Pairings: Emma/August, Emma/Henry
Rating: T
Disclaimer: I own nothing related to Once Upon a Time.
A/N: Written for the Halloween Drabble'Thon. This was super fun to write (once I figured out a format) and also gave me a lot of the feels. Enjoy!
They were utterly surrounded. In just a matter of hours, the entire population of Storybrooke had gone from being alive to being very much dead.
And then alive again.
The sound of glass breaking echoed up the stairwell and into the room they were holed up in at Granny's. Emma hugged Henry tight against her, assuring him that August and her father would find a way out. Somehow.
Henry cried into her shirt. Emma wished she could cry, too... for Granny and Ruby who were the first to come down with the fever, for the nurses at the hospital whose last moments were spent caring for the ill who later would claim their lives, for her mother…
She choked back her tears and whispered again to Henry that everything would be all right.
The door burst open suddenly and August stood pale-faced in the hallway. "Come on, we have to hurry."
"What? Where's David? Where's… my dad?"
"He… he's gonna try to lead them away."
"What? You let them go out there alone?"
"I tried to stop him, Emma, I really did. But he told me it was our best chance to get Henry out of here alive."
Her heart shattered knowing both of her parents sacrificed themselves to save her again, only not just her this time, but her son as well.
She hugged Henry tighter and steeled herself. "Ok, what's the plan?"
The diner was eerily silent. Whatever her father had done to lead them away must have worked.
"Ok, the truck is parked right in front, I've got the keys, we just need to be as quiet as possible and get there together."
A small sob came from Henry and August knelt in front of him, placing his hands on the boy's shoulders.
"Look, I know this is scary, but we can do it. Are you with me?"
Henry nodded and wiped the tears from his cheeks.
Emma smiled sadly, thankful that August could be so cool under pressure. If it weren't for him, she'd have certainly lost it or given up.
"Let's go."
Emma led the way out with Henry in the middle and August pulling up the rear. They moved swiftly across the ravaged courtyard and made it to the truck in the deserted street. August fiddled nervously with the keys, eventually opening the cab and ushering Henry and Emma inside.
"August, look out!" Henry screamed as Archie's reanimated corpse appeared behind him. August struggled with the monster, trying to avoid contact with its mouth at all costs. "Mom, help!"
Emma aimed her gun shakily at Archie's head and hesitated; aside from the blood and flesh dripping from his mouth, it was still him. But she also knew if she didn't act fast, her boyfriend would soon suffer the same fate. She squeezed the trigger, hitting him between the eyes.
August turned bewilderedly toward her. "Nice shot."
"Thanks. Are you okay?"
"Never better." He climbed behind the driver's wheel and started the engine.
They drove quickly out of town, passing the sign Emma had crashed into on her first night there. She smiled bitterly at the memory and wrapped an arm around Henry. She had a lot of good memories here, and it was hard to believe how drastically her life changed since she arrived. She had only just gotten used to the idea that her parents were fairytale characters after returning from their land, and then the fever struck.
August placed a hand on her knee and looked at her sadly. Emma knew he'd lost everything after finding it again too, and leaned over to kiss his shoulder.
After an hour of driving, August slowed the car and pulled off to the side of the road.
"What are you doing?" Emma whispered, afraid to wake Henry.
"There's something I need you to know." He turned and lifted up the sleeve on his opposite arm, exposing a deep bite-mark on his bicep.
Emma looked on in horror. "August, what are you saying?"
"I had to get you out safely. And now that we're away, I can leave knowing you and Henry will be alright."
"But… no! You can't be… I need you!" She fought the tears that poured down her face, but to no avail.
August took her face in his hands and smiled. "You'll be fine, trust me."
He kissed her softly, then opened the car door and slid out.
"Wait!" She grabbed him by the arm and placed her gun in his hand. "I don't want you coming back as one of them."
He looked at her knowingly and leaned in to kiss her one last time.
Sobbing silently as she drove away, she watched August disappear in the rear-view mirror. She looked over at Henry, still sound asleep, and wondered how in the hell she was going to explain August's departure when he woke.
In the distance, she heard a single gunshot-
Emma's eyes shot open and she reached out instinctively next to her, but the bed was empty. Memories started flooding back and she pulled the pillow to her face and sobbed into it. August, her parents, everyone was really gone…
"What's wrong, Ems?"
Emma looked up in disbelief at August standing in the doorway with his eyebrows furrowed in concern.
"You're here!"
"Of course I'm here." He walked towards her and sat on the edge of the bed.
"And my parents?"
"Downstairs, eating breakfast with Henry. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. No, I'm better than fine."
She pulled him down, kissing him languidly.
"Woah, easy, princess. There's time for that later. You've got to get ready for work."
"No, I'm calling in. I want to spend the day with my family." She kissed him again, and then threw back the covers, reminding herself not to watch zombie movies before bed ever again.