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INDIANA JONES
xxxi. WHO TO TRUST

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PAST
THE ENCHANTED FOREST

STANDING IN A DIMLY-LIT tent, Indiana Jones listened as Prince Charming informed his friends of the current situation at hand. He pointed at a random spot on the sheet, explaining where King George's men were last seen camping out. As he did, Red burst into the camp, claiming that the King's men were coming for them.

"No! We will not run," the Prince declared with a gleam of determination evident in his eyes. "We said we were gonna take the Kingdom back, and we can't do that with our tails between our legs." Red gave him a look. "No offense."

Indiana nodded in agreement. "I've run from the Royal Guard for enough years to know that they'll just keep finding you," Indiana mentioned. "If we're going to war, we're going to have to fight back at some point."

"But matters have worsened. The King has a new General," Red informatively stated. "They call him the Leviathan. They say he attacks like a monster striking from the depths of the sea. You never see him coming and you never survive."

Humming, Indiana mumbled, "Bet."

"How close is his army?" Snow White questioned. As she finished her question, an arrow went flying through the tent until it lodged itself in the table in the center of the group.

As the sound of men shouting indistinctly was heard, everyone exchanged glances before running out of the tent with their weapons drawn. A large number of knights in shining armor rode in on horses as they proceeded to attack the people closest to them.

"Split up. It'll be easier if we divide them," Indiana instructed.

David nodded in agreement. Snow suddenly stopped and turned around. "You're not coming?" Snow asked as they heard Red howling in the distance, indicating that she had shifted into her wolf-form.

"He's after me," the Prince told her. "You'll have a better chance of escaping on your own. Don't worry. Meet me in two days' time at the cabin."

"The cabin?" Snow repeated with furrowed eyebrows and widened eyes. "Where she is? Are you sure?"

"We're engaged! I think it's about time you met my mother," David encouraged her with a small smile. He pulled her in and quickly kissed her.

"Come on, lover boy!" Indiana called out, standing a few feet away from them as she dislocated the dominant arm of one of the knights. "I'm already winning!"

Snow looked back at her teacher and closest friend before nodding. As David waved her off, Snow proceeded to sprint into the forest. Then, he joined the brown-haired bandit.

"Must you always turn these things into a game?" he wondered, slightly annoyed.

One of the things he hated most about Indiana was that she was always so childish, never taking her actions seriously and always turning them into a game.

Indiana flashed him a grin. "This won't be fun if you don't keep score," she sang childishly.

David merely rolled his eyes.

➖➖➖

PRESENT
UNKNOWN

It didn't take Indiana Jones very long to realize that they were in some beat down, depressing version of the Enchanted Forest. All the plants were dead and it looked as though the sun or some kind of magic had scorched all things beautiful and living.

After they had been tied up and dragged off by two women to a place they called their Safe Haven, they eventually ended up in a small village that seemed poverty-stricken. It was hot and the air was extremely dry. There were people on all corners and sides of the village that were wearing torn up clothes. The villagers stared at the Storybrooke residents as they stood at the entrance of the village.

"It's like they're refugees," Emma commented.

The Asian woman sent her a hard glare. "We're survivors," she corrected. Indiana merely kept her mouth shut as silence fell.

Ever since the curse was broken, Indiana felt different. She knew she had changed. In the past, she was extremely childish and didn't think twice about killing something or someone. Now that she had experienced 30 years of life as a quirky teenager who was afraid of the sight of blood, Indiana was starting to lose sense of whom she really was.

Was she supposed to speak out or was she supposed to stand quietly in the background? Was she supposed to be bloodthirsty or feel guilty? Was she supposed to be sarcastic and outspoken or utterly polite? She wasn't quite sure.

On top of that, Indiana felt like she was missing something. She couldn't put her finger on it, but she was forgetting something, which didn't make sense because the curse had already been broken. It was on the tip of her tongue, yet she couldn't put it into words.

The sight of Snow White turning around and kneeing the second girl in the stomach pulled Indiana out of her thoughts as she shouted, "Run!" The girl fell to the ground as they started to sprint.

The Asian woman grabbed a peculiar object and threw it, hitting Snow White's back before she fell onto the ground. "Snow!" "Mary Margaret!" The two women walked forward while unrecognizable men surrounded them.

"Take them to the pit," the Asian warrior demanded. Suddenly feeling a pair of grimy hands grip her arms, Indiana began to kick and grunt as they dragged her to whatever 'the pit' was.

The citizens of the small village threw Emma Swan, Indiana Jones, and a very unconscious Snow White into a poorly lit, cave-lit room. She bit her tongue as she gave the men a harsh glare, causing them to retreat a bit faster than they would have.

Emma knelt down beside Snow. "Come on, wake up..." Emma mumbled. Indiana looked down at Snow, just thankful that she was still alive.

"Do you need some help?" an all too familiar voice questioned. Indiana snapped her gaze in the woman's direction as she attempted to identify the voice. She emerged from the shadows of the pit. "I'm a friend. My name's Cora."

Indiana's breath hitched in her throat. She was the same Cora Indiana knew all those years ago, just a whole lot older. After becoming acquainted with Snow, she told Indiana not to trust Cora, for she was Regina's mother. It took a little bit of convincing, but now Indiana was sure that Cora was nothing but pure evil. She wondered what happened that made Cora become the way that she was.

Staying quiet, Indiana watched with a tense body as Cora checked on Mary Margaret. "Are you sure she's going to be okay?" Emma worriedly asked.

"She'll be just fine. You needn't to worry," Cora assured the girls. Indiana stared at her with narrowed eyes.

"So what is this place? Where are we?" Indiana questioned.

"It's a little island our captors like to think of as their haven," Cora explained while walking over to the teenager's side. "The world's dangerous, as you probably remember."

Emma glanced at Indiana. "You know her or something?"

"Unfortunately."

Deciding not to delve into whatever past she had with Cora, Emma walked over and looked up at the hole that allowed the villagers to look down into the Pit. "Well, they can't keep us down here. We didn't do anything wrong," Emma declared.

Cora shrugged. "Neither did I," she proclaimed.

Confused, Indiana then asked, "So which reason out of the thousands are you in here for, hm? Giving shelter to a criminal? Murder? Treason?"

"I'm here because of something... my daughter did. The curse that ravaged this land—she cast it," Cora explained, partially ignoring the teenager's questions.

"Regina..." Emma trailed off in realization while raising her eyebrows, surprised. "You're Regina's mother?"

"Yes. But you've nothing to fear from me. The apple fell very far from the tree," Cora stated in confirmation. She glanced between her childhood friend and Emma. "You two came from over there, didn't you? How'd you get back?"

As she gave them a sickeningly sweet smile, Snow White stood up with her hand on her head. "Emma..." she called out with fear in her eyes. "No."

"Oh, Snow, you're awake," Cora realized happily. "I'm so relieved." Snow grabbed Emma and Indiana by the wrist, pulling them off to the side.

"As bad as you think Regina is, this woman is worse," Snow informed them cautiously. She looked to Indiana. "I hope that I don't have to remind you that her daughter was part of the reason you were still wanted for over half a century."

"Oh, Snow," Cora called out. Snow spun around, holding her arm out in front of Emma and Indiana. "Sweet Snow, please. Believe me, whatever she told you isn't true. I just want to help you."

"Let's hear her out," Emma whispered to her mother. Without turning to look at her daughter, Snow shook her head. "Okay, right now, we are at the bottom of a hole with no other options, and Henry is back in Storybrooke with Regina."

"Who's Henry?" Cora wondered.

"My son," Emma answered, peeking her head past Snow's. "I kind of share him with Regina. It's complicated."

Snow shook her head and spun around. "Don't talk to her!" Snow scolded.

Indiana grabbed Snow by her shoulders. "Look, she's helped me before. Maybe we should—"

"Enough!" a new voice echoed. They all looked up at the opening in the ceiling. There was a man who dropped a rope down to them. "Our leader requests an audience.

After exchanging glances, the three girls climbed up the rope. For the next few minutes, Indiana tried her very best to tune out the bickering that was created between Snow White and her recently reunited daughter.

"Why couldn't you have listened to me?"

"Why couldn't you have trusted me? I was just trying to find a way to get us home. I could've handled her."

"Cora? Don't be so sure. I've lived here. I know this world and its dangers," Snow reminded her daughter. "And we're walking with one of them."

Indiana rolled her eyes. "Very funny, but you've done just as many bad things as the next amateur bandit," Indiana emotionlessly stated as she tried to get her raging headache to fade.

The man who pulled the girls out of the Pit ordered them to wait. Then, he walked away as Emma pointed out, "Yeah, but, Indiana's lived here, too, and she hasn't said anything about Cora being dangerous."

"Oh, I'm sure she's dangerous," Indiana told her. "But I trust that she wouldn't hurt me. We were friends as kids."

"Is that why you came through the portal?" she asked her mother. "Did you think she and I were helpless here?"

Snow shook her head. "No. I came through to be with you," she stated, staring at her daughter sadly. She looked over at whoever exited their little hut and gasped, recognizing the man immediately. It was Lancelot of the Round Table. "Lancelot?"

"Snow!" the dark-skinned man greeted. They walked forward, hugging each other. Emma and Indiana gave each other confused looks. "If I'd have known that you were the prisoners Mulan had brought back, I never would've locked you away. Please, forgive me." Snow nodded, saying that she would forgive him.

"Lancelot, really?" Emma asked, still not being able to adjust that her life was build around fairytales.

Snow nodded. "He's an old friend. We can trust him."

Indiana snorted, feeling the slightest sense of déjà vu. If Indiana couldn't trust Cora, then could Snow really trust Lancelot?

➖➖➖

Placing a strange plate full of meat on a table, Emma immediately asked, "What the hell is that?"

"That is Chimera," Lancelot began to explain, slightly amused at the blonde's surprise. He started to walk around the table as Indiana began to fill up her plate. "An acquired taste, but all our hunting party could bring back. One part Lion, one part Serpent, one part Goat."

"Kinda like Turducken," Indiana added, helping Emma understand what it was a bit better.

Ignoring them, Snow began to say, "I don't understand. We were told this land didn't exist anymore. How did you all escape the curse?"

"It is a mystery. The curse struck, and when the smoke cleared, most of us had been torn from this land," Lancelot explained, equally as confused. "But some of us here, in this particular region, were left behind. We don't know how and we don't know why. Finding this Safe Haven wasn't easy. It took some spilt blood. But worry not. You're safe here."

"We can't stay," Snow told him. "My husband's back there, Emma's son, my Grandson—we have to get back to them. Can you help us find a portal?"

Indiana gave Lancelot a suspicious look as he said, "Leaving is unwise. The Enchanted Forest is not as you remember it."

"The only difference I see is that it has less people," Indiana said. "It's always been dangerous here."

"The Ogres have returned," Lancelot revealed.

"Ogres?" Emma repeated in surprise. "Like as in Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum?"

Snow placed her hand on Emma's. "That would be Giants," she corrected.

"Ogres are far worse. That's why we live here, on this island, where it's safe. Please, Snow, stay here. There are no more portals left," Lancelot begged.

Snow sighed. "I might know of one."

"You do?" Emma asked in surprise as Indiana raised an eyebrow. "Where?"

Snow began to look around. "Cora's near. I don't feel comfortable voicing my plans," Snow informed them. "She's powerful."

"Not anymore," Lancelot revealed. "The curse stripped her powers. But given her reputation, we've kept her locked up as a precaution."

Nodding, Snow stuck with her previous choice. "Nevertheless, I'm not taking chances. Just trust me. I may have a way. Let us go."

Lancelot looked between each of them before sighing. "I'll allow it, but on one condition... Take my bravest warrior with you." He waved over the same Asian woman from before. "She can defend you."

"We can defend ourselves," Indiana arrogantly remarked as Snow said, "Deal." Emma and Indiana snapped their heads in her direction. "Thank you, Lancelot, for always looking out for me."

➖➖➖

Pulling open a chest that contained various weapons, Mulan advised, "Choose wisely. We must be vigilant if we hope to survive the journey."

Immediately, the girls began to grab swords and daggers. Naturally, Indiana grabbed her belongings that were taken from her before she was banished to the Pit. She grabbed her dagger and shoved it back in her boot before taking back her whip.

"I said choose wisely," Mulan repeated, eyeing Indiana.

The brunette rolled her eyes. "This whip has the deadliest of poisons coated on it. One touch and you're dead instantly. Maybe you've never heard of Snow or myself, but we know how to defend ourselves," Indiana hissed, taking another dagger and concealing it on her body.

"Where's my gun?" Emma questioned, copying Indiana by sticking a blade in her boot. "I want it back."

Nodding, Mulan pulled it out and stared at it curiously. "Is it magic?"

Extending her hand out, Emma merely said, "Depends on who's pulling the trigger."

"Follow my lead, do exactly as I say, and we might survive," Mulan told them.

Indiana stared at her matter-of-factly, slowly beginning to feel like her ruthless, sarcastic, and emotionless-self. "Thanks for the pep talk, Mulan, but we'll be just fine," Indiana responded. "Get in the way and I won't hesitate to hurt you."

Mulan raised her eyebrows. "Have you ever seen an Ogre?"

"Pretty sure I've dated a few," Emma immediately answered.

"Legend has it, when they kill you, the last thing you see is yourself dying in the reflection in their eyes," Mulan continued, ignoring the blonde's comment.

Indiana snorted. "Is that supposed to scare me?" Indiana asked her before turning to walk away. "Come on, darlings. Let's walk."

Mulan and Emma looked to Snow in surprise. "Is she always like that?" Emma asked, not used to this version of her. She was used to the dorky and awkward Anna James, not badass and emotionless Indiana Jones.

Snow nodded. "It seems like she's getting used to being herself again," Snow realized.

"Is she really all that she says she is?" Mulan wondered as the trio began to follow Indiana.

Turning to face her, Snow nodded again. "I once saw her choke a man with his own intestines," Snow answered. "None of us know what happened to her when she went missing for 50 years. All we know is that when she returned to the Enchanted Forest, she was still 16 and a pure demon."