The Black Fairy smiled at the babe in her arms.

"You, my dear, are very special indeed," she said. The baby cooed up at her, waving a tiny, pale arm up at the woman. Fiona smiled again and then set the baby down in its little bassinet. She reached into her cloak and pulled out a glowing, beating heart, and placed it next to the baby.

"Have a pleasant sleep, my dear," she said. With that, she brought her wand over the infant, uttered some curse underneath her breath and watched, pleased, as the baby closed its eyes in everlasting slumber.

Emma

"I'm sorry, Emma. I was hoping you could save us both." Gideon is poised, ready to attack and kill the savior. Emma watches helplessly, holding Excalibur and thinking only of her family.

"If it means I have to lose my power, then so be it," she mutters under her breath. "If it means I have to lose my life to save them, then so be it."

She runs forward with a battle-cry, and her blade connects with something. Gideon shouts something she can't understand, and she hears Henry screaming her name.

There is a blinding light, and then, nothing. Just as suddenly -

"Mom! Mom wake up!" Henry is shaking her in the next minute, as if nothing has happened. Dizzy, Emma struggles to her feet.

"I love you," Henry says, hugging her. She hugs him back, secretly trying to release magic she is so used to having with no luck. She is no longer the savior, but she has saved her family and didn't actually die in the process like she'd expected.

"I love you, too," she says. Hook comes up next, followed by her parents and Regina. They embrace each other and their tears mix with exclamations of great relief and joy. When Emma is able to stand by herself again, she looks around for Gideon, expecting to find him lying dead with Belle and Rumpelstiltskin sobbing over him. Regina gives her a small nod for encouragement, and then takes Zelena's hand. They disappear in a whirl of purple smoke. Emma takes a deep breath and braces herself for a sad scene...

But Gideon is still standing there, with a vacant expression on his face. There are tears streaming down his face and he is clutching at his chest.

"It's still gone," he chokes out. If he had a heart, it would be broken. "My heart is still gone."

Belle throws her arms around her son and kisses him, "Don't worry, we'll find it! Now that the evil fairy is gone she can't control you, anymore."

"I promise you, Son, I will stop at nothing to find your heart," Rumple says, coming to stand behind Gideon. He places a hand on the young man's shoulder and though he is visibly pleased by the second chance they have been given, there is a serious tone to his voice and a fierce glint in his eyes.

Emma is going to apologize to Gideon, and maybe try to fix the relationship that has been broken by betrayal and murderous intent. Before she opens her mouth to speak, Regina returns with a screaming Zelena. She holds her sister back, trying to soothe her, but the former Wicked Witch of the West is frantic.

"She took her! The Black Fairy took my daughter!"

Stranger

The woman shivers in the cold. She isn't sure how long she's been walking without shoes to cover her feet; without a coat to keep her warm. She brings her hands up to her arms and rubs them, trying to stimulate heat. She takes in her surroundings: trees, gnarled plants, jagged rocks, shadows...She doesn't remember how she got to this forest. The last thing she remembers is falling asleep on the rope hammock outside her hut.

She raises her hand and tries to find the spark of light that is within her, the flicker of magic deep within her soul. Once she finds it there, she takes hold of it and starts a flame on her open palm. She feels anger, and then guilt for feeling so. She only has herself to blame for her current predicament. Perhaps she's been sleepwalking again? She closes her eyes and tries to remember fragments of a recurring dream. She hears some voices, sees the vibrancy of green - but these are things that tell her nothing. These are things she forgot about long ago.

Something bright catches her eyes, and as she walks towards it she realizes it is a path of some sort. There are stripes of white and yellow on it, perhaps someone's way of blazing a trail. She stumbles out and is surprised by the rough feeling on her feet. The fire in her hand goes out and she shivers again. It hadn't been that warm, anyway. Though she possess magic, she has never been properly taught how to control it. Mostly she uses it to shirk chores and do a little clumsy target practice. It is a useless talent in her opinion, even more so in this world of...wherever she is.

Flashing lights startle her and she falls back, her rump landing painfully on the gravel and dirt. The lights get closer - two beams like eyes glowing in the dark. A metal beast passes her slowly, and then comes to a stop. The woman isn't sure she should whether to stay very still in hopes it won't see her, or make a run for it. Perhaps it is a friendly metal beast?

The door opens and a young boy steps out, followed on the other side by a man with a hook for a hand. He is quite handsome, but what on earth is he doing in such a contraption?

"Are you hurt?" the young boy walks up to her and she shrinks back, evaluating him.

"I don't recognize her, do you think she could be from the outside?" the man asks him, also coming closer. The woman puts her hands up to shield herself from any danger.

"I have magic and I will use it to defend myself!" she says.

The boy exchanges a look with the hooked-man: "Nope. Definitely not from outside."

"Listen, we're not going to hurt you, alright?" The man holds out a hand but she doesn't take it right away. "What are you doing out here, anyway?"

When she finally takes his hand, she shakes her head and he pulls her to her feet, "I don't know. I don't know where I am at all. But thanks for your help, I can take it from here, I'm sure." Her voice is still hesitant, her stance wary. The tall man laughs and rubs the back of his head.

"You probably won't get very far in that nightgown," he says.

"Which fairy-tale are you from? I don't remember ever writing about someone like you," the boy asks. The woman starts. What is this nonsense about writing?

"Fairy-tale? I don't know what you mean," she says.

"What's your name?" the man asks, and then he bows slightly, "Captain Killian Hook at your service! And this here is Henry." He touches the boy's shoulder and the boy smiles at her. They seem friendly enough; maybe it wouldn't hurt to tell them.

"It's a pleasure, I'm sure. My name is Robyn."

Special Author's Note: This is a shorter chapter than they're usually going to be. This idea has been playing around in my head for a while, ever since I saw the last season of this show. I realize that I've changed the ending; this story is taking place right after season 6 in lieu of season 7. I'm also trying out a new style of writing, with present instead of past tense.

I will warn you now: expect to see sappy fairy-tale and OUAT cliches in the future...

Thank you for reading.