#fic:together

Chapter 2

Emma woke up alone the next morning. She and Graham had stayed up for a while reading about the curse and her supposed role in breaking it. She still wasn’t quite sure she believed she was the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming and she didn’t even know if the part of her that did wasn’t just wishful thinking that there was a good reason why her parents abandoned her. They had finally called it a night and settled down to sleep, both very firmly on their own side of the bed, silently agreeing to avoid the fight they knew was coming for the moment but still not able to come together. They usually slept as close to each other as they could, by the time they woke up either she would be sprawled over him, or he curled round her, but not this night. It had taken a while for either of them to get to sleep.

She assumed he had gone out to get some air. They had driven through plenty of woods on their way into town so he wouldn’t have a shortage of places to go to help him centre himself. Even after his time here, he still felt most at home in the wild, and she honestly wouldn’t change that, despite how inconvenient it got living in the middle of nowhere. But usually he would leave a note if he was going out, so she knew he was still pissed at her. She reminded herself that he had every right to be and wished for not the first time since last night that she hadn’t kept this a secret. But that ship had sailed and she was just going to have to live with the consequences and hope she could make it up to him.

Once she was ready, she went downstairs to the diner where she let Ruby know that they might be staying a few more days before ordering some breakfast. She knew it was likely to be a while before her husband returned so she took a seat at the counter and started people watching, idly wondering if she could work out people’s supposed fairy tale identities.

She spotted the Sheriff around the same time he saw her and he approached her.

“Miss Hunter. I’m surprised to see you still around. I would have thought you would have been back home by now.”

“It was late last night so we decided to stay the night before leaving. And it’s Mrs. Hunter.”

“You’re married.” He seemed surprised. “Well you might want to leave as quickly as possible, the mayor does not like disruptions.”

Ok, she had no idea who this guy could be but he was giving her seriously skeevy vibes. She was about to tell him that they would leave when they felt like it when the mayor burst in calling for him.

“Sydney! Henry’s run away again. We have to…” When Regina saw her stopped and looked at her in shock for a moment before continuing. “What is she doing here? Do you know where he is?”

“Honey, I haven’t seen him since I dropped him at your house.” The last thing she needed was to get accused of kidnapping the kid.

“Mrs. Hunter was just explaining how she and I assume her husband decided to stay the night given how late it was when they got here.”

“You’re married?” Derision and disbelief virtually dripped from her voice.

“Yeah, why is that so hard to believe?” Wanting to get the conversation off her marital status and back on the missing kid, she asked. “When did you last see him?”

“Last night, he wasn’t in his room this morning.”

“Did you try his friends?” Emma knew that if he didn’t show up soon she would be the prime suspect so figured it was in her best interest to help find him. She was starting to wonder how the mayor was having so much trouble keeping track of one ten year old kid.

“He doesn’t really have any. He’s kind of a loner.” The words reminded Emma of her own to her fake date the previous night and her she felt a pang in her heart at the thought of the kid growing up as lonely as she did.

“Every kid has friends. Did you check his computer? If he’s close to someone, he’d be emailing them.”

“And you know this how?” Regina really didn't seem to think much of her ability to help and Emma reminded herself that these people had no idea who she was, they wouldn’t know that this was the one thing she was really good at.

“Finding people is what I do. Here’s an idea. How about you guys let me at his computer and I’ll help you find him.”

The computer had led them to his teacher and Emma couldn’t help but notice the unusual amount of malice that the mayor directed at Miss Blanchard. She supposed it could be due to her role in finding Emma, but it seemed more than that. When it became apparent that the teacher didn't know anything Regina stormed out, knocking a pile of books over on the way.

Emma stayed to help her pick them up. There was something about this woman that she couldn’t quite identify but she felt compelled to stay and try and figure it out.

“Sorry to bother you.” Emma said, feeling bad that Henry had dragged the poor woman into the middle of this. “I’m starting to see where he gets the whole Evil Queen thing from though.”

“It’s okay. I fear this is partially my fault. I was the one who gave him the book. I thought it might help, I wasn't expecting him think it was real. Henry’s such a special boy, so smart and creative, but so lonely. ”

“How’s the book supposed to help?” She was glad to see that the teacher obviously cared about the kid, but she wasn’t sure how a book of fairy tales was supposed to have helped, even if it may not actually be fiction.

“What do you think stories are for?” She asked as they left the classroom to make their way down the hall. “These stories are classics. There’s a reason we all know them. They’re a way for us to deal with our world. A world that doesn’t always make sense. See, Henry hasn’t had the easiest life.”

“Yeah, she’s kind of a hardass.” The more time she spent with Regina the less she was happy with the situation. But she had make her choice and had no real right to interfere now.

“No, it’s more than her. He’s like any adopted child. He wrestles with that most basic question they all inevitably face – why would anyone give me away?” Miss Blanchard seemed truly horrified when she realised what she had said, and to whom “I am so sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean in any way to judge you.”

“It’s okay.” It’s not like she didn’t know that feeling, she’d spent her whole life wondering why her parents had left her at the side of the road. And it sucked. But part of the reason she had given him up was so he wouldn’t have to grow up like that, so he could be raised by someone who did want him.

“Look, I gave the book to him because I wanted Henry to have the most important thing anyone can have. Hope. Believing in even the possibility of a happy ending is a very powerful thing.”

“You know where he is, don’t you?”

“You might want to check his castle.”

 She followed Miss Blanchard’s directions to a playground near the coast and saw Henry sitting on a castle themed slide looking dejectedly into the distance.

“You left this in my car.” She handed him back the book as she slid in to sit beside him, strangely reluctant to let go of it. If he and Graham are right, then that book was the closest she had come to her parents in, well, ever. She follows his gaze and realises that he is staring at the clock, still stubbornly stuck and 8:15. “Still hasn’t moved, huh?”

“I was hoping that when I brought you back, things would change here. That the final battle would begin. Because it’s your destiny to bring back the happy endings.” The kid’s faith in her was touching, Graham had been the only other person to have that kind of belief in her.

“I wish it was that simple, kid. But if I am this saviour, I doubt it’s going to be quite that easy.”

“Don’t humour me. I may be a kid, but I’m not stupid. I know you don’t believe me!”

“Hey, don’t tell me what I do or don’t believe.” That annoyed her, the kid travelled all the way to Boston on pure faith but didn't think she could believe? “I may not be fully on this whole curse bandwagon yet but you’ve already got my husband on board. My husband who, by the way, I met in Neverland, so you’re doing pretty well so far.”

“Really?” She could see how much even the thought of someone believing him meant to him in the way his face virtually lit up. “You’ve been to Neverland? Will you tell me about it?”

“Maybe someday. It’s not something we like talking about though.” That was putting it lightly. “Come on, we need to get you home.”

“Please don’t take me back there. You don’t know what it’s like with her. My life sucks!”

“I’m starting to get that, kid. But look at it this way, if she is the Evil Queen, then we need to make sure that she doesn’t suspect we are onto her. And that means I need to take you home.” She hated the thought, but she was sure he wasn’t in any immediate danger staying with Regina and at the end of the day, she was legally his mother, Emma couldn’t keep him from her. Luckily her argument seemed to have swayed him.

They were both pretty quiet as she drove him home but after he explained his plan to break the curse she did ask if they could keep the book for a little longer.

“Sure, it’s probably safer if you have it anyway.” He said as he climbed out the car. Regina opened the door before they got there and the kid ran past her and upstairs.

“Thank you.” She wasn’t sure what it was about this woman that made her so hard to read. Sometimes she was convinced that that the kid was right and she was evil, and then sometimes she seemed so genuine.

“No problem.”

“He’s seemed to have taken quite a shine to you.” She couldn’t help but smile at that, despite her efforts he had grown on her as well.

“You know what’s kind of crazy? Yesterday was my birthday and when I blew out the candle on this cake Graham bought me, I actually made a wish. In fact I always make the same wish.  That he’d be ok, and happy. And then, Henry showed up.” She wasn’t sure why she was sharing so much, maybe she just needed to talk to someone about the impact of having Henry suddenly walk back into her life.

“I hope there’s no misunderstanding here.” Emma was startled out of her thoughts by the ice in the mayor’s tone.

“I’m sorry?”

“Don’t mistake all this as invitation back into his life.” Not from you at least, Henry on the other hand was begging her to stay. “Ms Hunter, you made a decision ten years ago. And in the last decade, while you’ve been… Well, who knows what you’ve been doing. I’ve changed every diaper. Soothed every fever. Endured every tantrum. You may have given birth to him, but he is my son.”

“I was not…”

“No! You don’t get to speak. You don’t get to do anything. You gave up that right when you tossed him away. Do you know what a closed adoption is? It’s what you asked for. You have no legal right to Henry and you’re going to be held to that. So, I suggest you get in your car, and you leave this town. Because if you don’t, I will destroy you if it is the last thing I do. Goodbye, Ms Hunter.”

And she back to being convinced she was evil, cause while she did get where Regina was coming from, that was way over the line. Regina had turned to re-enter the house but there was one more thing Emma had to know.

“Do you love him?”

“Excuse me?” The mayor turned back round and the venom in her voice might have put off a lesser woman but Emma was not so easily intimidated.

“Henry. Do you love him?” She asked again, there was no way she was leaving until she had her answer.

“Of course I love him.” And there they were, the alarm bells that always went off in the back of her head whenever someone lied to her. She’d been truthful up until that point, but that was lie. “Not that it is any of your business.”

“That is where you are wrong Miss Mills. You were right, I did give Henry up. And you know why, because I wasn’t even 18 and I knew that I couldn’t be what was best for him. So I put his best interests first and gave him up so he could be raised by someone who could. But in the 24 hours he has been back in my life he has run away from you twice, so while I might have been putting his best interests first, I’m not so sure you are, and I am not going anywhere until I know Henry is going to be OK.”

“Of course he is going to be OK.”

“Really? Cause that’s one troubled kid, and trust me, I know something about troubled kids.”

“He’s fine, dear. It’s all under control, any problems he has are being taken care of. That’s why I have him in therapy. Take my advice, Ms Hunter. Only one of us knows what’s best for Henry.”

“Yeah, I’m starting to think you’re right about that.”

“It’s time for you to go.” Regina said as if she really thought it was that easy.

This woman was crazy if she thought she was going to be able to intimidate her into leaving. She’d cut her teeth facing off against Peter Fucking Pan, it was going to take a lot more than vague threats to get rid of her.

“Or what?”

“Don’t underestimate me, Ms Hunter. You have no idea what I’m capable of.”

Emma realised that things were only going to get uglier if she stayed any longer so turned to leave. But only this house, she wanted to go see Dr Hopper.

Emma really supposed she should ask for her phone call. But on top of the embarrassment of falling for such an obvious set up she also wasn’t completely confident that Graham would actually answer the phone to her at the moment.

“You know the shrink is lying, right?” She was trying to argue her case the Sheriff without much luck.

“To the right, please. Why would she lie?”

“The Mayor put him up to this. She’s got to have something on him. He’s terrified of her like everyone else in this town.”

“Regina is a dedicated mayor who only wants the best for her people. You should be careful about throwing around baseless accusations.” Sheriff Glass had obviously drunk the Mayor’s kool aid so she gave up trying to convince him. She was about to suck it up, take her chances and demand her phone call when Henry ran into the station followed, to her relief, by her husband.

“Hey!” Henry seemed rather too cheerful at finding her under arrest and she could sense Graham’s amusement from across the room.

“Henry, what are you doing here?” Emma asked him.

“Apparently his mother told him that you had been arrested.” Graham filled in.

“Of course she did.” As she went to try and explain to Henry, Graham pulled the Sheriff aside to sort out her bail. It turned out Henry was fine, he thought she was gathering information for Operation Cobra, which she supposed she kind of had been in a way.

When she was finally out of handcuffs, without a single bad joke from her husband, something she would never admit to missing but did, Sydney insisted that Henry stay with him so he could return him to the mayor. Given how late it was getting they couldn’t really complain, so they started to walk back to the inn.

“So, less than one day in town and you already managed to get on the wrong side of law. I think that’s a record, even for you?”

“Shut up.” The brief return to their usual banter was comforting, even if she knew it was only temporary. “She set me up. She doesn’t know who she is messing with. I don’t care what it takes, that bitch is going down.”

“So, we’re staying then?”

“Hell yes. I am getting my son away from her if it is the last thing I do.”

“Well, let’s try and make sure it doesn’t come to that.”

“Emma look” Graham said as he caught sight of something behind them. She looked up to see that the clock in the clock tower was moving again. “Need any more convincing?”

“No, I’m on board. In fact, she’s the one who convinced me, if she hadn’t been quite so, well evil, we’d probably be on our way back to Boston by now.”

They carefully kept their conversation to the curse and the practicalities of them staying in Storybrooke for while. While she worked on commission so could drop everything on a whim, his job as a forest ranger didn’t give him the same freedom. But she was surprised to find he had already made some calls and managed to get himself temporarily assigned to the area, as they were apparently short staffed. She wouldn’t have blamed him if he had just gone home and left her to deal with this on her own, and instead, without even asking, he was making arrangements to be there for her.

When they got back to the inn it was to find Granny pacing nervously outside their room.

“Mr. and Mrs. Hunter. Oh my, this is terribly awkward. Uh, I need to ask you to leave. I’m afraid we have a ‘no felons’ rule. It… It turns out it’s a city ordinance.” Of course it was and of course she did, so much for the hope of a peaceful night.

“Let me guess – the Mayor’s office just called to remind you.”

“You can gather your things, but I need to have your room key back.

“Actually no, you don’t. I may be out, but he,” she pointed at Graham, “hasn’t got so much as a speeding ticket, so you have no grounds to kick him out. I’ll grab my stuff and go sleep in our car.”

“Oh dear, I really wish I didn't have to, and you are still welcome in the diner. And while you can’t stay the night there is nothing to stop you visiting your husband during the day, if you need to use the facilities or anything.”

“Don’t worry, I understand.” With that, Granny bustled off and Emma went to pack her bag.

“Are you going to be OK?”

“I’ll be fine, I’ve slept worse places. And it’s not like you want to be sharing a bed with me anyway.”

“And whose fault is that?” He spun her round to face him, the anger clear on his face. “I’m not the one who has been lying for the last 6 years.”

“I know! I know this is all my fault, and I’m sorry. I screwed up big time and I don’t know how to fix it.” It was taking everything in her not to cry. She was so scared that nothing could fix it. Neither of them trusted easily and she knew that there may not be any coming back from this one. She wasn’t sure if she would’ve been able to forgive him if their positions were reversed so she didn’t know if she could expect him to, and she knew she certainly didn’t deserve it.

“I know you’re sorry and I wish that could be enough. But it isn’t, not yet. It’s going to take some time.” Sadness and weariness started to take over from the anger in his eyes, though not chasing it away completely.

“Yeah.” She finished gathering her stuff and rushed out of the room. As much as she wanted to stay, she knew better than to push him when he said he needed time, it would only make things worse. But he had left her with hope that they could fix this, and she clung to that as tightly as she could, because she didn’t know what she would do without him.

During times like this you needed a little comedy in your life, and though Shakespeare may be long gone he certainly had a way with words like no other. You wished you had packed more to bring with you when you left home, you had an entire collection next to your bed at home and you could still remember all your favourite passages. At school you had to study his plays in your English class and you had fallen in love, doing your best to get your hands on as many of his plays as you could, it was just a shame that no one else seemed to like his work. They always found it boring, or too hard to understand, but the way the words flowed made perfect sense to you.

You had been sat close to the tent they served food in, and you could smell lunch almost cooked. It wasn’t the most appealing of aromas but you were starving and anything would do though you usually waited for most of the men to take their place inside first so you didn’t have to deal with them queuing up with you.

Soldiers began to trickle inside as they were let go for lunch but you paid them no mind. In the past week most of them had gotten used to having you around camp and now mostly left you alone, you only looked up when a shadow blocked the light on your page. “Can I help you?” you asked, squinting up at the figure.

“Is that Shakespeare?” the man asked, an excited lilt in his voice.

You nodded slowly, “Yeah. Why?”

“I love Shakespeare,” he shifted and you could now see his face. He was fairly tall, had a strong jaw line and bright blue eyes.

You smiled, “Yeah, me too.”

“You getting lunch?” he asked, when you nodded he offered his hand, you took it and he hoisted you up. “So, what’s your name?”

“Y/N Y/L/N. You?”

“David Webster,” he replied with an easy smile. You joined the back of the line and quickly grabbed the food that was meant to be a sandwich and took a place together on a bench near the back of the tent that was empty. “What do you do around here?”

“Air force mechanic. What about you?”

“I’m a private in Easy Company.”

You chewed on your sandwich, “That the one always running up the hill.”

He let out a long suffering sigh and nodded. You chuckled, “Sucks to be you.”

Another soldier walked past, you recognised him as one from a different company who didn’t approve of you being around camp. “Women should be at home, you know, or in the kitchen. Why don’t you go make me some seconds,” he taunted.

“Go away, asshole,” you shoved him away, he stumbled but laughed to himself as he walked away to join his friends. You glared at his retreating form, used to his remarks by now, and bit angrily at your sandwich.

Webster had his eyebrows raised in shock at the encounter, “I can see he’s not in your good books.”

“No, and if he were I would burn my library,” you retorted without thinking, a smirk coming to your face when you realised what you had said. It took it a second for it to click in Webster's mind but when he did he laughed at the quote. “You like Shakespeare then, Web? What’d you do before you came here?”

“English Literature at Harvard.” You let out a low whistle and he blushed slightly, “You?”

“A guy in my town went to university to take English and he sort of tutors me. I didn’t have enough money to go myself,” you shrugged. Webster felt bad, guilty that he had more than enough money for these things but you didn't seem to be bother by it so he pushed the thoughts aside. “So, what are your favourite Shakespeare plays?”

---

David,

They have us doing full checks on the C-47’s at this camp, I think the invasion may happen soon, but I’m sure you knew that already. Us mechanics have been split into two groups, who goes with the pilot and who stays to cross over at a later date. I’m going in with the pilot so I might see you over there, wherever it is they decide to drop us. Good luck and stay safe, remember your training and you’ll be fine.

Y/N

---

Y/N

We got the briefing. The jump is gonna happen in the next week and I’m terrified. Did I ever tell you I had the opportunity to be an officer, one of the ones behind a desk and safe from all this. I turned it down because I wanted the experience of being a foot soldier, for my book, which I now regret. What if I don’t make it out of the plane? What if I land in the middle of an enemy camp? There’s so many things that could go wrong I feel I might explode if I think about it. You better stay safe as well.

David

---

David,

Don’t be an idiot. You’ll get dropped in the DZ with the rest of your company who’ll have your back. Everything will work out okay. Screw your courage to the sticking place, god dammit. I trust that you’ll make it through. Believe me when I say you’ll be okay. Besides, I’ll be over there to keep an eye out for you.

Y/N

---

Operation Market Garden was a failure and everyone knew it and it hadn't even begun yet. You had been sent in to gather up and fix some army trucks that had been left behind in a retreat, the enemy had since moved out so it was only a quick in an out mission with the other mechanics in your squad. You had internally complained that they had you getting trucks not planes but this is what you had been trained to do, so do it you did.

You managed to salvage the trucks and bring them back to HQ where you could really work on the engine. You were deep in the engine when you heard the gravel crunch behind you, you didn’t expect to hear the voice you did, “Y/N?”

You spun around and your face lit up as you saw your friend, “Web! What are you doing here?”

“Passing through, gonna take a town later today they say. Just stocking up on some ammo.”

“Well good luck,” you couldn’t keep the smile off your face after not seeing your closest friend for so long.

Someone called for him to hurry up and he gave you an apologetic smile and you waved him off and let him go, as he walked back to join his company you couldn't help but notice how he had filled out a bit more and the scruffy look he was now sporting only added to his looks. For the first time since you had met you actually felt attracted to him, wanted him for something more than friendship.

You quickly stopped your thought track and buried yourself back into working on the engine. You couldn’t think of him like that, especially in the middle of a war.  

---

“Are you Y/N Y/L/N?” a young private came up to you the next day.

“Yeah, why?” you asked with a small frown.

“You’ve been requested in the med bay. By a private David Webster.”

Your eyes widened, “Is he okay?”

The private nodded, “Yes. This way miss.”

You followed after him to the med bay where you quickly spotted Webster propped up on one of the beds. “What happened?” you rushed over to him.

“Got shot in the leg. Can you believe I said ‘they got me’ when it happened?”

You smirked at him, “What would Shakespeare think?” you shook your head at him in mock disapproval and he grinned. “When will you get back on your feet?”

“I don’t know,” he grimaced as he shifted in the bed, “Not for a while I don’t think.”

You bit your lip, “At least you get a bit of a break. I’m sure you’ll be better in no time.”

You stayed with him as long as you could, trying to ignore the jolts your stomach made when he looked at you with his dazzling blue eyes. When one of the nurses kicked you out you promised to come back when you next got the chance but you and your squad got moved out that night and you didn’t have a chance to say goodbye in person.

---

David,

I’ve lost track of where they’ve been carting me around. My life is one engine after the other and I get not time to just sit down and read a good play. It’s amazing I can find time to write this. I hope your leg is doing better. Are you back with your company yet?

Y/N

---

Y/N

Not yet. I can only just about hobble on my leg. The nurses say it could be another couple of weeks before I can leave the hospital. I understand your frustration though here the problem is I have too much time and too little to do. I feel I may die here from boredom alone, if I ever make it back to combat I may go down there (with yet another horrendous cliche line as my last words). I sometimes think I might actually die a bachelor, which based on the marriage suitors my parents have suggested in the past it may be preferable. I yearn to see the lines again. My book won't consist of much if I’m waiting here, but alas, I can’t walk away. Literally.

David

---

David

Sorry to hear your legs still in a bad way. Don't worry, I get the feeling you’ll live to see the end of the war. Try and rest the leg as much as possible and listen the the nurses.

Y/N

---

The war was over. You couldn’t believe it. It was over. You could go home.

You had kept in contact with Webster through the months, though letters didn’t come frequently as the mail delivery was slow and you rarely had the time to write back. Still, you knew about him rejoining easy company and being treated as an outcast until he was finally accepted again, you knew about Landsberg and you knew he was now on his way home.

You had volunteered to stay back in Europe for a while, keep tabs on the vehicles and fix them up as much as you could to see if any of them could still be used or go into displays. You still kept sending letters to David and they came each week now, he had invited you to stay at his place when you returned home and you had eagerly accepted.

After all this time your feelings for him hadn’t diminished. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and it was no different for you. You just didn’t want to go home just yet, you craved the routine and stability being in the air force brought you but soon it came to the point where they sent you home.

The boat ride was long and arduous, though the rocking isn't what made you feel sick. It was the thought of returning home and not have anyone recognise you, or you not recognise them. It had been close to three years since you last saw your friends and family, and a lot had changed in that time.

---

When you had returned to America you and David had helped each other out. Now living together your feelings for one another quickly escalated until they burst. It had been long coming, since camp Toccoa, since Holland. You couldn’t place when it happened but you knew you loved him with all your heart and you knew he loved you just the same.

Together you slowly readjusted to civilian life. You were there whilst he wrote his book and went off onto the sea. He was there as you got a job you liked doing. You were there for each other in the night when you woke from another nightmare. And you were there for each other when things didn’t go to plan.

You stuck together through everything. It had been an instant yes when he got down on one knee, some three years after the war ended.

---

The wedding was in a week. You were strangely calm. You had seen your friends and family members all freak out at this point but you felt content, this was what was right. You and David lay on the couch together, basking in the soft sunlight that trickled past the curtains and onto you. “Remember years ago in that letter, I said I might die a bachelor?” he asked, his voice quiet and silky in your ear.

You hummed in acknowledgement, you had kept and reread all of his letter during the war and you still knew all of them off by heart. “Yeah,” you whispered.

“Well, when I said I would die a bachelor, I did not think I should live till I were married.”

“You getting cold feet?” you teased.

You felt him smile against the back of your neck and he pressed a soft kiss there. “No, quite the opposite. I love you with so much of my heart that none is left to to protest.”

You smiled and rolled in his arms to face him, “Love me!..why?” you played along.

“When you depart from sorrow abides, and happiness takes his leave,” he replied smoothly and you could help but blush. Even after all this time.

“Sap,” you fondly rolled your eyes and leant in to kiss him. This is where you belonged. Next to the man who shared your love of Shakespeare, and could make you feel safe with a single touch. There was no place you would rather be.

***

Prologue

Neverland

“You are powerful. Maybe even more powerful than Pan.”

“Run”

The boy followed the girl’s demand and they tore a path through the jungle. It was not long before they heard the sounds of a chase behind them. Desperate to outrun their pursuers, they ran even faster. As she looked back to see how close they were her foot caught and suddenly she was falling, her momentum pushing her towards a patch of dreamshade.

“Emma!” He dashed forward impossibly faster to catch her, his arm coming round her waist and pulling her back. Their relief at her close call was quickly interrupted by the arrow flying past her head, close enough to make her wince as a couple of hairs were caught and pulled out. They started running again.

“Take this. I used it to open the portal I used to get here.”

“Where are we going? We cannot run forever.” They boy asked as they waded through a shallow stream, the water feeling like ice as it soaked into their clothes, Pan’s anger turning the island against them.

“Dead Man’s Peak. I have a way to get us out of here.” She smiled brilliantly at him despite the cold.

“But Tink, how will you get home?”

They did not stop as they reached the base of the cliffs, starting to climb immediately. Ignoring the way the rocks tore at their hands they threw themselves up the sheer face as fast as they could.

“The spring at the top is the source of Neverland’s magic. If we can get there I should be able to open a portal back to my world.”

“Nevermind that. You need to leave before he kills one, or both, of you. You’ll need the pixie dust to make it work.”

“Graham!” Hanging on to the cliff with one hand she swung herself over towards him to pull him out of the way of another arrow fired at them. He scrambled to regain his footing before they resumed their treacherous climb.

They pulled themselves over the ledge when they got to the top, and took a moment in relative safety to catch their breaths.

“Here love, it’s the last of what we stole, so make it count.”

On the move again, they raced to the entrance to the spring. Emma made quick work of the dreamshade barring them entrance and they dashed inside before the magical plant could block them again.

What little light there was sparkled over the spring as it flowed down over jagged rocks into a small pool. The boy looked at her, “What now?”

“Sprinkle the dust on the charm, hold it under the spring and believe; and you will get home.”

She was holding the dust infused pendant under the spring but nothing was happening and she looked back to her companion in fear. He reached for her hand and lacing their fingers together brought her hand up to lay a gentle kiss on it.

“You can do it. I believe in you.”

The whole cave shook as a swirling green portal opened in front of them and they looked at each other and smiled. Hands still laced together, they jumped.

“Now get a move on and go rescue your lad.”

Chapter 1

Boston – 15 Years Later

Graham had been waiting for his wife to get home and was already halfway to their front door when Emma virtually stumbled through. She stopped and sighed in relief when she stepped out of her shoes. Their home was not large, in fact Emma had called it a ‘glorified cabin’ when he had first brought her to see it. The main room combined both living space and kitchen and there were only two other doors, one that led to their bed chamber and bathroom, and the other to the small room they used as an office. But she had agreed to buy it anyway and had soon fallen in love with it as much as he had.  He took the last couple of steps needed to be in front of her so he could welcome her home.

“You know, I still don’t get why you wear those.” One of the many things he did not understand about this world was the weird footwear that the women chose to wear. She still was not completely stable on her feet so he moved to steady her and then pulled her in for a gentle, but lingering, kiss. When he pulled away he smiled and continued, “It’s not like you need them.”

“You’re my husband; you’re contractually obliged to find me attractive regardless of what I wear.”

“Lucky that’s not hard, then.” He could tell she wanted to tease him for being corny, even though he knew that she actually didn't mind it as much she claimed she did. He had moved his hand round to her back when he felt her tense and he knew she had caught sight of the cake on the counter.

“Graham.” She tried to give him a disapproving look and pulled away to put her hands on her hips.  But he had won this argument every year for the past 5 years so he ignored her reaction as he led her over to their kitchen. He had picked up her favourite chocolate cake, not above appealing to her sweet tooth to get his way.

“I know you are not much one for birthdays but I happen to think the anniversary of your birth warrants a little celebration, so humour me.” He pulled a blue candle shaped like a star out of the packet he had bought and put it on the cake before striking a match to light it and pushing the cake towards her. “Now make a wish.”

Emma closed her eyes, and for a moment he swore he could see what he could only describe as heartbreak on her face but it disappeared so fast he figured he must have been mistaken. She blew out the candle and opened her eyes.

“Satisfied?” She drawled suggestively as she trailed a finger through the thick icing and fixing him with a long sultry look, licked it clean, humming in appreciation. He swallowed a groan as he realised that just because he had won this battle it did not mean she was done fighting.  

“For the moment.” He curved his hands around her hips to pull her in for a kiss when there was a knock on the door. He looked at Emma, puzzled, “Are you expecting someone?”

“No.” Living as far out of the way as they did, they did not really get many random visitors. She brushed her lips against his in a tease of a kiss before heading for the door. “Hold that thought.”

He watched as she put a bit of extra sway into her hips as she walked towards the door. He smiled, still not sure how he had gotten quite so lucky as to have this amazing woman agree to be his mate.

He was surprised to hear it was a child at the door and even more so when he heard him claim to be Emma’s son and was about to join her when the boy pushed his way into their home.

“Whoa  Hey, kid! Kid! Kid! I don’t have a son! Where are your parents?” Emma followed him trying to get his attention and he turned back to face her once he reached the middle of their living space.

“Ten years ago. Did you give up a baby for adoption?” The lad was looking earnestly up at her, so focused on Emma that Graham doubted he had even noticed him standing there.

Graham waited for Emma to deny it, but when she looked at him and he saw the blood drain from her face and the shock melt into guilt, he felt something inside him break as he realised she had lied to him, been lying to him, for years. Her gaze was darting between him and the lad but he could not take his eyes off her. He stood deathly still unable to move, barely able to breath, as the knowledge of her betrayal spread through him. Suddenly unable to stay in that room a moment longer he quickly turned and strode into their bedroom, needing to get away from her before he either did something he would regret or broke down.  

Being in the room they shared wasn’t any less painful, his eyes darting from the pile of clothes she had left on the bed and he had carefully folded earlier, to her favourite red leather jacket before finally landing on the wedding photo beside their bed. They had been so happy. After so long they had both all but given up hope of being reunited, and to stumble across each other completely by chance had seemed like a miracle, or fate. She had shared his bed that same night and they had wed within a month. He felt the shock and betrayal slowly give way to anger and he felt his fists clench and knew he should try to calm down but at least the anger was better than the pain and he wished he had headed out of the house, he always felt better out in the woods.

A moment later Emma entered and closed the door before leaning against it and gasping in several deep breaths in quick succession. Part of him, seeing her panicking, just wanted to pull her into his arms and comfort her, but that was squashed by the part of him that wanted to hurt her the way she had hurt him. She had been able to tell him all about how she had been betrayed and abandoned by her former lover. She had told him about being imprisoned for his crimes. But somehow mentioning the fact she was pregnant at the time had not been important enough for her to tell him.

“Something you want to tell me?” he asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Emma’s eyes shot up to his and she stepped forward and looked at him pleadingly.

“Graham, I know you’re pissed at me and you have every right to be pissed. But is there any chance we could postpone this fight until we have dealt with the 10 year old in our living room?”

It was the desperation in her voice that swayed him. And she was right, dealing with the boy, who was shouting something about juice from the main room, was more important for the moment. So he took all the hurt and fury and shoved it down behind the impenetrable mask he had not needed with her since Neverland and asked, “What did he say his name was?”

Emma sighed in relief at his tacit agreement. “Henry, apparently.”

“Well, let’s go deal with Henry.” He opened the door for her and he saw her take a deep breath and brace herself before walking through.

“You know, we should probably get going.” Henry said as soon as Emma walked back in.  He seemed to have had no problem making himself at home in their kitchen and shared Emma’s habit of drinking straight out of the container.

“Going where?” Graham asked.

It appeared the boy hadn’t noticed him earlier because his question seemed to take him by surprise and he asked, “Who are you?”

“He’s my husband, Graham.”

“You’re married?”

“Yeah, kid.”

“Is…” Henry’s eyes had shot to Graham and it was the first time since entering their home he had given more than a cursory glance to anything other than Emma.

“No, that was before we were together.” Emma was quick to cut him off and he could hear the small thread of regret in her voice that she was trying to hide. He was struck suddenly by the thought of what could have been, if things had been different, if they had not been separated. This could have been their child.

“Oh. I suppose he can come too.” Henry said after a moment and he wasn’t sure whether or not the disappointment he heard was just wishful thinking or not.

“Come where?” Emma asked and he could sense the frustration in her and shared it himself. He was trying not to be angry at the boy who had stormed into their lives and disrupted their evening, but it was not easy.

“I want you to come home with me.”

Did he really think it was that simple, that Emma would just leave with him? But then Graham supposed the lad really was not lacking in confidence, he had come all the way put here to knock on their door. Maybe it wasn’t so surprising he thought Emma would just follow him.

“Okay, kid. I’m calling the cops.”

“Then I’ll tell them you kidnapped me.”

That worried him, Emma had a record and it would be all too easy for the police to believe Henry. Particularly, as Henry was pointing out, given she was his birth mother.

“You’re not going to do that.” Emma said after giving him a long look and Graham was glad she was so confident, because we was not.

“Try me.”

“You’re pretty good. But here’s the thing – there’s not a lot I’m great at in life. I have one skill. Let’s call it a superpower. I can tell when anyone is lying and you, kid, are.”

Usually he would have said something about her habit of putting herself down as it always pissed him off, but his annoyance was swallowed by the knot of darker emotions he was trying to keep under control.

“Wait… Please don’t call the cops. Please, come home with me.” Henry seemed desperate for her to agree and was looking up at her with a wide eyed innocent look that he recognised and for the first time he could really see Emma in the lad.

He could tell that Emma was weakening and resigned himself to spending the night getting the boy home.

“Where’s home?” Emma asked.

“Storybrooke, Maine.”

“Storybrooke? Seriously?”

Henry nodded. When Emma looked over at him, Graham just inclined his head, letting her know it was her call.

“Alrighty, then. Let’s get you back to Storybrooke.” Emma headed back towards the bedroom. “Just let me get changed first.”

She closed the door behind her, leaving him alone with her son.

“So, how long have you been married to my Mom?”

“Six years.” He wasn’t sure what to say. He was not good and idle conversation at the best of times, and this certainly didn't qualify.

“Cool.” He looked around curiously. “Do you two have any kids yet?”

“No.” Every time he had brought up the possibility of a child she had brushed it off or changed the subject. He had always thought it was because she doubted their ability as parents, never having had their own. But he was starting to suspect this boy might be the real reason Emma had been so reluctant to think about starting a family with him and he wasn’t sure how to handle that.

He took a deep breath and reminded himself that it wasn’t the lad’s-- no Henry, he must start thinking of him as Henry-- it wasn’t Henry’s fault. No, the fault lay firmly with his mate.

They sat in silence until Emma returned dressed in her normal clothes and red leather jacket carrying a couple of bags. When he gave her a quizzical look, she said, “It’s a long drive, I packed us overnight bags just in case.”

He grabbed his own leather jacket and ushered mother and son out to his 4x4. Emma didn't even try to argue about who was going to drive, just got in the passenger side without a word. He wasn’t sure if that made him more or less angry, so he just started the car and got them on their way.

*~*~*

Emma sat looking fixedly out of the card window, her body tense, determinedly not looking at either her husband or the kid in the back seat.  They had barely been on the road half an hour when the kid said he was hungry and asked if they could stop. Emma rolled her eyes, “This is not a road trip. We’re not stopping for snacks.”

“Why not?”

“Quit complaining, kid. Remember – we could have put your butt on a bus. We still could.”

“You know, I have a name? It’s Henry.”

Yeah, she knew, but as long as she called him kid she could pretend that this was all some big misunderstanding and she would be able to get back to her life once they dropped him off. Or nightmare, she would take a nightmare.

She noticed he was reading an odd looking book. It seemed to be nearly as big as he was, bound in brown leather with wear showing on the spine and edges, even if the pages seemed in good condition, and it had ‘Once Upon a Time’ in gold leaf on the cover inside some kind of decorative border. “What’s that?”

“I’m not sure you’re ready,” he said like it was some big secret. God, that kid was irritating.

“I’m not ready for some fairy tales?” She raised and eyebrow at him, giving him her best ‘you have got to be kidding’ look.  If the kid only knew...she wondered if Pan was in that book and if so, how badly mangled this version was.

“They’re not fairy tales. They’re true. Every story in this book actually happened.”

At that, she and Graham exchanged a look.  They knew that at least some fairy tales were real, but there’s no way the kid could know that, right?

“Of course they did.”

“Use your superpower. See if I’m lying.” He wasn’t but just because he believed it, didn’t make it true-- at least in this realm-- and she told him so.

“That’s exactly what makes it true. You should know more than anyone.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because you’re in this book.”

OK, now she knew the kid was nuts. ‘Cause she wasn’t from some fairy tale. She was from this world, that was about the only thing about her origins she did know.  Graham on the other hand…

“Oh, kid. You’ve got problems.”

“Yep. And you’re going to fix them.”

*~*~*

Graham pulled them to stop in the middle of Storybrooke. The drive had been tense. Henry had been enough of a buffer to stop them from out and out fighting, but the tension between them did not make for a pleasant trip.

“Okay, kid. How about an address?” Emma asked.

“Forty-four Not Telling You street.”

If the lad wanted to win Emma over, he was going at it completely the wrong way. At this rate she was more likely to strangle him.

She stormed out of the car and Henry followed. While they talked, he stayed in the car but looked around. He could see a sign for ‘Granny’s Bed and Breakfast’ and made a note of where it was. It was getting late and it had been a long drive. He really didn't want to have to try and drive all the way back home tonight, this time without a buffer. And staying at an inn that probably had thin walls was as good an excuse as any to put off the fight a little longer. He wanted more time to deal with this before they had it out.

Emma and Henry climbed back in the car and she pointed up the road. “We’re looking for Miflin Street, the biggest house. Apparently he’s the mayor’s kid.”

Wonderful, if the situation wasn’t complicated enough as it was

*~*~*

Emma looked up at the house and compared it to the one room glorified closet she had called home after her release. This was what she had wanted for him, something better than she could have offered.

Graham was waiting in the car. She couldn’t believe how great he was being so far. But the fight was coming and she just hoped they survived, ‘cause this just proved how lucky she was.

“Please don’t take me back there,” Henry begged, returning her attention to him.

“I have to. I’m sure your parents are worried sick about you.”

“I don’t have parents. Just a mom and she’s evil.”

“Evil? That’s a bit extreme, isn’t it?” She’d paid close attention to him the entire trip. He didn’t show any signs of injury and he hadn’t flinched or cowered when she’d snapped at him. She was pretty sure he wasn’t being abused.

“She is. She doesn’t love me. She only pretends to.” But of course abuse was not the only bad thing that could happen to a kid. She knew only too well the pain of growing up knowing that the people looking after you didn’t really care about you.

“Kid…I’m sure that’s not true.” She had to believe that. ‘Cause if it wasn’t, she would never forgive herself.

Emma looked around as the doors were thrown open and a well-dressed dark haired woman rushed out. Behind her was a dark skinned man in a sheriff’s uniform.

“Henry! Henry… Are you okay? Where have you been? What happened?”

“I found my real mom.”

Emma winced in sympathy at that one herself as the kid rushed into the house.

“Y-you’re Henry’s birth mother?” Her voice was slightly shaky and Emma could see the way she had paled at finding out who she was.

“Hi…” She wasn’t really sure what the correct thing to do in this situation was. She felt bad for intruding on the woman’s life like this but part of her still wanted find out more about the woman who had adopted her- the kid.

“I’ll just go check on the boy. Make sure he’s alright.” The man she assumed must be the sheriff said, following after him.

The mayor seemed to pull herself together from her shock in a way Emma couldn’t help but envy, and asked, “How would like a glass of the best apple cider you’ve ever tasted?”

“Got anything stronger?” ‘Cause once we’ve finished what I’m sure is going to be a really awkward conversation, I’m going to have to go explain to my husband why I have been lying to him for the last 6 years. The only reason she was still here instead of making her excuses and leaving was that a stilted conversation with the woman who adopted the kid she gave up was preferable to a fight with Graham.

The mayor, who had introduced herself as Regina Mills as she led Emma into the house, poured them both a drink.

“How did he find me?” Emma asked.

“No idea,” Regina replied. “When I adopted him, he was only three weeks old. Records were sealed. I was told the birth mother didn’t want to have any contact.”

“You were told right.” Yeah, ‘cause this was really not a situation she had ever wanted to find herself in. She’d just wanted to put that chapter of her life behind her and try to forget.

When Regina predictably asked about the father all she said was that there was one, Neal was not a subject she wanted to get into with this woman.

“Do I need to be worried about him?”

“Nope. He doesn’t even know.” And never will if she had anything to say about it. Particularly as, assuming he didn’t give up on her after this, she didn't think Graham was going to be any less inclined to kill the man after he heard the rest of the story.

“Do I need to be worried about you, Miss Hunter?” She considered correcting the mayor about her marital status but decided that was more detail than she really wanted to get into.

“Absolutely not.” No, she was going to get the hell out of here as quickly as possible and hope she could somehow salvage her marriage.

The sheriff came back down the stairs. “Madam Mayor, don’t worry. Other than being a little tired, Henry’s fine.”

“Thank you, Sheriff.” Regina turned to Emma. “Miss Hunter, this is Storybrooke’s Sheriff, Sydney Glass.”

“Nice to meet you.” Glass said.

“You, too.” She hoped the sentiment didn’t actually sound as fake as it felt like it did.

The sheriff left and Regina ushered her into another room and offered her a seat which she took gratefully. It had been a long day even before the kid showed up on her doorstep.

“I’m sorry he dragged you out of your life. I really don’t know what’s gotten into him.”

“Kid’s having a rough time. It happens.” She’d run away enough times, if never from a place like this.

“You have to understand. Ever since I became mayor, balancing things has been tricky. You have a job, I assume?”

“Uh, I keep busy, yeah.”

“Imagine having another one on top of it. That’s being a single mom. So I push for order. Am I strict? I suppose. But I do it for his own good. I want Henry to excel in life. I don’t think that makes me evil, do you?”

“No.” A little high strung maybe, but this life seemed to be pretty much what she had hoped for. She was really trying to tamp down the part of her that was ringing alarm bells. Regina seemed every bit the concerned parent, but something made her not mention Henry’s curse theory anyway. “You know what, it’s a long way home and I think I have taken up too much of your time as it is.”

She stood up and downed the rest of her drink. “I’m sure you want to check up on him anyway, so I’ll get out of your hair.”

She all but dashed out of the house but paused when she got halfway down the path.  She looked back. She saw the kid in the window looking down at her before he turned around and disappeared from her sight. She took a deep breath, reminded herself that this was what she wanted, and turned to walk back to the car.

She climbed back into the passenger seat and closed the door, did up her seatbelt and basically did everything she could to put off looking at her husband. But she couldn’t put it off forever and when she did look up she was surprised to see concern in his eyes. He was obviously still mad at her, but seeing that did give her hope. She also noticed he had been flicking through the kid’s book.

“So he thinks the entire town are fairy tale characters who his mother cursed to forget who they are.” That seemed the safer topic for the moment.

“I think he left the book on purpose for you.”

“We should probably return it,” she said reluctantly looking back towards the mayor’s front door. She knew they wouldn’t now, the last thing she wanted to do was head back into that house, she’d ship it back to him if necessary.

“No, I want to read it a bit more first.” Her gaze snapped back to him, that was his ‘I think I’ve found something’ voice.

“You aren’t seriously thinking he might be right are you?”

“I don't know. But I have read enough to see these stories are probably closer to the truth than any we’ve seen in this world. And Regina was the name of the evil queen Tinkerbell was banished for trying to help.”

“Really?” She’d never heard the full story, but he’d spent much more time with her than she had. It would be a bit of a weird coincidence. And to be honest, she really could see Regina as a fairy tale villain, there was just something about her.

“Snow White’s stepmother.” He handed her the book and started the car. “I saw a B&B earlier; hopefully we can get a room.”

“Do we really want to stay the night?” She so wanted to put this town behind her.

“Do you really want to drive all the way back home tonight?” She could hear the edge in his voice and knew he wasn’t just talking about the drive.

“No, you’re right.” Yeah, let’s try not making things any worse for once.

They got to the inn. It seemed this town had remarkably little tourism, as the innkeeper had to literally blow dust off the books and she gave them a free upgrade. The surprise at having guests even seemed to distract her from the fact that Graham was staring at her. Emma gave him a nudge once they were checked in and they headed up to their room. At least he hadn’t been staring at the girl dressed like a stripper.

“So what’s with the staring at the poor woman down there?” she asked as soon as the door shut behind them. “Don’t worry, I don’t think she noticed.”

“I think I know her. I pretty sure that was the Widow Lucas, which would make the girl her granddaughter, Red. I traded with them a few times while I was near their farm. Granny would always make me come in and eat a hot meal if she saw me.” Emma didn't know what to say. “Emma, I really think Henry might be right. That this town is the people from my world cursed here.”

“Graham.” She paused, not sure what she was thinking. It sounded crazy, but then so would believing in Neverland and she knew that was real. And Graham was the one person she knew she could trust. If he thought it was real, then…