Disclaimer: I don't own 'Once Upon A Time' in any shape or form. But I do own my OC.
Title: Happy Ending
Author: Original Huntress
Pairings (for season 1 ONLY, NOT the other seasons): Graham/OC
Summary: Life for Annabelle was the same as always. She and her sister were still alone, but life was good; or, rather, better than it used to be. But what will happen when Annabelle's past comes back to haunt her? Pairings for season 1 ONLY, does NOT concern the other seasons: Graham/OC.
A/N: Okay, so I thought I'd try my hand at writing a 'Once Upon A Time' fan-fiction. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy! This chapter will have a lot of flashbacks, but only because they are all very important.
This will start in 1x01 'Pilot', and will continue through all the other episodes.
Happy Ending
Chapter One
Pilot
A beautiful young woman stepped out of the elevator, and took in a deep, subtle breath, before looking around the elegant restaurant she found herself in. She was wearing a tight, black dress that went down to her mid-thighs and hugged her figure. Her right arm was completely bare, while her left arm was decorated with an elegantly ripped black sleeve that went down to her elbow. Her hair was styled in sexy yet elegant subtle waves, and her feet were decorated by black five-inch heels. She took a confident step forward, and walked through the main lobby of the restaurant, before turning left to make her way over to the tables, still looking around, until her eyes landed on a handsome young man, whose eyes snapped to hers at the same time. They both smiled small, hesitant smiles, and the man stood up as she walked over to him.
"Annabelle?" he asked with a small, unsure smile as he extended his hand towards her, and she smiled.
"Ryan?" she asked, and the man chuckled in, what seemed to be, relief, "You looked relieved," she noted, the smile still on her face as they shook hands.
"Uh, well, it is the internet," Ryan said, the smile still present on his lips as his eyes raked over her outfit subtly, before he moved to pull out the chair for her. "Pictures can be-"
"Fake, outdated, stolen from a Victoria's Secret catalog," Annabelle cut him off as she listed with a smile, before they shared a laugh as Ryan sat down in front of her.
"Exactly," he nodded, a grin on his lips.
"So..."
"So... um... tell me something about yourself, Annabelle," Ryan suggested with a smile.
"Oh. Uh, well..." Annabelle trailed off as she thought of something to say. "Today's my birthday,"
"And you're spending it with me?" Ryan asked in surprise. "What about your friends?"
"I'm kind of a loner," she shrugged.
"And... you don't like your family?"
"No family to like," Annabelle replied truthfully. "Except for my sister, of course, but I already spent the whole day with her,"
"Oh, come on. Everyone has a family,"
"Technically, yeah. But not everyone knows who they are. My sister is the only family I ever knew," she said, before resting her eyes on Ryan's. "Ready to run yet?"
"Oh, not a chance," he said, "You, Annabelle, are, by far, the sexiest friendless orphan that I have ever met," he said with a charming grin on his handsome face, making Annabelle laugh as he quickly joined her.
"Okay. Your turn," she said with a grin, before holding up her finger, "Or wait, let me guess! Um... you are handsome, charming..."
"Go on,"
"The kind of guy who - and now, stop me if I get this wrong - embezzled from your employer, got arrested, and skipped town before they were able to throw your ass in jail," Annabelle said as she wiped the smile off her face.
"What?" Ryan chuckled, though anyone could tell that it was forced as his eyes betrayed his nervousness.
"And the worst part of all of this is your wife," Annabelle continued, ignoring his comment. "She loves you so much that she bailed you out, and how do you repay that loyalty? You're on a date,"
"Who are you?" Ryan asked, the smile no longer on his face.
"The chick who put up the rest of the money," Annabelle replied with a small, but subtle, smirk.
"You're a bail bondsman,"
"A bail bondsperson," she corrected, and Ryan fell silent as he started to breathe heavily.
Annabelle watched his every move, and jumped up just in time as he flipped the table over and jumped up, everything falling to the floor with a clatter and a glass of wine spilling on Annabelle's dress as he ran away. Annabelle sighed in irritation as she looked down at her dress. Though the stain was barely noticeable because of the dark material, she could still feel the dampness against her thigh. She then proceeded to calmly walk out of the restaurant, knowing full well that Ryan won't be able to get away.
Annabelle stepped out into the chilly night air, and her eyes quickly found the running-to-his-car Ryan. She then walked out on the street, ignoring the beeps of all the cars that stopped abruptly so that they wouldn't run her over, and she picked up the speed in her heels to get to Ryan.
"You don't have to do this, okay? I can pay you, I've got money," Ryan tried to negotiate as he opened the door to his car, knowing that he won't be able to go anywhere because of the blockage on his tire.
"No, you don't. And if you did, you should give it to your wife to take care of your family," Annabelle said.
"What the hell do you know about family, huh?" he asked spitefully, and she glared at him before grabbing him by the collar of his jacket and slamming his head against the wheel so hard that the horn beeped.
"A lot more than you, apparently," she said, knowing that she would never do to her sister what he did to his then again, she and her sister were the only ones the other had their whole lives.
"Hey!" Annabelle called as she walked into her apartment, quickly kicking the heels off her aching feet.
"Hey," a woman showed up in the hallway, looking at her with a small smile. Her blonde hair was in its usual perfect waves, and her green eyes held a sparkle they usually don't as she eyed Annabelle with a small smirk. "I see the date went well,"
"Oh, shut up," Annabelle rolled her eyes as she looked down at her dress with a grimace, the stain still not dry. She walked into their kitchen, and sat down on the chair beside their island, closing her eyes with a small groan as she rested her feet comfortably.
"Hey," she heard a voice, but ignored it as she kept her eyes closed, wanting nothing but sleep, "Anna," she heard the voice again, and sighed.
"Emma..." she groaned, opening her eyes slightly, only for them to widen as she saw the cupcake with a lit candle in it in front of her.
"Happy birthday," Emma smiled at her sister, and Annabelle's lips curled up in a small smile as she looked away from the cupcake and up at her sister. Seeing the more-than-usual evident love in Emma's eyes, her smile grew before she looked down at the cupcake.
"Another banner year, huh?" she asked rhetorically, but the smile on her face didn't falter, which made Emma keep hers as well. She watched as her sister closed her eyes for a moment before blowing out the candle, and smiled.
Annabelle looked up at her sister one more time, and they shared a smile before both of their brows furrowed as the doorbell rang. They shared a confused look before Emma walked over to the front door. She looked back at Annabelle one more time, before opening the door, only for her brows to furrow even more as she eyed the small boy in front of her.
"Uh... can I help you?" she asked.
"Are you Annabelle Swan?" the boy asked, and Emma's brows furrowed even further.
"No, that's-"
"That would be me," Annabelle cut her sister off as she walked up to stand beside her, looking down at the small boy. "Who are you?"
"My name is Henry," the boy said, before saying something that made Annabelle's heart stop, "I'm your son," he said with an easy smile on his young face, before squeezing through between the sisters and entering the apartment.
"Whoa, hey, kid," Emma called as her sister stood frozen in her spot for a few seconds, almost not being able to breathe, "Kid. Kid!" Emma continued to call as she followed Henry, who walked through the apartment, and Annabelle took in a deep breath, trying to remind herself how to breathe properly, before closing the front door and following her sister and her... son.
"Hey, kid," Annabelle spoke up, feeling quite proud that her voice got only choked up the tiniest bit. "I-I don't have a son,"
"Where are your parents?" Emma asked, and Henry finally turned around to look at them.
"Ten years ago, did you give up a baby for adoption?" he asked, his eyes trained solely on Annabelle, who, once again, felt like she couldn't breathe as memories came flooding back like a tsunami. "That was me,"
"Give me a minute," Annabelle finally said after a moment of silence, not letting either Emma or Henry say anything as she rushed to the bathroom, almost bumping into the wall a few times as she staggered through the hallway. She closed the door behind her, and rested a hand on it so that she wouldn't fall over as her breathing grew more and more unstable.
"Hey, do you have any juice?" she heard Henry ask from outside the door, "Never mind, found some," she heard again before Emma had the chance to reply to Henry's question. Annabelle then took in a deep breath, trying not to hyperventilate, and closed her eyes for a moment, before slowly breathing out like her sister taught her ten years ago as she struggled to go on with her life after giving up her son.
Annabelle took in another deep breath, before slowly opening the door and stepping back into the kitchen, only to see Henry drinking their orange juice straight from the bottle, and Emma standing in front of him, looking like she had no idea what to do as she stared at her... nephew. She could now actually see the similarities. Henry's eyes were brown, but with a shade of green that almost exactly matched hers. And his hair color was 100% Annabelle's.
"You know, we should probably get going," Henry said with a small, innocent smile as he looked at Annabelle once she walked back into the kitchen.
"Going where?" she asked, looking at Emma with a look that clearly betrayed that she had no idea what she was supposed to do right now.
"I want you to come home with me," Henry said.
"Okay, kid. I'm calling the cops," Emma decided to take the lead, and walked over to the coffee table in their living room to pick up the phone.
"Then I'll tell them you kidnapped me," Henry said.
"And they'll believe you because I'm your birth mother," Annabelle realized, waling over to stand beside her sister.
"Yep,"
"You're not gonna do that," she said after a second, but Henry just stared at her.
"Try me,"
"You're pretty good," she noted with a small smile, recognizing his almost-sass as the same way she used to act, "But here's the thing. There's not a lot I'm good at in life, but I have one skill. Let's call it a superpower," she said, looking down at the boy in front of her, "I can tell when anyone is lying. And you, kid, are," she stated, and Emma proceeded to call the police with the phone she already had in her hand.
"Wait," Henry spoke up, "Please don't call the cops," he said to Emma, before turning his gaze to Annabelle, "Please. Come home with me," he pleaded, and Annabelle's eyes softened as she couldn't help but give in.
"Where's home?" she finally asked, and Emma looked at her with wide eyes, almost not being able to believe what he sister was doing.
"Storybrooke, Maine,"
"Storybrooke? Seriously?" Emma asked, doubt clear in her voice, but Henry just nodded.
"Mm-hmm,"
"Alright, then," Annabelle finally sighed. "Let's get you back to Storybrooke,"
"What's wrong?" Prince Charming asked his wife as he walked up to her with their daughter in his arms, seeing her standing in the doorway of their balcony with her hands on her growing belly.
"Nothing," Snow White shook her head, trying to give him a reassuring smile as she subconsciously tightened her hands around her belly.
"You're thinking about what the Queen said again, aren't you?" Prince Charming guessed, shifting his daughter in his arms as she yawned, "Snow, please. I can't keep having this conversation, you have to let it go," he said in a gentle voice as he tightened his hold on their daughter, who was resting on his hip with her head on his shoulder, with on hand in order to grab Snow White's hand with his other, "We're about to have a baby," he said, gesturing to the second, not yet completely prepared crib in their chambers.
"I haven't had a restful night since our wedding," Snow White said as she walked into the room, walking over to their not-yet-born child's crib.
"That's what she wants, to get in your head, but they're only words," Prince Charming tried to soothe as he walked over to stand next to his wife, lowering his voice as the one-year-old child in his arms yawned again. "She can't hurt us,"
"She poisoned an apple because she thought I was prettier than her," Snow White said, "You have no idea of what she's capable," she said, and Prince Charming sighed.
"What can I do to ease your mind?" he asked, wanting nothing more than for his wife to finally get a good night's sleep, especially since they were about to have another child.
"Let me talk... to him," Snow White finally said, looking up at her husband.
"'Him'? You don't mean-?"
"I do," Snow White cut him off, to which he immediately shook his head.
"No. No, no, it's too dangerous,"
"He sees the future,"
"There's a reason he's locked up," Prince Charming said, his voice growing louder before he lowered it against as his daughter shifted in his arms, her eyes already halfway closed.
"Can you promise me that our children will be safe?" Snow White asked, her voice growing louder as the frustration and fear finally showed, "Can you guarantee it? Because he can," she said, finally lowering her voice as her husband walked over to the other crib and gently lied their daughter down before covering her with her blanket, hushing as she wriggled a bit, no longer feeling the warmth of her father's arms.
Prince Charming sighed quietly, gently stroking his daughter's cheek as he watched her eyes close completely and her drift off into a peaceful sleep. He then straightened up, and closed his eyes briefly before turning to look at his wife, whose eyes softened as she watched her husband.
"Alright," he finally said. "For our children,"
"I'm hungry. Do you want to stop somewhere?" Henry finally spoke up from the backseat after a so-far quiet trip.
"This is not a road trip, we're not stopping for snacks," Emma said from the passenger seat as Annabelle subconsciously tightened her hold on the steering wheel. She was now out of the elegant dress, and was wearing simple skinny jeans with a white loose shirt. Because it was quite chilly, she had on her favorite black jacket, and wore brown boots of the same shade as the belt around her waist. Her hair was now in its natural waves she shared with Emma, and a few strands were tied loosely at the back of her head.
"Why not?"
"Quit complaining, kid," Annabelle finally spoke up, though her voice wasn't harsh. "Remember, we could've put your butt on the bus, we still could,"
"You know I have a name? It's Henry," the boy said, but Annabelle didn't answer as she glanced at him in the rear view mirror, honestly not knowing how to speak to her... son.
"What's that?" she finally asked, glancing at the book he was reading through the rear view mirror.
"I'm not sure you're ready," Henry replied.
"Ready for some fairy tales?" Emma quirked her eyebrow as she turned around in her seat to get a better look at the book.
"They're not fairy tales. They're true. Every story in this book actually happened," Henry said, and Annabelle nodded slowly as Emma stared at the boy.
"Of course it did," Annabelle said quietly, not knowing how to approach the boy's imagination.
"Use your superpower. See if I'm lying," Henry dared, and Annabelle couldn't help but glance at him through the rear view mirror, catching his eyes, and actually doing a double take as she saw nothing but truth in his eyes.
"Just because... you believe that something is true, doesn't mean it is," she finally said,
"That's exactly what makes it true. You should know more than anyone,"
"Why is that?" Annabelle asked, confused.
"Because you're in this book," Henry replied, before looking at Emma. "You both are,"
"Oh, kid," Emma sighed as she turned back around in her seat. "You've got problems,"
"Yup, and you're gonna fix them," Henry said, and Annabelle couldn't help but glance at her sister anxiously. What was she supposed to do?
"When we reach the cell, stay out of the light, and whatever you do, do not let him know your name," the guard instructed the royal couple as he led them through the dungeon tunnels, a lit torch in his hand, "If he knows your name, he will have power over you," he said, just as they turned the corner and Prince Charming covered his face with the hood of his cloak, Snow White's face already covered, "Rumplestiltskin," the guard called as they reached the cell. "Rumplestiltskin! I have a question for you,"
"No, you don't," came a voice from the cell, before someone jumped down from its ceiling, "They do. Snow White, and Prince Charming," he almost sang, before laughing in, what could only be described as, evil manner. "You insult me. Step into the light and take off those ridiculous robes," he said, before cackling as Snow White and her husband did just that, taking off their hoods and revealing their faces. "That's much better,"
"We've come to ask you about the-"
"Yes, yes, I know why you're here!" the creature yelled, cutting Prince Charming off, making Snow White jump a tiny bit as she and her husband walked closer to the cell, finally getting a better look at would've looked like a funny-looking old man, quite skinny and average height, if it wasn't for his rotten teeth and skin that resembled almost that of a crocodile. "You want to know about the Queen's threat,"
"Tell us what you know!" Snow White ordered, and Rumplestiltskin gasped mockingly.
"Ohh. Tense, aren't we? Fear not! For I can ease your mind... but... it's gonna cost you something in return,"
"No!" Prince Charming immediately refused, before turning to his wife, "This is a waste of time," he tried to persuade her to turn back, but Snow White was too determined to turn back now and stepped forward bravely.
"What do you want?" she asked.
"Oh... the name of your unborn child?" Rumplestiltskin suggested.
"Absolutely not," Prince Charming sneered.
"Deal!" Snow White said, needing to know what Rumplestiltskin knew. "What do you know?"
"The Queen has created a powerful curse. And it's coming. Soon, you'll all be in a prison, just like me, only worse. For your prison, all of our prisons, will be time. For time will stop, and we will be trapped. Someplace horrible, where everything we hold dear, everything we love will be ripped from us while we suffer for all eternity. While the Queen celebrates, victorious at last!" Rumplestiltskin spoke, his voice almost gleeful at times and a grin on his lips, showing his rotten teeth, before he wiped the smile off his face and looked Snow White in the eyes seriously. "No more happy endings,"
"What can we do?" Snow White asked, taking another step forward.
"We can't do anything,"
"Who can?" she asked, her voice now quieter.
"That little thing, growing inside your belly," Rumplestiltskin said, reaching his hand through the bars to point at Snow White growing stomach, only for Prince Charming to unsheathe his sword and cut his hand, making him gasp in pain and quickly pull it back.
"Next time I cut it off," Prince Charming growled, and Rumplestiltskin tsked.
"The infant is our only hope," he growled, before turning his gaze to Snow White. "Get the child to safety, get them both to safety. Get the child to safety and on its... 28th birthday... both children will return. The children will find you... and the final battle will begin!" he exclaimed, before laughing hysterically.
"I've heard enough, we're leaving," Prince Charming said, grabbing his wife's arm and turning them both around, leading them out of the dungeons with the guard following.
"Hey! You! We made a deal! I want her name! We had a deal! I! Need! Her! Name! H-H-Her name!" Rumplestiltskin screamed madly at Snow White, making them stop and turn around.
"'Her'? It's a boy," Prince Charming said and proceeded to walk out, but stopped as he noticed Snow White not following.
"Missy. Missy... you know I'm right," Rumplestiltskin spoke to Snow White with a smile on his face, "Tell me. What's her name?" he asked, and Snow White closed her eyes briefly before turning around to look at him.
"Annabelle," she almost whispered, though her voice echoed in the tunnel. "Her name is Annabelle,"
"Annabelle," Rumplestiltskin repeated to himself as he watched the couple leave, a grin growing on his lips.
"Here we are," Annabelle mumbled to herself as she drove past the sign 'Welcome to STORYBROOKE'.
"Okay, kid," Emma spoke up as Annabelle drove the car down the empty streets of the town, and turned around in her seat to look at Henry. "How about an address?"
"44 Not-Telling-You Street," Henry replied, and that was all it took for Annabelle to slam on the brake abruptly, the tires squealing on the pavement, making Emma turn back around in her seat in surprise as her sister quickly got out of the car and slammed the door behind her before running a hand through her hair, no one paying attention to the sudden crackle of electricity on the power lines above their heads. Emma glanced back at Henry, before also getting out of the car, and walking over to her sister though not knowing how to approach her. Annabelle hasn't said a word ever since they passed the sign. She hasn't even looked at either Emma or Henry.
"Look..." Annabelle finally spoke up, very obviously trying to keep her temper under control, as Henry also got out of the car, "It's been a long night, and it's almost..." she trailed off as she looked up at the clock tower, only for her brows to furrow in confusion. "8:15?"
"That clock hasn't moved my whole life," Henry said as he glanced at the clock, walking over to the two sisters before looking at them seriously. "Time's frozen here,"
"Excuse me?" Annabelle asked, looking at him like he just lost his mind, the frustration, exhaustion, and... fear... finally getting to her.
"The Evil Queen did it with her curse," Henry started to explain, his voice completely serious. "She sent everyone from the Enchanted Forest here,"
"Hang on," Emma spoke up, "An evil queen sent a bunch of fairy tale characters here?" she asked, also starting to look at the boy like he was out of his mind.
"Yeah, and now they're trapped," Henry said.
"Frozen in time, stuck in Storybrooke, Maine... That's what you're going with?" Annabelle asked in disbelief, not waiting for a reply before she nodded, her eyes widening in complete helplessness and exasperation regarding the boy's imagination. "Fantastic,"
"It's true," Henry insisted.
"Then why doesn't everybody just leave?" Annabelle asked impatiently.
"They can't. If they try, bad things happen," Henry said, and Annabelle looked up at her sister, her eyes betraying that she was very close to just slumping down and ripping her hair out.
"Henry!" came a male voice from a few feet away, and the three turned around, only to see a man with a dog on a leash jogging up to them, "What are you doing here?" the man asked Henry. He looked very harmless and even innocent, but sophisticated. He was dressed in quite elegant clothes that reminded Annabelle of the look of a university professor, and his voice was slightly raspy but gentle and almost soothing. He wore glasses, his eyes green and his hair red and curly, but short. "Is everything alright?"
"I'm fine, Archie," Henry assured as he bent down to pet the man's dog.
"Who's this?" Archie asked, his eyes on Emma and Annabelle, giving the two women a small kind smile.
"Just someone trying to give him a ride home," Annabelle answered, her voice still a bit tense.
"She's my mom, Archie," Henry said, and Annabelle couldn't help but glance down at him with wide eyes before closing them briefly and sighing quietly, while Emma glared at Henry for being so blunt to someone she or Annabelle didn't even know.
"Oh," Archie's eyes widened just the tiniest bit as they flickered between Henry and Annabelle. "I see,"
"You know where he lives?" Emma asked, noticing that her sister desperately wanted the man's eyes off of her.
"Uh, yeah, sure, just, uh... right up on Mifflin Street; the Mayor's house is the biggest one on the block," Archie replied kindly, quickly collecting himself.
"You're the Mayor's kid?" Annabelle looked down at Henry, her eyes wide in exasperation. Could this day get any worse?
"Uh, maybe," Henry said, the statement coming out as more of a question, looking down at his feet nervously before glancing up at the two sisters innocently.
"Hey, where were you today, Henry? 'Cause you missed our session," Archie spoke up, looking down at the boy.
"Oh, well, I forgot to tell you, I went on a field trip," Henry said, and Archie kept his eyes on Annabelle and Emma before squatting down to be on eye-level with Henry.
"Henry... what'd I tell you about lying? Giving into one's dark side never accomplishes anything," he said, and Annabelle and Emma both rose their eyebrows at the way the man was speaking to a ten-year-old.
"O-kay..." Annabelle said, looking at the man strangely, before giving him a smile that was quite obviously fake. She honestly didn't know what to make of Archie. "Well, we should really be getting him home,"
"Yeah, sure, well, listen, um, have a good night, and, uh... you be good, Henry," Archie said with a smile, patting Henry on the shoulder, before giving the two sister one last smile and walking away with his dog by his side.
"So that's your shrink?" Emma looked down at Henry the second Archie walked away.
"I'm not crazy," Henry said firmly.
"Didn't say that," Emma said. "Just... he doesn't seem cursed to me. Maybe he's just trying to help you,"
"He's the one who needs help, because he doesn't know,"
"That he's a fairy tale character?" Annabelle asked, looking at Henry with raised eyebrows.
"None of them do, they don't remember who they are," Henry said.
"Convenient," Annabelle scoffed, though couldn't help but smile a small smile as she looked at Emma, both now understanding how Henry's game worked, "Alright, I'll play," Annabelle said, opening the car door from the driver's side as Emma walked over to the passenger's side and Henry opened the backseat door. "Who's he supposed to be?"
"Jiminy Cricket," Henry replied.
"Right, the lying thing," Emma smiled a small amused smile as she got in the car. "Thought your nose grew a little bit,"
"I'm not Pinocchio," Henry said as he also got in the car, and Annabelle stopped her movements for a second before nodding sarcastically.
"Of course you're not. That would be ridiculous," she said, before also getting in the car and starting the engine.
"I say we fight!" Prince Charming slammed his fist on the round table he, his pregnant wife, and warrior friends were sitting around, jumping up from his chair.
"Fighting is a bad idea. Giving into one's dark side never accomplishes anything," Jiminy Cricket said from where he was standing on the table in his cricket form under a maximizing glass so that Prince Charming could see him clearly.
"And how many wars has a clear conscience won?" Prince Charming asked rhetorically, before looking around. "We need to take the Queen out before she can inflict her curse,"
"Can we even trust Reumplestiltskin?" one of the dwarfs at the table asked.
"I've sent my men into the forest," Prince Charming said. "The animals are abuzz with the Queen's plan... This is going to happen unless we do something about it,"
"There's no point," Snow White spoke up for the first time from where she was sitting. "The future is written,"
"No," Prince Charming shook his head. "I refuse to believe that. Good can't just lose,"
"Maybe it can," Snow White said as she adverted her eyes, her voice quiet and tired.
"No," Prince Charming lowered his voice as he shook his head, sitting back down next to his wife, "No. Not as long as we have each other. If you believe him about the curse then you must believe him about our child. She will be the savior," he said, a small smile growing on his lips before everyone's attention turned to the doors as they banged open, "What the hell is this?" Prince Charming stood up again, his voice louder as a few soldiers carried in a tree trunk, a blue fairy flying in front of them.
"Our only hope of saving that child," she said.
"A tree? Our fate rests on a tree?" one of the dwarfs asked incredulously before looking up at Prince Charming. "Let's get back to the fighting thing,"
"The tree is enchanted," the fairy said with a gentle smile, "If fashioned into a vessel, it can ward off any curse," she said, before looking down at an elder man sitting at the table. "Geppetto... can you build such a thing?"
"Me and my boy - we can do it," Geppetto said, reaching down to stroke the head of a small boy sitting on the floor by his chair.
"This will work. We all must have faith," the fairy said as she turned to Snow White and Prince Charming as the brunette took her husband's hand in both of hers, looking up at him with wide hopeful eyes, "There is, however, a catch," the fairy spoke up hesitantly, and everyone's attention turned to her. "The enchantment is indeed powerful, but all power has its limits. And this tree... can protect only two,"
"Please don't take me back there," Henry pleaded as Annabelle and Emma lead the way to the Mayor's house, which really was the biggest house on the block, if not the biggest house in town. It reminded Annabelle of a mansion.
"We have to, I'm sure your parents are worried sick about you," Annabelle said as Emma opened the gate and lead the way, Annabelle and Henry following. Though Annabelle's voice was indifferent, she couldn't help but worry. Why didn't Henry want to go home? Was someone hurting him? She knew that it was really none of her business, but... he was still her son. At least biologically.
"I don't have parents - just a mom, and she's evil," Henry said, and Emma rolled her eyes as she and Annabelle turned around to look at the boy.
"'Evil'? That's a bit extreme, isn't it?" Emma said, trying to keep her tone patient as Annabelle's worry increased. What if Henry's... mom really was evil? What if she was hurting him?
"She is. She doesn't love me, she only pretends to," Henry said, and Annabelle couldn't help but release a small sigh of relief that thankfully went unnoticed by the other two people. It honestly didn't matter to her if Henry's adoptive mother 'pretended to love him'. As long as she actually showed affection and didn't hurt him.
"Kid," she finally sighed, deciding to take the lead, knowing that that's what a responsible parent is supposed to do. Or, at least, a responsible adult, "I'm sure that's not true," she said as she leaned down to be on eye-level with Henry.
"Henry?" a female voice called out as the door of the house opened, "Oh, Henry," the woman whimpered in relief, quickly running down the steps and racing towards Henry, immediately gathering him in her arms. Annabelle and Emma both took a step back, letting the woman hug Henry, and Annabelle took the short time to quickly analyze the woman. There was no hiding it, she was beautiful. Her skin was fair, and her shiny black hair was short but styled elegantly and so that it was perfect for the shape of her face. She had a very good figure, and was dressed in an elegant palette silver dress that went down to her knees and hugged her body, "Ohh. Are you okay?" the woman questioned, before pulling away and holding him at arm's length. "Where have you been? What happened?"
"I found my real mom!" Henry almost yelled at the poor woman before running past her and into the house as Annabelle and Emma stood in front of the woman, neither knowing what to say to her as her still tear-filled eyes shifted to them. Annabelle, knowing that Henry already spilled the beans, decided to take a step forward so that she wouldn't actually have to say that she's the woman who gave birth to Henry ten years earlier.
"Y-You're Henry's birth mother?" the woman asked, her eyes on Annabelle as she got the silent message that the blue-eyed brunette was Henry's biological mom.
"Hi," Annabelle chuckled weakly, smiling nervously.
"I'll just go and check on the lad, make sure he's alright," came a male voice with a British accent from behind the woman, and both Annabelle and Emma turned to look at him, noticing the man for the first time. Annabelle could honestly admit that he was probably the most handsome man she had ever seen in her life. He had brown short hair and a scruffy beard and mustache, his eyes brown and his face ridiculously well structured. He was wearing a, what seemed to be, sheriff's uniform, and Annabelle could vaguely make out the muscles underneath it. The man turned around and followed Henry into the house, and the sisters turned their attention back to the woman.
"How would you two like a glass of the best apple cider you ever tasted?" she offered as she forced herself to give the two women in front of her a kind smile.
"Got anything stronger?" Annabelle asked, suddenly needing the booze.
Annabelle and Emma looked at the Mayor as she came back into the room she left them in, three glasses in her hands, the sisters standing in between the room and the hallway behind them.
"How did he even find me?" Annabelle finally asked the question that's been bugging her ever since Henry showed up in her and Emma's apartment.
"No idea. When I adopted him, he was only three weeks old. The records were sealed. I was told the birth mother didn't want to have any contact," the Mayor replied.
"You were told right," Annabelle mumbled, though the two other women in the room could hear her perfectly.
"And the father?"
"There was one," Annabelle simply said, her voice making it clear that she didn't want to talk about it.
"Do I need to be worried about him?"
"Nope. He doesn't even know," Annabelle said as the Mayor finished pouring the drinks.
"Do I need to be worried about you, Miss Swan?" she asked with a smile as she handed the sisters their drinks, before grabbing her own.
"Absolutely not," Annabelle said.
"Madame Mayor, you can relax," came a voice from above, and the three women all turned around, only to see the sheriff from earlier coming down the stairs. "Other than being a tired little boy, Henry's fine,"
"Thank you, Sheriff," the Mayor said gratefully, and the Sheriff gave the three women a respectful nod before making his way out of the house, "I'm sorry he dragged you out of your life," the Mayor said to Annabelle and Emma once the Sheriff left, leading them into another room that reminded Annabelle of a mini library. "I really don't know what's gotten into him,"
"Kid's having a hard time. It happens," Emma said as she and Annabelle entered the room, the Mayor closing the door behind them.
"You have to understand, ever since I became Mayor balancing things has been tricky," the Mayor tried to explain as Emma and Annabelle sat down on one of the sofas, "You have jobs, I assume,"
"Uh, we keep busy, yeah," Annabelle said with a small smile as Emma put her drink down on the coffee table in front of them, a whole basket of perfectly red apples on it.
"Imagine having another one on top of it," the Mayor said with a small smile as she walked over to sit down on the sofa in front of them, "That's being a single mom. So I push for order," she chuckled lightly. "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?"
"Oh, I'm sure he's just saying that because of the fairy tale thing," Annabelle tried to reassure the woman, assuming that she was referring to what Henry's been saying.
"What fairy tale thing?"
"Oh, you know, his book. How he thinks everyone's a cartoon character from it," Annabelle clarified with a smile.
"Yeah, like his shrink is Jiminy Cricket," Emma added with a light chuckle, but the Mayor only stared at them.
"I'm sorry, I really have no idea what you're talking about," she said, and the sisters' smiles faltered as they both felt the atmosphere becoming tense.
"You know what?" Annabelle finally spoke up after a moment of silence, "It's none of our business. He's your kid," she felt her heart make the slightest of twists as she said that, but decided to ignore it. "And we really should be heading back,"
"Of course," the Mayor agreed, standing up and opening the door quickly, making Annabelle and Emma pause for a second as they saw how eager the woman was to get them out of her house. Though, it was actually understandable.
"Alright," Annabelle sighed as she and Emma also stood up, before facing the Mayor as they exited the room, "I'm sorry for the trouble. I can promise you we won't be bothering you again for a long time," she promised.
"Good night," the Mayor said with a small smile, and the sisters nodded.
"Good night," they responded, before showing themselves out. As they walked down the path, Annabelle reached into her pocket to retrieve the car keys, but stopped as she felt someone's eyes on her. Her brows furrowed before she turned around and looked up, only to see Henry looking at her from his window.
"Here," Emma spoke up as she saw her sister looking at Henry, who quickly disappeared, "Why don't I drive this time," she offered, and Annabelle nodded, handing her the car keys. Normally she would have protested and insisted that she can drive back, but she was so tired that she could already feel her eyes closing, so she decided to do the smartest thing and let her sister drive.
The Swan sisters' car drove down the road that leads out of Storybrooke, the two women silent as Annabelle started to slowly fall asleep, the events of the day catching up to her.
"What the...?" she heard Emma mumble, and opened her eyes, only to see her sister glancing behind her at the backseat. Annabelle's brows furrowed and she turned around in her seat to look at the backseat and see what her sister was looking at, only to see Henry's fairy tale book lying on the seat.
"That sneaky little bastard," she said to herself in a slightly amused tone, though Emma heard her and couldn't hold back a small chuckle as she glanced back at the book. Annabelle shook her head and sighed as she turned back around in her seat, only for her eyes to widen as she saw a white wolf smack in the middle of the road in front of them, "Emma, look out!" she screamed, and Emma turned back to look at the road, and her eyes widened as she also saw the wolf. In a swing of panic, the blonde slammed on the brakes and swerved the car to the side. However, the pavement was very slippery because of the rain that's been pouring down heavily for the past few minutes, and the car slid down the street as it turned to the side, before finally coming to a stop as it hit the sign 'Welcome to STORYBROOKE' from the driver's side. Emma and Annabelle were both thrown about in the car, before Emma was knocked out as her head his the steering wheel upon the force of the collision, and the same fate befell on Annabelle as her head knocked against the window. The force of the impact was so strong that the car doors from Annabelle's side swung open, and the two sisters were left unconscious in their car as the fairy tale book found itself on the floor in the back of the car.
"I don't want to do this," Snow White said, her voice desperate and pleading as she walked off the balcony and into the chambers where her husband was.
"It has to be you. You and Emma," Prince Charming said, and Snow White shook her head.
"I'm not leaving you," she protested, her voice choked up and full of emotion as she walked over to him.
"It's the only way," he whispered as she gathered her into his arms, their foreheads pressed against each other, "You'll go in there with our daughter, and you'll be safe from the curse," Prince Charming whispered as tears started streaming down Snow White's face.
"He said it would be on her 28th birthday," she stressed, her hands cupping his face as she referred to what Rumplestiltskin said about their unborn child.
"What's 28 years when you have eternal love?" Prince Charming asked rhetorically, trying and failing to reassure her as she began to cry, her breathing louder, "I got faith... You will save me as I did you," he whispered, and Snow White took in a deep shaky breath as she touched his cheek with her hand before slamming her lips onto his, kissing him with everything she had as tears ran down her cheeks. Prince Charming wrapped his arms around her waist as she wrapped her arms around his neck, and they held on tight to each other tightly as they kissed for, what probably was, the last time. However, the kiss didn't last long as Snow White suddenly pulled away, her lips parted in a silent gasp. "What is it?"
"The baby," she gasped, before looking up at her husband with wide fearful eyes. "She's coming,"
Annabelle's blue eyes opened as she heard someone whistling 'Whistle When You Work', and her brows furrowed when a bright light hit her eyes. The last thing she remembered was driving in the middle of the night. How is it day already? She realized she was lying down on something, and tried to sit up, only to groan quietly as everything spun around for a moment before settling down. Annabelle decided to try to sit up again, slower this time, and succeeded, her eyes immediately finding the source of whistling, which turned out to be a man around his early or mid-forties, a dark beard with some gray hair covering his face and only some black hair on his scalp. The man was sitting on a cot only a few feet away from the, what she realized also was, cot she was lying on, and she looked around, only to see bars of a cell. What the hell? She thought to herself, before bringing her gaze back onto the man, who continued to whistle.
"What are you looking at, sister?" he suddenly asked, halting in his whistles, making Annabelle immediately look away.
"Hey, Leroy. Manners. We have guests," spoke up a voice with an Italian accent from outside the cell, and Annabelle shifted her gaze to look at the man around his early or mid-sixties, with white hair covering part of his scalp and white beard and mustache and dark eyebrows, wearing a mechanic's uniform. Annabelle put a hand to her forehead as a headache arose, and looked around, only for her eyes to land on a familiar blonde, who was unconscious on a cot a few feet away from her.
"Emma," she murmured, quickly getting off the cot and walking over to her sister, squatting beside her.
"Do not worry," the man from outside the cell spoke up, and Annabelle turned her head to look at him, "She's alright. Just unconscious," he said, and Annabelle nodded a bit reluctantly before standing up, putting a hand to her forehead again as she saw black spots in her vision. "So you are, uh, Henry's mother? How lovely for him to have you back in his life,"
"Actually, we were just dropping him off," Annabelle said as she closed her eyes, waiting for the black spots to clear.
"Don't blame ya," Leroy scoffed. "They're all brats, who needs 'em?"
"Well, I'd give anything for one," the man on the outside of the cell said, a cup of coffee in his hand, as he looked at Leroy before looking at Annabelle, "My wife and I, we tried for many years, but, uh... it was not meant to be," he said, looking down, and Annabelle felt herself soften a bit as she looked at the man whose eyes reflected nothing but kindness and sadness.
"Well, cry me a river," Leroy said dryly from his cell.
"Leroy," came a voice from, what seemed to be, the office, before the handsome sheriff whom Annabelle and Emma briefly saw at the Mayor's mansion came out with a set of keys in his hand, "I'm going to let you out, you need to behave," he said to Leroy, who stood up as the Sheriff opened his cell doors, "Put on a smile, and stay out of trouble," he said, and Leroy stopped to stand in front of him and grin sarcastically, making the Sheriff shake his head as the shorter man walked away.
"Seriously?" Annabelle finally spoke up, looking at the Sheriff with an almost bored look at she propped her elbows on the bars of a cell.
"Regina's drinks - a little stronger than we thought," the Sheriff shrugged, looking down at Annabelle with a small smile, just as a groan could be heard from behind her. The blue-eyed woman turned around, only to see her sister slowly sitting up as she tried to blink the black spots from her vision.
"I wasn't drunk," Emma said, apparently having heard what the Sheriff said. "There was a wolf standing in the middle of the road,"
"A wolf," the Sheriff repeated, nodding sarcastically as Emma managed to completely sit up. "Right,"
"You okay?" Annabelle asked her sister, deciding to ignore the Sheriff's mocking, and Emma nodded as she groaned a little before standing up, swaying for only a second before regaining her balance and opening her eyes.
"Graham!" they all heard a familiar voice, "Henry's run away again, we have to..." the clearly distressed Mayor appeared in the line of sight of the two women and Sheriff, freezing when she saw the two sisters. Particularly Annabelle, "What is she doing here?" the Mayor asked, her eyes on Annabelle and turning slightly distasteful as she picked up her pace, walking towards the cell. "Do you know where he is?!"
"Lady, I haven't seen him since we dropped him off at your house," Annabelle said in a tired voice, straightening up.
"And we have a pretty good alibi, too," Emma said dryly, glancing at the Sheriff.
"Yeah, well he wasn't in his room this morning," Regina said.
"Did you try his friends?" Annabelle asked, her voice now a bit more serious.
"He doesn't really have any. He's kind of a loner," Regina shook her head, starting to glare at the brunette.
"Every kid has friends," Emma shrugged, her voice turning quieter as her thoughts subconsciously traveled to to her and Annabelle's childhood.
"Did you check his computer?" Annabelle suddenly spoke up, a thought hitting her. "If he's close to someone, he'd be e-mailing them,"
"And you know this how?" the Mayor asked in a hard tone, just barely stopping herself from glaring at the birth mother of her son.
"Finding people is kind of what we do," Annabelle said, just barely stopping herself from glaring at Regina as well.
"Here's an idea," Emma spoke up, looking between the Mayor and the Sheriff. "How about you guys let us out, and we'll help you find him?"
"Smart kid," Annabelle sighed as she leaned back in the chair she was sitting on by in front of Henry's computer, Emma standing beside her as the Sheriff sat on her other side and Regina paced the room less than an hour later. "He cleared his in-box,"
"I'm smart, too," Emma spoke up, pulling out a small hard disk from her pocket, "A little hard disk recovery utility I like to use," she smiled triumphantly, and Annabelle smiled, getting out of the chair to let Emma sit down and standing between her and Graham.
"I'm a bit more old-fashioned in my techniques - pounding the pavement, knocking on doors, that sort of thing," Graham said.
"You're on salary. We get paid for delivery," Emma said as she worked her magic on Henry's computer, "Pounding the pavement is not a luxury that we get," she said, before noticing something on the computer, "Huh. There's a receipt for a website - ," she said, and Annabelle leaned forward, slightly blocking Graham's view of the computer screen as she did.
"It's expensive," she said, eyeing the '$265.50' on the screen, her brows furrowing, "He has a credit card?" she asked a bit incredulously, looking up at Regina.
"He's 10," the Mayor scoffed.
"Well, he used one," Annabelle said.
"Let's pull up a transaction record," Emma said, before doing just that.
"'Mary Margaret Blanchard'. Who's Mary Margaret Blanchard?" Annabelle asked as they all turned to look at Regina, whose eyes turned cold.
"Henry's teacher,"
Annabelle and Emma followed Regina down the hallways of the school, the sisters struggling to get past all the running kids as the bell for recess rang.
"Where is my son?" they heard Regina ask someone, undoubtedly Mary Margaret Blanchard, and tried to pick up their pace without barreling into any of the kids.
"Henry? I assumed he was home, sick, with you," the woman, Mary Margaret, replied, just as Annabelle and Emma managed to make it past all the kids and stop in the doorway of the classroom. Annabelle, finally seeing Henry's teacher, took a second to quickly analyze her. Mary Margaret had short, black hair, shorter than Regina's, and green eyes almost the same shade as Emma's. She had fair pale skin, and seemed to be about Emma's age.
"You think I'd be here if he was?" Regina asked the teacher coldly, just as Mary Margaret's eyes landed on Emma and Annabelle, "Did you give him your credit card so he can find her?" Regina asked in a hard tone, jerking her head towards Annabelle.
"I'm sorry, who are you?" Mary Margaret asked, confused.
"I'm his... I'm his..." Annabelle stuttered, not knowing how to say something she refused, or didn't know how, even say to herself out loud.
"The woman who gave him up for adoption," Regina finally cut in, her voice cold as Mary Margaret glanced between the three women before sighing quietly and putting her bag on a desk beside her.
"You don't know anything about this, do you?" Annabelle suddenly realized as Mary Margaret started digging through her bag, looking at the woman who fell victim to Regina's anger sympathetically.
"No, unfortunately not..." Mary Margaret replied, trailing off as she opened her wallet, only to see her credit card missing, "Clever boy," she mumbled to herself, before shaking her head. "I should never have given him that book,"
"What in the hell is this book I keep hearing about?" Regina snapped.
"Just some old stories I gave him," Mary Margaret said, trying to appease the Mayor, "As you well know, Henry is a special boy - so smart, so creative... and as you might be aware... lonely," she said, and Annabelle and Emma shared a glance, both a bit shocked at the information about Henry, though feeling an ugly familiarity crawling up their skin. "He needed it,"
"What he needs is a dose of reality," Regina said, "This is a waste of time," she said, whether to herself or to Emma and Annabelle, before turning around and nearly storming through the classroom, pushing a stack of books off of one of the desks, "Have a nice trip back to Boston," she said to the two sisters, not even bothering to look at either of them as she walked out the door.
Emma quickly rushed to help Mary Margaret pick up the books, while Annabelle remained where she was for a second longer, staring at the door Regina left through with wide eyes filled with bewilderment. What kind of a mayor is she?
"I'm sorry to bother you," she heard Emma say, and snapped out of her thoughts before rushing to help the two women with the books.
"Yeah, I'm... really sorry," Annabelle apologized, feeling a bit embarrassed as she squatted between Mary Margaret and Emma.
"No, it's..." Mary Margaret trailed off as she got a good look at the two women's faces, seeming to be lost in thought for a second before snapping out of it. "It's okay, I fear this is... partially my fault,"
"How's a book supposed to help?" Annabelle asked before she was able to stop herself. She didn't even know why she asked that question.
"What do you think stories are for?" Mary Margaret asked with a smile as she accepted all the books before the three women stood up, "These stories? The classics?" she spoke as she put the books down on a table against the wall, "There's a reason we all know them. They're a way for us to deal with our world," she said, before beginning to leave the classroom alongside the two sisters. "A world that doesn't always make sense... See, Henry hasn't had the easiest life,"
"Yeah, she's kind of a hard-ass," Emma said, referring to Regina, and Annabelle nodded in agreement.
"No, it's more than her," Mary Margaret said, "He's like any adopted child. He wrestles with that most basic question they all inevitably face: 'why would anyone give me away?'" she said, and Annabelle took in a deep breath, looking to the side as tears filled her eyes against her will. With every passing second, she was feeling worse and worse about what she did ten years earlier, "I am so sorry," Mary Margaret apologized as they all stopped walking, her eyes wide and guilty as she looked at Annabelle. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean in any way to judge you..."
"No, it's okay," Annabelle shook her head, forcing herself to give the woman a small smile before looking down at her feet as Emma looked at her worriedly. She hasn't seen her sister this distressed in some time.
"Look, I gave the book to his because I wanted Henry to have the most important thing anyone can have," Mary Margaret said, and Annabelle looked up at her, "Hope. Believing in even the possibility of a happy ending is a very powerful thing,"
"You know where he is, don't you?" Emma realized, and Mary Margaret gave them a small smile.
"You might want to check his castle,"
After the painful childbirth, Snow White sat with her daughter already wrapped up in a blanket with the name 'Annabelle' embroidered on it, with her husband standing beside her. They both stared at their daughter adoringly, and Prince Charming leaned down to press a kiss to his wife's sweat-beaded forehead.
"The wardrobe," Snow White suddenly mumbled, "It only takes two," she looked up at her husband. The two looked at each other, fear slowly rising, for only a second before they heard men yelling and swords clashing outside the door.
"Then our plan has failed," Prince Charming breathed out in fear, tears in his eyes, before looking down at their newborn child, "At least we're together," he said, before turning around to pick up their other daughter, who was brought in right after the childbirth and was currently sitting on the floor, playing with her toys, her mind in her own world. She snapped out of it as soon as she saw her father coming towards her, and stretched out her arms happily as he leaned down to pick her up and rest her on his hip, hugging her closely before walking back to his wife and baby.
"No. You have to take them," Snow White said. "Take the children to the wardrobe,"
"Are you out of your mind?" Prince Charming whispered.
"No. It's the only way, you have to send them-"
"No, no, no, no, you don't know what you're saying," Prince Charming protested.
"No, I do. We have to believe that they'll come back for us," Snow White said, and Prince Charming looked down at their children with tears in his eyes, "We have to give them their best chance," Snow White said, tears streaming down her face as her husband leaned down to press a kiss to the baby's forehead, "Goodbye, Annabelle," she said with a teary smile before leaning down to press a kiss to the baby girl's forehead, just barely holding back her sobs. She then passed the baby to her husband, who took her with one hand while Snow White quickly, for the last time, gathered her older daughter in her arms, hugging her closely to her chest and pressing a kiss to her cheek as she tried to hold back her sobs, "Goodbye, Emma," she whispered, before handing the child over to her husband, who was already waiting with Emma's blanket in his hand. As she was passed into his arms, he flexed his wrist to give her the blanket, and then held her tightly with one arm while holding Annabelle close with another. He was about to leave the room, but then leaned down to press his lips to Snow White's, who put her hands on his face and kissed him back tearfully.
Prince Charming then rushed to the door with his daughters in his arms, but then stopped and put Emma, who was still clutching her blanket with the name 'Emma' embroidered on it, down on her feet before grabbing a sword from the stand beside the door. He then squatted down to look his daughter in the eye.
"Emma. Hey," he whispered gently, and the little girl looked at him, "Listen. Daddy needs you to always stay beside a wall. Can you do that?" he asked, and though Emma was only a year old, she was always an intelligent child, and nodded as if she could understand him. Prince Charming gave her a small, proud smile, before opening the door, "Come on," he said, looking down at his daughter, who, having learned how to walk a month and a half earlier, followed him a bit sloppily, her small hand on the wall beside her. As soon as they were out the door, Snow White laid back in her bed, tears streaming down her face as she sobbed loudly, her chest constricting in such horrible pain she thought something was breaking on the inside. Her heart. She had just given birth, and had to give away both of her children to her husband, who was going to risk his life to send them away to God knows where, while a curse that will destroy them all was approaching and their home was under attack.
Prince Charming made his way into the hallway, his eyes constantly on Emma, who obediently stayed beside the wall, her small arm clutching the blanket to her chest as she walked slowly, trying to keep her balance. As soon as they got into the main hallway, he saw two black knights killing one of his guards, and immediately backed up, pushing his daughter with his hand back.
"Emma," he whispered, squatting down to look her in the eye, "I need you to stay here. Don't go anywhere, okay? No matter what you hear," Hoping she understood what he said, Prince Charming rose to his feet and walked out into the main hallway again. The black knights turned around to look at him, and he looked down at the baby in his arms before subtly glancing at Emma, who was, thankfully, still standing where he left her. Tightening his grip on his baby daughter, Prince Charming looked at the black knights, before charging with his sword in his hand.
He clashed swords with one of the knights, before spinning around and slashing him in the back, pushing him out of the way while clashing swords with the second knight. He then elbowed the knight in the face, making him stagger back and fall against a pillar, and spun around just in time to swing at the first knight, who ducked before his head could have been chopped off. Prince Charming then clashed swords with him again, before raising his arm and blocking the second knight's sword with his own, just in time to stop the knight from slamming the sword down on Annabelle, whom he was still holding on to tightly. Prince Charming gritted his teeth, before kicking the knight in the stomach and turning around just in time to slash the first knight in the stomach, killing him. He then spun around, only for the remaining black knight to slash his sword against Prince Charming's collarbone, resulting in a bleeding wound. Prince Charming cried out in pain, gathered all his strength to push the knight back before stabbing him in the stomach, killing him.
Prince Charming took a step back, and groaned in pain as he carefully lifted up his hand to touch the wound, before turning around, only to see Emma standing in the hallway.
"Emma," he breathed out, before gritting his teeth in pain and rushing over to his daughter, "Come here," he murmured, before gritting his teeth in pain and letting out a hiss as he carefully gathered her in his arms, holding the sword as far away from his body as he could while tightening his grip on his daughters. He then ran down the hallway and past the dead black knights, before in front of a wooden door and kicking it open. He entered the chamber, and quickly rushed to the wardrobe that Geppetto constructed out of the tree bark that the fairies brought in the other day.
He placed Emma on the ground carefully before opening the doors of the wardrobe. He then put down the sword on a small table beside them, and leaned down to pick Emma up once again and then put her in the wardrobe, turning her so that her back would rest against one of the walls and her legs were propped up on the bench inside. Prince Charming then looked down at the baby in his arms, before carefully placing her in Emma's small arms, making sure the older girl had a tight grip on her.
"Take care of your sister," Prince Charming murmured to Emma, before placing a kiss on her and Annabelle's foreheads, "Find us," he whispered, a tear running down his cheek, before backing away and closing the doors of the wardrobe, just in time as two black knights stormed in. Prince Charming hastily grabbed his sword and raised his arm just in time to block an attack from one of the knights. He pushed him back and then raised his arm to block another attack from the same knight, but that left him wide open and the second knight took the opportunity to stab his sword into Prince Charming's side. Prince Charming grunted in pain, before falling to his knees and then to his side, his body still as the knights approached the wardrobe.
One of the knights started to continuously pound his sword on the lock as Prince Charming watched hazily, unable to do anything as the knight finally broke the lock. However, as he opened the wardrobe, there was nothing or no one inside.
"Wait," Annabelle spoke up as she and Emma approached the wooden castle with a slide built into it, where they could already see Henry sitting, "Let me," she said, turning to look at her sister, who nodded as realization dawned on her.
"I'll wait here," she offered, and Annabelle gave her a small smile in thanks before walking down the pavement. Once she finally reached the wooden castle, she stepped up onto it, and walked to the other side to sit beside Henry, her legs dangling off the edge.
"You left this in my car," she said, handing the fairy tale book to Henry, who took it quietly, "Still hasn't moved, huh?" she asked, following Henry's gaze to the clock tower.
"I was hoping that when I brought you back, things would change here. That the final battle will begin," Henry said, and Annabelle shook her head as she looked down at him.
"I'm not fighting any battles, kid,"
"Yes, you are. You're here because it's your destiny," Henry insisted as he turned to look at her. "You're gonna bring back the happy endings,"
"Okay, can you please cut it with the book crap?" Annabelle asked, her patience finally running out, thought she kept her tone down so that she wouldn't snap or yell at him. She couldn't exactly blame the kid for having imagination.
"You don't have to be hostile. I know you like me, I can tell," Henry said, and Annabelle took in a deep breath as she turned around to look at the town from afar. "You're just pushing me away because I make you feel guilty. It's okay... I know why you gave me away,"
"Oh, you do, do you?" Annabelle asked, her voice choked up as she blinked back the tears before her head to look at him.
"You wanted to give me my best chance," Henry said, and Annabelle's eyes started to fill with tears as she took in a deep breath and turned around again so that she wouldn't start crying in front of him.
"How do you know that?"
"It'st he same reason Snow White gave you away," Henry said, and Annabelle shook her head.
"Listen to me, kid," she said. "I am not in any book. Okay? I am a real person... And I'm no savior... You were right about one thing, though," she said, as a tear ran down her cheek against her will, "I wanted to give you your best chance... But it's not with me," she said, before turning around and jumping off the wooden castle, "Come on, let's go," she said, and started walking to where Emma was waiting, quickly wiping the tear off her cheek.
"Please don't take me back there," Henry pleaded as he stood up and ran down the stairs of the wooden castle before running after Annabelle. "Just stay with me for one week, that's all I ask!" he called, and Annabelle stopped walking as tears filled her eyes again. "One week and you'll see I'm not crazy,"
"I have to get you back to your mom," Annabelle said as she turned around, her voice a bit choked up.
"You don't know what it's like with her. My life sucks!"
"Oh, you want to know what sucking is? Being left abandoned on the side of a freeway! My parents didn't even bother to drop me and Emma off at a hospital! We ended up in a foster system, by some complete miracle staying together, and we had a family until I was three but then they had their own kid so they sent us back," Annabelle burst, just barely stopping herself from sobbing as a few tears ran down her cheeks, memories from her life flooding back. She then took a deep breath, and wiped her tears off her face before breathing out and squatting in front of Henry, looking him in the eye, "Look... your mom is trying her best. I know it's hard, and I know that sometimes you think she doesn't love you, but she does. And at least she wants you," she said, softening as she saw tears running down Henry's cheeks.
"Your parents didn't leave you and Emma on the side of a freeway, that's just where you came through," Henry suddenly spoke up, and Annabelle had to take a moment to understand what he was talking about as he completely changed the subject.
"What?"
"The wardrobe. When you went through the wardrobe, you appeared in the street. Your parents were trying to save you from the curse," Henry said, and Annabelle nodded.
"Sure they were," she murmured, but gave him a small smile as she reached out to wipe the tears off his face, "Come on," she said quietly, standing up and holding out her hand for him to grab, which he did as they started heading back to where Emma was waiting for them.
"No! No," Snow White cried as she saw her husband lying on the floor, a bleeding wound on his abdomen. Still in pain from childbirth, she used the wall for support as she limped as fast as she could towards him, "No! No!" she finally started sobbing and threw herself on her knees, crawling the rest of the way to her husband, "No! No," she moved to his side, her hands caressing his face, "No, no, no, no," she whispered over and over again, her eyes on his closed ones, "Please! Please come back to me," she whispered, tears running down her cheeks.
Suddenly, an idea hit her, and she quickly leaned down, placing her lips on his. True love's kiss saved her once, it had to save him, too. Snow White pulled back after a second, but her entire demeanor faltered as Prince Charming's eyes remained closed. Snow White shook her head, refusing to give up, and leaned down to press her lips to his again, longer this time, but there was, once again, no effect.
"Oh, don't worry, dear," came a voice from a few feet away, and Snow White looked up, only to see the Evil Queen walking into the room, her lips pulled up in a triumphant smile. "In a few moments, you won't remember you knew him. Let alone loved him,"
"Why did you do this?" Snow White asked, her face stained with tears as she gathered her husband's body in her arms and held him close.
"Because this is my happy ending!" the Evil Queen sneered, leaning down to be on eye-level with Snow White, to which the younger woman closed her eyes as more tears ran down her cheeks, "The children?" the Queen asked as two black knights stopped by the doorway.
"Gone. They were in the wardrobe, and then they were gone," one of the knights replied as the Evil Queen straightened up. "They're nowhere to be found,"
"Where are they?" the Evil Queen snarled, looking down at Snow White with fury in her eyes.
"They got away," Snow White breathed out as a smile grew on her lips, before looking up at the Evil Queen, "You're going to lose. I know that now," she said, before looking down at her husband and caressing his cheek. "Good will always win,"
"We'll see about that," the Evil Queen said, a smile growing on her lips once again. She then laughed in what could only be described as evil manner, just as the air darkened. The ceiling suddenly started to crack, before being completely blown away as the air darkened even more and began to swirl around them. Only seconds later, the two women found themselves in the middle of a vortex of dark magic.
"Where are we going?" Snow White asked, her voice shaking as she looked at the crumbling palace around her in horror.
"Somewhere horrible," the Evil Queen replied with a grin on her lips, right before one of the windows shattered and the curse's mist flew in, "Absolutely horrible," she said as Snow White gathered her husband closer to her, trying to shield him as much as possible as another window shattered, and the wind picked up. "A place where the only happy ending will be mine,"
The Mayor of Storybrooke opened the door to her house, her hands on her hips as she looked at her son, who was standing beside Annabelle. As soon as the door was open wide enough, Henry ran inside, not even looking at Regina, whose eyes followed him as Annabelle remained where she was, glancing over her shoulder at Emma, who decided to wait for her outside the gate.
"Thank you," Annabelle heard, and turned around, only to see Regina now taking a few steps towards her with a small smile of gratitude on her face.
"No problem," Annabelle nodded, her voice a bit quieter than usual.
"He seems to have taken quite a shine to you," Regina said in a surprisingly kind voice, and Annabelle chuckled.
"You know, it's kind of crazy. Yesterday was my birthday, and when I blew out the candle on this cupcake Emma bought for me, I actually made a wish," she spoke, not noticing how Regina slowly began to stiffen, "That, for once, it didn't have to be just me and Emma on my birthday. And then Henry showed up..." she trailed off, once again beginning to get a bit choked up.
"I hope there's no misunderstanding here," Regain said, and Annabelle blinked.
"I'm sorry?" she asked, her brows furrowing in confusion.
"Don't mistake all this as an invitation back into his life,"
"Oh, I-"
"Miss Swan, 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," Regina said, her voice becoming cold and growing louder with every word.
"I wasn't-"
"No! You don't get to speak! You don't get to do anything. You gave up that right when you tossed him away," Regina snapped, before walking down the step of her front porch to stand in front of Annabelle. "Do you know what a closed adoption is? It's what you asked for. You have no legal right to Henry, and you're gonna be held to that. So I suggest you take your sister, 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," she sneered, hatred suddenly burning in her eyes as she stared at the blue-eyed woman in front of her, "Goodbye, Miss Swan," she said, before turning around and proceeding to go back into her house.
"Do you love him?" Annabelle suddenly spoke up before she could stop herself.
"Excuse me?"
"Henry," Annabelle said, her voice louder as she stared at the Mayor. "Do you love him?"
"Of course I love him," Regina said, before slamming the door shut and disappearing from Annabelle's view.
Annabelle slowly turned around, her eyes on the ground. She knew she shouldn't doubt Regina's love for Henry. She knew that everything Regina said about her tossing Henry away was right. Granted, the Mayor didn't know the whole story and the circumstances in which she had to make that decision, but she was still right. When Annabelle asked Regina that question, it was because she needed to be reassured that her son was in the hands of someone who truly loved him. And now Annabelle was more than hesitant to leave. Because, for the first time ever, she couldn't tell if someone was telling the truth.
"You ready to go?" she suddenly heard her sister's voice, and looked up, only to realize that she walked all the way down the path of the Mayor's mansion and was now exiting through the gate.
"Not just yet," Annabelle murmured, and Emma looked at her in slight worry, noticing how troubled she seemed to be. "Hey, have you seen any hotels around here?"
After almost an hour of driving through the town slowly, the two sisters finally spotted an inn with the name 'Granny's Bed & Breakfast'. They left the car outside, and walked towards the building as the wind started to pick up, as if there was a storm coming.
"You're out all night and now you're going out again," they heard a woman's voice from somewhere within the building once they entered, Emma closing the door behind them.
"I should've moved to Boston!" they heard an angry female voice, and looked up, only to see two women walking down the stairs. The first one seemed to be about Annabelle's age, and was dressed in dark and sexy clothing, with dark makeup on her face and strands of her hair dyed dark red. The second one was on older woman, who reminded Annabelle of the kind of grandmothers that were pictured in traditional stories for children, ones that would sit in a chair in front of a warm fire and knit all day.
"I'm sorry that my heart attack interfered with your plans to sleep your way down the Eastern Seaboard," the older woman snapped, and the younger one sighed in annoyance before disappearing around the corner.
"Excuse me?" Annabelle spoke up a bit timidly, very much aware of the fact that she was probably interrupting a family argument. "I'd like a room for two, please,"
"Really?" the older woman asked in what seemed to be disbelief, and even the younger woman peeked her head out from around the corner to stare at the two sisters, "Would you like a forest view or a square view?" the older woman immediately brightened up, walking into the back room and coming back after a second with the ledger in her hand. "Normally, there's an upgrade fee for the square, but, as rent is due, I'll waive it,"
"Square is fine," Emma said with a small smile on her lips as Annabelle eyes the woman with a smile, trying not to chuckle.
"Now... what's the name?"
"Swan. Annabelle Swan," Annabelle said.
"Annabelle. What a lovely name," the sisters heard from behind them, and turned around, only to see a handsome older man, around his mid-forties, standing behind them, his eyes trained on Annabelle.
"Thanks," Annabelle said, looking at the man strangely as he smiled at her.
"It's all here," the older woman suddenly spoke up as she reached out her hand with a roll of cash in it towards the man.
"Yes, of course it is, dear, thank you," the man said, grabbing the cash from her as Emma and Annabelle watched from the side curiously, "You enjoy your stay... Annabelle," he then said to the blue-eyed woman, whose eyebrows shot up in surprise.
"Who's that?" Emma asked the older woman curiously as soon as he was out the door.
"Mr. Gold. He owns this place," the younger woman spoke up from behind them, eyeing the man from behind the curtain.
"The inn?" Emma asked.
"No. The town," the older woman said in a grim voice, her eyes strangely cold, and Emma and Annabelle both turned around to see if she was joking, but stared at her as they realized that she wasn't, "So, how long will you two be with us?" the woman suddenly brightened up, a smile back on her lips.
"A week. Just a week," Annabelle mumbled as she stared at her, silently noting that this town seemed to get weirder and weirder by the second.
"Great," the older woman smiled, before reaching to the side and grabbing one of the keys, "Welcome to Storybrooke," she smiled kindly, handing Annabelle the old-fashioned key.
Meanwhile, Henry watched the clock from his bedroom window, his eyes trained on it for almost half an hour now, when suddenly the minute hand moved from 15 to 16. The boy grinned, nearly jumping up and down from the excitement. Everything will change around here very soon.
A/N: I thought it would be interesting for Emma to have a different role. I love her relationship with Henry, but I wanted to test the different dynamics of it. I saw a lot of fanfictions featuring Emma's sister, but I never actually saw one where that sister is Henry's mother, and I thought that might be interesting.