So, this is my first attempt at a Once Upon A Time fanfic. Let me know what you think.

"She's so cold, Aaron."

The large fireplace lit up the small home, giving heat to everything within. The only thing the roaring fire didn't seem to nourish was the small toddler held tightly to her mother's chest. The aged woman looked to her husband who was pacing back and forth in his corner of the room. His hand running through his thick, salt and pepper hair in fevered thought.

"We have to do this, Daisy." The man said to his wife, his voice low. The couple had been trying for years to have a child, but it seemed that their dreams would never come true. Just as they had given up hope in their older years, Daisy became pregnant with their daughter—their little girl. Aaron was going to be damned if he'd watch his long sought-after child die of something as silly as illness, not when he could change her fate.

"Please, my love, let's wait one more night." Daisy's pleas fell on deaf ears. Aaron looked to her, his face stone set.

"No." He growled, "She could be dead by then. She's so weak."

The house grew quiet; the only sound daring to call out was the child's labored breathing. Daisy pulled the thick crocheted blanket over her daughter's cheeks, ghosting her lips over her chilled forehead.

"You know what happens to people that make deals with him." Her tone grew grim as she cut her eyes up toward her husband. "What would we possibly have to give him that would be of value, Aaron?"

The man stooped down to his wife, placing his hand gently on his daughter's pale forehead and the other hand on his wife's cheek. He knew what he had to offer wasn't going to be much, but he had to try for her sake.

"Daisy, I am the most skilled baker in this part of the land. Perhaps…"

"Perhaps he will take you away from your wife and child."

There was silence again in the house as Daisy and Aaron stared toward the flickering flames in the fireplace. Letting out a deep sigh, Aaron circled his large finger through his daughter's thick dark hair.

"Perhaps," He said at last, leaning forward and kissing the crown of his wife's yellow hair. "But, I have to try for you. I have to try for her."

Standing, Aaron slowly made his way to the door, pulling his cloak over his shoulders. With one last look at his small family, he slipped out into the night in search of the one who could save them.

"I can see you're a little bit nervous, so why don't we start with some simple questions that we both know the answer to?"

"Alright, Archie."

"What is your name?"

"Clover Page."

"Good, good. How old are you?"

"I'm 24 years old."

"What is your occupation?"

"I work for Sheriff Humbert as a personal trainer. He hired me on when he became Sheriff. Also, I work for Mayor Mills as a nanny for Henry."

"Good answers, Clover. Now, here is a slightly more complicated one. Why did you want to see me today?"

I looked down to my hands, rubbing together my palms that were already slick with sweat.

"Um… I'm sorry, it's just… You're going to think this is stupid."

Archie sat in his armchair facing me with his contented smile that he obviously hoped would reassure me. His office was warm; such a contrast from the wet autumn chill outside. It made me relax a bit, as if I weren't going to tell him about the problems that plagued me most. It was awkward for me to talk about issues. I'd liked to consider myself a strong person, but this was something that was chinking my armor one night at a time.

"Clover, if it is important enough for you to worry about, then I can assure you that it is not stupid. I'd like to hear about it if you don't mind. I could never sleep soundly at night knowing that the people of Storybrooke couldn't."

Letting out a light laugh, I looked back to Archie's soft face.

"What are you, the collective conscious of Storybrooke?"

Archie returned my laugh, leaning back in his chair and crossing his ankle over his knee.

"I just enjoy knowing that my friends are ok."

The room fell silent for a few moments as I examined the bright pink rubber tips of my tennis shoes, dissecting the faint squeak they made as I brushed the sides together slightly. It was only until the sound of Archie clearing his throat overpowered the noise of my avoidance that I turned my face to him.

"Clover?"

I swallowed the thick lump that was building in my throat, wiping my wet palms on my running leggings again and crossing my cloth-covered legs.

"I've been having this dream for a while now. I'm standing in a wood at night and it's freezing. I have on this old fashioned dress with a wool cape over it, but I'm not wearing any shoes and my feet are freezing. But, I guess that's normal because I hate wearing shoes. Once I went for a walk in town and got half-way to Granny's before I realized that I'd left my shoes at my apartment."

A short exhale escaped me as I looked back to Archie, who simply nodded, telling me to continue.

"Um, anyway, I feel sadness, like, deep sadness and fear. I'm sobbing, but my hand is covering my mouth because I know I'm supposed to stay hidden."

"Why is it that you're supposed to stay hidden?" Archie asked, his eyes narrowing in question. I just shook my head in return.

"I don't know exactly, but I feel like it's what I'm supposed to do."

I watched Archie write something down quickly before looking back to me. Curbing the intense curiosity I had to know what he was writing, I began again.

"I'm looking into this little clearing in the forest at these two men talking about something. I don't really know what they are talking about, but I'm scared, Archie. I'm terrified. I know I'm waiting for something—something terrible, but I don't know what it is. The trees around us are black and bent like they've been in a fire and they loom over at their tops like they form some sort of cage. They're not like normal trees."

"Do you know who the men are?"

"No, I can't see their faces, but I know that one man is very important to me. Suddenly, one man stabs the other—the one that I know. I push myself into the circle, grabbing the stabbed man lying on the ground. I'm screaming, crying. The other man approaches me, but I take off running away from him. I'm running through the woods and I can hear the man calling for me, but I keep on running. When I can't run any further, I hide behind a tree to catch my breath. I'm sitting there, curled into a ball and I can hear the footsteps of the man near me. He's crouched beside me, but I can't make myself look at him. I can feel his breath on the side of my face. Just before I wake up, he leans over a whispers something into my ear."

"What does he whisper?"

The sound of Archie's voice made me jump slightly, pulling me out of my memory of a dream.

"He whispers 'Buttercup'. I don't know what that means, but that's what he says every time I have that dream."

Leaning my back against the couch, I rubbed my hand over my face. The emotions of the dream felt so close to me, as if they were going to burst out any second, but I dug my fingertips into my eyes to hold my composure.

"So what's the diagnosis, Archie?"

I crashed my elbows onto my waiting knees, cupping my chin in my hands and letting out an exaggerated sigh.

"Am I crazy?"

Archie laughed, shaking his head.

"No, no, Clover. Dreams are only the mind's way of dealing with stress and things we don't want to face in our everyday life. I'd say you're either stressing yourself out or there's an event in your past that you haven't dealt with yet."

"But Archie, this dream feels more like I was actually there. The emotions, the sensations, everything feels like a memory. Even when I wake up, I can still feel the cold of the wood—the feeling of the bark on my palms. Even the emotions stay. Sometimes, I cry for hours until I can convince myself that it's just a dream. I'm terrified of that man. So terrified that I have to turn lights on in my apartment and watch TV for a while just so I can get him out of my head before I can fall back asleep. I don't think that's necessarily the definition of normal, do you Archie?"

Then Archie was quiet. He tapped his chin and adjusted his glasses before scribbling something else down on his notepad. I could just imagine what he was writing. 'Patient scared of boogeyman. Total wimp.'

"I'd like to see you next week, Clover. Maybe we could get to the bottom of what this dream actually is. I feel like if we uncover some stressers in your life, known or unknown, that your dream will stop bothering you."

"So, you're crazy?"

I glared up at Ruby as she filled a white coffee cup and slid it in front of me.

"You know," I started, pulling more than a few sugar packets from the holder on the counter and tipping a bit of creamer into the black liquid, causing blonde to swirl through my cup. "This is why I didn't want to tell you. Normal people would say things like 'Oh, Clover, I'm so sorry you're having a problem', but you just like to make fun of me."

Ruby rolled her eyes, leaning down on the counter and crossing her arms under her thoroughly exposed cleavage. She was always scantily clad, but we'd been friends for so long that I hardly noticed anymore.

"Look, we can't have lunatics coming in here and scaring all the customers away."

Taking a sip of my sickly sweet coffee, I cocked my eyebrow at the woman.

"Then it's looks like you should have stayed home." I grunted.

Ruby raised her hands, backing away from the counter slowly.

"Alright, sheesh. And I thought Leroy was grumpy."

My hands fell around the warm mug, letting its heat attempt to comfort me. That dream was still fresh on my mind and I couldn't get the feeling of being hunted away from me. Closing my eyes, I could almost smell the pines around me; feel the cold breeze nip at my cheeks and neck. That man. If I relax enough, I could almost feel him beside me. His hot breath…

"You shouldn't fall asleep in diners."

The sudden sound of a masculine voice beside me caused me to jump. My hand flew to my heart as a smile cracked over my face.

"You scared me, Humbert."

The sheriff returned my smile with his own off-brand of playfulness, narrowing his eyes at me and licking his teeth. That usually meant that he was about to say something very sarcastic.

"Sorry, I'll send in a crier before me next time I want to come into the diner."

Some things never change.

"That'll do." I retorted, giving my attention back to my waiting coffee.

"I heard you went to see Dr. Hopper." He said, "Got a few bolts loose in there?"

Reaching out, he rapped on my head with his knuckle. I swatted his hand away, glaring at him.

"Do I have any real friends in this town, or is my mental health really that big of a joke?"

Graham stood, tossing a few coins in front of me.

"There, now wouldn't a real friend pay for your coffee?"

"Thank you, Humbert." I smiled, gulping down the last of the blonde liquid and setting my cup back onto the polished counter. "Leaving so soon? Did you just come into Granny's to annoy me?"

The sheriff's smile was replaced by a look of shock, his hand covering his heart and mouth hanging open.

"Being your friend, I simply wanted to make an inquiry of your wellbeing as well as making sure that the new town loony isn't going to be a source of unrest."

I rolled my eyes, squeezing the bridge of my nose as I leaned my elbows on the bar. The noise of a seat squeaking next to me made my ear twitch to catch the sound. Smirking, I dug my thumbs into the sides of my nose.

"Did you think of a new way to insult me?"

"Excuse me?"

The familiar smooth voice caught me off guard, being such a contrast to Humbert's gruff timbre but strikingly the same Scottish accent. Looking over, the source of the voice cocked his eyebrow at me. Mr. Gold sat in Graham's stead, his long, black cane leaning against the bar and his suit coat-covered forearms propped against the metal siding of the counter.

"Sorry, Mr. Gold," I said, giving him a weak smile, "I thought you were Sheriff Humbert."

He eyed me, nodding slightly in my direction.

"Sorry to disappoint, dearie." He replied before turning his attention to the nervously shifting Ruby in front of him, pen and pad at the ready to take his order.

This man had that effect on people. It seemed as though whenever he entered a room, everyone would completely forget how to behave like a normal human being and try to retrain themselves quickly. I was probably the only person in the whole of Storybrooke that could hold a thirty second conversation with him without having to take a stiff swig of whiskey afterward. When you own every lot of land in town and freely use your power to manipulate people, you sort of gain a certain reputation. Mr. Gold used this to his advantage quite often.

"May I take your order, Mr. Gold?" Ruby shifted from one foot to the other, her thumbnail raking over the side of her pen as her anxiety peaked.

"You did," He snapped, narrowing his eyes at the young waitress, "Thirty minutes ago when I phone it in."

I saw Ruby mentally scold herself as she brought the heel of her palm to her forehead.

"Oh right, I totally forgot. One minute." With out another word, Ruby scurried away. I'd like to imagine that if she'd had a tail, it would be firmly between her legs.

"You visited Dr. Hopper today then, dearie?"

Mr. Gold's voice pulled me out of my mental image of canine Ruby, making me turn my focus to him. Even he knew. How did he know?

I nodded in response to him, biting my lip in an attempt to hide my embarrassment.

"Word does travel fast around here."

He smiled at me, his gold tooth winking from its spot on the bottom row of his mouth.

"The nature of a small town, Ms. Page."

"I guess so."

We grew quiet for a moment. My fingers reached down and circled the rim of my eomty cup, my nail scratching the scarred glass lightly with each revolution.

"Would you mind," I looked up to him as he spoke again, his voice still as smooth as velvet. "Would you mind if I asked why you were visiting the doctor?"

A small smile grew on my face, mocking my own foolishness. My eyes dropped back down to the counter, away from his prying hazel ones.

"It's kind of stupid, really. Not really dramatic enough warrant seeing a psychiatrist."

"I'd like to hear it." His tone was in the place right between firm insistence and general curiosity. He was definitely a few steps away from his usual abrasive nature, but it seemed as though he was holding himself back. Clearing my throat, I obliged him slowly as I rubbed my forehead with my hand and continued with my self-degrading smile.

"I'm having this dream."

I locked my eyes with his, looking for any hint of sardonic intent but finding a wisp of genuine interest.

"Go on."

Suddenly, I felt like a snake being charmed. The tiny golden flecks that swirled with the brown in his irises glinted at me, trying to get me to reveal my darkest parts. My mouth ran dry and my breathing slowed as my concentration was held completely by the man.

"I-"

"I have your order, Mr. Gold!" Ruby's cheerful voice broke the spell, freeing me to face my empty coffee cup once more and steady my breath. The man looked to her, an even deeper glare than before embedded in his face. With one motion, he slammed his hand down on the counter, leaving a crisp note in its place, and ripped his lunch from Ruby's hands.

Standing, Mr. Gold took the lunch sack in one hand and his cane in the other.

"Keep the change." He glowered, "Tell Granny to use it to hire some competent staffing."

Once he was out the door, Ruby let out a loud sigh of relief, wiping away imaginary sweat from her brow and leaning against the countertop.

"I need a drink after that."

"He's not that bad." I rolled my eyes at her, allowing them to follow behind him crossed the window in front of the diner then snapping them back to Ruby's skeptical expression.

"What is this thing you have about him?"

Really, I didn't know why Mr. Gold and I had such an easy conversational relationship. When I talked to him, I felt like I'd known him my entire life—which I had. For as long as I could remember, Mr. Gold and I had been pleasant acquaintances.

I shrugged at Ruby, running my hand over the black hair in my thick ponytail I had tied on the top of my head.

"He's never been rude to me, Ruby."

She made a 'pft' sound, her eyebrows knitting together.

"Yeah, well, you're the only one."

Smiling, I knocked my knuckles on the counter and stood. My arms stretched above my head, sending blood to the muscles I hadn't used the past hour I'd sat in the diner.

"I'm gonna go take a run before I get Henry. I have him late tonight because Regina has some sort of board meeting or something."

Ruby nodded, scooping up the mug from the spot I had occupied and wiping the counter space with a wet rag.

"Good luck, Clo'. I can't stand that woman either."

I sent Ruby back a laugh, pulling open the diner's door and stepping into the cool outdoors. Bouncing from one foot to the other, I shook out my arms, sending the caffeine from my coffee into the rest of my body. My jogging pace was slow at the beginning, but that was to conserve my energy for the place I really wanted to burn it—the forest.

The black forest loomed around Aaron as he trekked further and further in. Tugging his cloak tighter around his neck, he fought against shivering in the chilled harvest weather. His lantern lit up only a small part of his pathway, giving him a hint of the danger lurking around him, but not allowing him to get a full sense of it. The hard look of determination was set in his face, the image of his wife and new daughter burned in his mind.

After what seemed like only a few steps, he came to the clearing in the wood all too soon for his liking. He set his lantern down by his feet, taking in the view of the unholy place. The encircling trees did not seem to fit the rest of the forest. Their black bark was gnarled and ghastly unlike the others that surrounded with a more inviting façade. Taking a deep breath, he steadied himself, giving him a moment before he surrendered himself to the mercy of the imp he was about to summon.

"Are you going to get on with it, or not?"

The sound of a slick, high-pitched voice startled him, causing him to fall backward onto a pile of tree roots that had found their way to the surface world. The next sound to arise was a teasing giggle at his expense before the imp emerged from his home in the shadows.

Aaron had never seen the Dark One, but had heard descriptions from those who had. None of the tales seemed to fit exactly what he was seeing in front of him though. The imp looked as though he was a man, although his skin was glittering with gold and green hues. His nails were thick and pointed and his clothes were snakeskin leather. All of these things combined did give him a beastly appearance, but Aaron could see that the Dark One himself was just a man.

"Dark One," He started, but his words left him. He was unable to speak. The Dark One simply stood before him, his hands clasped behind his back and a disturbing smile planted on his thin lips.

"Speaking," He replied, flourishing his hand in the air before bending in a mocking bow. Quickly, he straightened, cocking his eyebrow at the human man, "Did you wish to ask something of me or is this a social call, dearie?"

Aaron shook his head furiously, regaining his composure and his ability to form a sentence.

"I have come to beg your help. My infant daughter is deathly ill. Please."

He saw the Dark One smile, exposing his yellowed teeth. The imp soaked in the desperation in his voice like a cat soaking up the noon sunlight.

"What do you have to offer me in exchange for this favor, dearie?"

"I…" Aaron cleared his dry throat, trying to relieve himself of his plaguing nerves, "I am the best baker in this part of the land. I had given service to many members of royal families—"

"I have no need for a baker." The Dark One said in a flat tone.

Instantly, the man's face fell. His only tool—his only bargaining chip—had failed him.

"Please." He begged, his hands held out in front of him like a panhandler on the street. Tears pricked at his eyes as he dropped to his knees. "I will give you anything."

The Dark One's smile returned along with a mischievous glimmer in his slit eyes.

"Anything?"

The forest was my favorite place to lose myself. In the rain, in the sun, in the snow. I loved the feeling of rushing past the trees; I loved the smell of every season mingling within the thick canopy.

My unrestrained hair whipped behind me in the wind, catching the few rays of sunlight that snuck through the tops of the trees. The chilled air stung my lungs as my frantic breath pulled it in, but somehow it was relaxing. Chirping sounds all around me from little bird families and animals chatting with one another filled my ears.

Yes, the wood was my favorite place.

After a while, I reached the small stream that cut through the center of the forest. Dipping my hand in, I ladled out some of the clear water and brought it to my mouth for a cool drink. This disgusted Humbert every time he saw it, but I had been doing it for so long that it had become sort of a ritual, so I just ignored the gagging noises he would make as I drank.

I stretched my legs out, kicking off my tennis shoes and socks and lying back against the mossy bank. My dark hair tangled around the grass behind my head, providing a thin pillow between the earth and me.

My dream seemed to be so far away from me here. Everything was so far away from me here. This was my own little world.

My life, in a manner of speaking, wasn't especially terrible.

I grew up in the convent with the nuns, since my parents weren't exactly keen on me sticking around with them. Sister Astrid told me that one day I was just left on the door step. I was so sick when the nuns found me that they thought I wasn't going to live, but an outside source offered to pay for the medicine I needed and the hospitalization that saved me.

After I got well, I spent the rest of my time trying to make up for the near-death experience. Mother Superior would always scold me for being so jittery in classes or during prayer time, but I figured the best way to be close to God was in His creation. That's when my love affair with the forest started and continued throughout my life.

The sisters tried to curb my energetic spirit by making me play sports, but athleticism came so naturally to me, that I quickly became bored and angry with the other players. That's when my talent for unsportsman-like conduct surfaced.

I grew up from a little, wild brown-eyed girl to an almost responsible woman with two jobs—both of which I loved. Humbert and I had been friends for as long as I could remember, so meeting with him at 5 am to run and work out wasn't the worst thing. Henry Mills was the coolest kid I'd ever encountered, even though he was a little odd. I'd started working as his nanny shortly after he arrived in Storybrooke. Ever since Regina adopted him, I couldn't keep myself away from the boy. Eventually, she became so annoyed with my incessant offering to babysit that she asked me if I wanted to watch over him while she worked. Filling the constant compulsion to be around him, I took her up on her offer.

Humbert and I tried dating once when I had just turned twenty, but it didn't exactly last long. No matter how much I wanted it to work, I couldn't make myself fit with him. I wish I could say that the feeling was mutual, but he didn't necessarily take the break up too well.

Other than that, only one man—Henry Mills, occupied the relationship department. I wasn't ugly by any means. My body was lean, but my hips were a little wider. My skin was tanned from being outside most of the time, but still on the lighter side. Humbert always said that I would get more attention if I started dressing like a woman instead of only wearing gym clothes and tennis shoes. I'm sure he was right, but there wasn't any attention I craved that could be gained by putting on a shirt that I hadn't sweated in.

My eyes slowly closed, the sound of nature caressing me, singing me to sleep.

Aaron nodded tentatively, agreeing with the Dark One's statement.

"Anything." He confirmed, his voice small. The Dark One let out another unnerving giggle, tapping the tips of his fingers together and nearing Aaron with his sadistic grin.

"Very well." He nodded, "I will grant your request. I will give your little daughter strength and the protection against physical harm. She will live a healthful life."

Aaron stood quickly, a disbelieving look on his face. Breathing out heavily, he smiled.

"Thank you, very much. Thank—"

"Wait." He was cut short by the wave of the Dark One's long finger.

"We haven't discussed the terms of my payment."

"Anything," Aaron cried, "Anything you desire; it's yours."

"I am so glad to hear you say that," The Dark One's smile seemed to grow, "What I want is for my investment to be returned after it has accrued interest."

Aaron's face twisted in confusion.

"In twenty years, I will return to this spot on this night. At that time, I want the girl."

The father's eyes grew wide, her mouth dropping open to protest.

"No! Please!" He yelled, "Anything but that."

The cat-like grin the Dark One had been sporting suddenly fell into an expression of anger, his forehead creasing dramatically.

"Then the deal is off." He growled, "She is so closed to death. Why don't we put her out of her misery right now?"

The Dark One turned his back to the man, raising his hand with his fingers poised to snap and make his dark wish occur. Aaron shook his head, waving his hands franticly.

"No, no! Wait! I agree! She's yours!"

Slowly, the imp lowered his hand and turned back to Aaron with a new grin.

"Nice doing business with you, dearie."

His hand disappeared into his coat pocket before pulling out a small vile of glowing yellow liquid and holding it out to the desperate father.

"Make her drink this." He ordered. Aaron reached out for the vile, taking it dumbly and turning back to pick up his lantern. He began to exit the clearing, but stopped when he heard the Dark One's voice calling to him once more.

"What is the girl's name?"

The man breathed out slowly, stray tears falling down onto his cheeks and slipping into the heavy beard that covered the hollows of his face.

"Buttercup."

When I finally got to the bus stop, Henry was sitting on the curb, his thumbs tucked under the straps of the backpack on his back. According to my watch he'd only been sitting there for ten minutes, but his face was so forlorn that he looked like a little homeless child that had been waiting for a year.

"You're late." He said as he stood, brushing off his pants.

"Sorry, Henry, I got caught up in something and lost track of time." I smiled, leaning over to catch my breath. He eyed me skeptically.

"You fell asleep in the woods again, didn't you?"

I rolled my eyes at him, hooking my arm around his shoulder and leading him down the sidewalk.

"No, of course not."

"Your socks are hanging out of your hoodie pockets."

Biting my lip I tucked my hand over the little articles of clothing. I'd woken up later than I'd intended and didn't have time to put them on.

"You caught me, your majesty." I sighed, "It won't happen again."

Henry smiled up at me, his arm hooking around my waist, "Yes it will."

We got sandwiches from Granny's and made our way to his 'castle'. Really, it was an old, broken down jungle gym, but I wouldn't have broken his heart by telling him so.

I leaned my back against one of the sturdier pieces of lumber that held up the structure, trying to ignore the shards of wood poking into my spine.

"How was your day?" I asked, taking a large bite of grilled cheese and watching Henry do the same.

"Same old, same old." He replied, bits of bread spilling from his mouth. My eyebrows kit together as I glared at him with my mouth full.

"Chew your food, you animal."

A sudden look of excitement spread over his face, his hands fumbling for his backpack. He swallowed hard, flashing a pained look before looking back at me.

"I got something today. Ms. Blanchard gave it to me."

"Well, let's see it." I said, brushing crumbs off of my lap and crossing my legs in front of me. Henry dug out a long leather-bound book, pulling it into his lap. He swept his hand across the cover, cleaning off dust that had built up.

"I've only read a few pages, but it's really good."

He pushed it over into my lap, "Take a look."

The golden letters embossed on the front gleamed up at me. That was the first time I'd seen the book and the exact moment my life started to change. Running my fingers over the binding, my lips formed an involuntary smile.

"Once Upon A Time, huh?"

Thanks for reading! Please let me know what you think!