakly at the four women before slumping over the large rock and sat down, exhausted. "You did good, Kid. You stood your ground." Mulan started near the teenager inside of the cell.

"I tried, M." Astrid murmured closing her eyes and drifted off somewhat.

***

Emma started to beat the cell door with a sword while the other three women sat in different parts of the cage; Astrid was going in and out of unconsciousness while her mother held her hand through the bars.

"You won't be able to break it down, Emma. It was enchanted to hold Rumplestiltskin." Snow started, "We don't have a chance."

Emma sat down in defeat and glanced over at her twin who was sitting on the other side of the cell on the floor, her back against the large rock. "How you holding up over there?"

"Ne-Never been better." Astrid sarcastically remarked, a weak laugh escaping her mouth. She moved her other hand as it started to glow blue and hovered it over her wound, slowly healing it. "Mom?"

Snow glanced over at her, glad to hear her call her 'Mom' again. "Astrid?"

"I'm sorry." The teenager started as Snow furrowed her eyebrows and asked, "What for?"

"For letting them take away our only way back to your land." Astrid sadly answered, disappointed in herself at the moment.

"So, it's a definite yes that you are coming home with us." Snow grinned, her tone matching the grin on her face.

"Families stick together and I don't have much of that these days. And we're family, so... if you still want me, that is." Astrid replied, a small slightly sad smile upon her face.

Snow's grin grew even more, saying, "Nothing would make us happier than to be a whole family again."

Aurora sighed, "This is my fault." Mulan looked over at her sadly and replied, "No, it's mine. Cora stole your heart because I failed to protect you."

"Both of us failed to protect you." Astrid corrected the Chinese woman, making the blame not so hard on Mulan.

"That's very sweet, but I believe it's my fault." Emma spoke up, "I'm the Savior and I'm not doing much saving, am I?"

"We're going to win this fight, you know." Astrid started to assure them as Snow added in equal confidence, "Good always defeats evil."

"You two sound like Henry." Emma only sadly sighed as she thought of her son.

Snow smiled lightly. "Guess optimism runs in the family."

"I think it slipped a generation." Emma muttered, tossing her twin a look before staring down at the ground.

"You should know better than anybody. You broke the curse." Snow replied.

Emma scoffed, "What have I done since then? I got us stranded over here, burned down the wardrobe, let Cora steal the ashes, and now the compass. The only reason I ever broke the curse was because it was exactly what Gold wanted me to do. I had nothing to do with it."

Astrid lifted an eyebrow and inquired, "What are you talking about?"

"He told you that one of us would have been the Savior." Emma said while gesturing over to her sister, "It was his plan. Once I fulfilled that role, maybe that's all I was ever meant to do. Everything I've ever done-- He had it all mapped out before we was even born."

"I'm not powerful. I'm not... a Savior." Emma finished, nodding over to the teenager still healing herself, "I mean, she should be the Savior. She's so stellar and perfect and even has magic."

"I don't know about you, but me..." Emma started again before grabbing the scroll and unraveling it, "I'm a name on a piece of paper." She handed the scroll to their mother, "I'm a pawn, and that's exactly why we are in here... And Cora's on her way to Storybrooke."

Astrid glanced over at Emma after she finished healing herself. "Emma, stop. Listen. You're- I think you're one badass woman. I mean, from what I've seen of you and heard stories from you and our mother, you didn't really ask for any of this but you tough it out and you keep fighting. You weren't raised here in this land? So what? You showed all of us that you can handle yourself well, even if you might not know survival knowledge... You are more powerful than you think you are."

Snow then seemed to get an idea, her face lighting up. "We are going to get out of here."

"How? By staring at that scroll?" Emma said in disbelief, "It's not like it's gonna magically open the door for us."

Snow laughed lightly as Astrid realized what Snow was thinking. "Yes, it is."

"What?" Emma warily inquired.

"When I was little, Cora had this spellbook-" Astrid started as Snow nodded and also told them, "I used to sneak into Cora's chamber and watch her practice magic. Astrid's right, she had this spell book, and Emma, the spells were in the book."

"Like literally inside." Astrid added for emphasis.

"Yeah. Isn't that what a spell book is? A book that has spells in it?" Emma remarked.

"Show her." Astrid told their mother who nodded and blew on the scroll just as the words flew off of the page and floated towards the bars.

"Whoa. Squid ink!" Emma said as she stood up quickly, "Gold wrote the scroll in squid ink!" Snow continued to blow the ink towards the bars, it dissolving them upon contact.

Mulan and Aurora now stood behind them as they watched the ink finish dissolve the rest of the bars. "Told ya. Good always wins." Astrid remarked, looking between Emma and Snow.

While they gathered their weapons, Astrid placed her mask back over her face and fixed her swords on her sides and then fixed her battle axe and quiver and arrows on her back.

"Wait." Aurora stopped them, "I can't go. You have to tie me up."

"No. We're not leaving without you." Astrid commented as Mulan nodded in agreement with the teenager.

"I can't be trusted, not as long as Cora has my heart." Aurora said as she took a deep breath.

"Then I will get it back for you." Mulan replied in determination. Astrid smirked underneath her mask at the two of them and glanced down at at the ground.

"Mulan." Aurora objected.

"I will." Mulan insisted.

"Mulan, we gotta go." Emma spoke up as Aurora nodded and added, "Do it."

Mulan simply nodded as Astrid pulled out rope and handed it to the Chinese woman who tied a giant knot around Aurora's wrists and one of the cell bars.

Aurora sighed before smiling, "Good luck." She lightly said before glancing over at the teenager, "Thank you for all that you've done for us, Astrid."

"May we meet again." Astrid nodded, turned, and ran out of the cave as Snow smiled at the princess and commented, "Good luck to you." They then turned and followed after the teenager quickly.

***

The four women stopped at the land where Lake Nostos was located at; Astrid had already notched an arrow in her bow and pulled the drawstring back as they seen Cora and Hook standing beside the water that had already been turned into a portal, both of them holding onto the compass and about to jump in.

Astrid released the drawstring of the bow as the arrow soared through the air and grabbed the chain of the compass and drove it out of their hands and into the dirt.

Snow exclaimed to them, "You're not going anywhere! This portal's taking us home!" She turned to Emma, "The compass- Get it."

Emma quickly ran around the small lake and headed towards where the compass had flew to, Hook not far behind her.

Cora threw a fireball at Mulan who had deflected it with her sword; Hook and Emma was now sword fighting while Cora fought with Mulan and Snow.

Astrid noticed the compass not too far from her while Emma and Hook continued to fight; The teenager took off running as the pirate noticed and tried going after her but was blocked by Emma.