Disclaimer: I don't own either Once or Buffy, I'm just playing with the characters for a bit.
A/N: Set around Mid Season 2 final and post Sn7 Buffy.
Prologue
Growing up Faith Mills knew her mother never wanted her even less so than she wanted Faith's older sister Regina, but she never thought that Cora Mills wanted her dead, no matter what punishment Cora dished out.
So at 21 winters old, Faith lay on the forest floor looking up at her mother holding her heart in one hand and a box in the other as an oddly discolored skinned man spoke. Faith could hear the two speaking but couldn't understand or even care what the two were speaking about above her.
Just then a vortex of magic started to open beneath her. The imp known as Rumplestiltskin spoke softly in her ear, "You were meant as my downfall and I cannot let that happen before your sister does what I need her too."
Faith muttered, "What… "And as the vortex swallowed her to a new land, Faith's last conscious thought was her big sister's face after Daniel's death and how her disappearance may very well shatter Regina.
Present Day – London
Faith Lehane, otherwise known as the 'Dark Slayer' shoot up from resting her head during a research party. The Scoobies looked over at Faith as Dawn asked, "Are you okay?"
Faith blinked replying, "I remember. Giles that prophecy that you found, I think I know whom it's about. And also my dreams I've been having the last two months?"
Giles replied, "Yes, Faith I do that's why we've been researching them. Though we've had little luck, why?"
Faith looked down at the date on her phone and noticed it was 12:30 am December 14th before answering, "It would appear that my past has finally caught up with me." Everyone in the room looked confused and exploded with questions all while Faith's left hand played with a ring she had for as long as she had been a knight in the other realm.
Present Day – Storybrooke
It had been two months sense the curse had been broken; it had also been that long sense Snow and Emma went through the hat. Henry had been staying with his grandfather but the ten/eleven year old boy remembered that today was a really hard day for his adopted mother. Though Henry didn't know why, he thought maybe the answer was in his book.
Since the curse broke and magic was brought to town, Henry found that his book seemed to be adding stories and it wasn't stories of the adventures from the other world but stories that seemed tied to his mother and his grandmother. But the stories didn't make sense.
As of right now, young Henry was sitting at the counter of Granny's reading the story of 'The Heartless Knight'. He had just gotten to the point in the story where the young woman the story was based on was knighted for saving the king's daughter's virtue. The story included the detail of the Knight being the Queen's younger sister.
Ruby moved around the counter as she spoke to the young boy, "Hey Henry what ya reading?"
Henry looked up, "A story in the book that tells about a heartless knight."
Ruby skimmed through the page that Henry was on before thinking out loud, "something it that story sound familiar…" nodding to herself as she remembered where she had heard the story from, "yeah, Snow talk about the only woman her father ever knighted was also Regina's younger sister."
Henry blinked, "The Evil Queen had a sister?"
Just then David walked in to overhear Ruby's reply, "Yeah, well no… see Snow thinks that Faith's death was the final straw in making Regina snap. See what the story glazes over is that, one of the lower nobles tried to have his way with Snow when she was I think 16. But the noble didn't realize that the Queen's sister was in the stables with them. The way Snow tells it is that Faith jumped of the hayloft and landed silently behind the noble before grabbing him around the neck from behind…"
David picked up the story with, "Snow mentioned to me that after pulling the noble off her, Faith draped her cloak over Snow before turning back to the noble. The King, Regina, and their guards came in just in time to see Faith standing tall and protective between Snow and the noble banishing a broad sword with ease." David looked at his grandson before adding, "Let's just say that the noble was punished and his family banished. And Faith ended up knighted."
Henry looked up at his grandfather before looking back at the book to see the illustration of the Heartless Knight in black armor with the White family crest on the chest plate. "Gramps, can I go see my mom today, I mean she usually sent the evening after sending me to bed in a room I was never a loud into." At David's questioning look, Henry continued with, "I want to show her this story. Maybe it will give her some answers." David nodded his understanding before leading the boy to his truck.
Across town at the Mayoral Mansion, Regina was sitting in her private room. In it there were portraits of the loved ones she had lost. These portraits where some she had done by memory, one had Daniel standing and smile from beside a horse, another had Faith and Daniel play sword fighting in the stable, while another still was of a doting father of two girls, and one of just Faith standing tall in her armor with that ever present cheeky smile.
Standing before a partially blank canvas, Regina let herself go and just painted without really thinking on what was going on the canvas. She had started the painting hours ago and found herself looking at another portrait of her younger sister at the last age she saw her, but what was different with this was how Faith was dressed. Instead of armor or riding clothes, the Faith in this painting was wearing boot cut dark jeans, a red tank top with a black bomber jacket. What's more was that in the painting, Regina herself was not in her Queen attire or riding jacket either but in one of her power suits that she was known for when Mayor. On top of that was Henry smack dab in the middle holding his book with Ms. Swan and her two idiot parents behind her on his other side.
Before she could figure out what was going on in her painting, the doorbell rung just before Henry's voice rang out, "Mom!"
Regina came out to see her son and his idiot of a grandfather enter through the front door. Henry was carrying his book as he stops short of plowing into her. She asked as she brings herself down to his height, "What's wrong Henry?"
Before the boy could say what he came here for, some paint on his mother's cheek distracted him, "Mom you have paint," bringing his hand up to wipe at it, "on your cheek."
The former Evil Queen blinked at her son before replying, "Yes, well I was painting in my studio."
David spoke up, "You have a studio… wait you paint?"
Henry glared at his grandfather in a way that showed that he was Regina's son before saying, "That doesn't matter gramps. Mom you have to see this, the book has been adding stories. And this one story I think you need to read."
With that said the little boy lead his adopted mom and his gramps to the table before opening the book to the story he had been reading in the diner. Regina looked down at the illustration on the page before reading the title. "Faith," Regina sighed softly before turning to her son saying, "The illustration is Faith but Henry I know what happened to her. The Noble family that was banish as punishment on top of their heir being executed retaliated."
Henry gave his mother a look that showed the genetic ties to the sheriff, "Then why does the story end with Rumplestiltskin and an evil witch taking her heart and then banishing her to another realm?"
Both David and Regina looked at Henry in surprise about that very ending. She asked, "Are you saying you think my sister, whom according to your book doesn't have her heart, is still alive?"
"Yep," the boy said before saying, "And I think your mother is the evil witch in this story, given both yours and Mr. Gold's reaction to the fact that she's still alive over with Emma and Mary Margaret."
David's phone rang after looking at it he said, "It's Gold," answering the call, "Is everything ready over there Gold?"
Regina after hearing that Rumple had something to do with her sister's disappearance gave the cell phone a glare that would have made her inner Evil Queen proud. Henry perked up but could see his mom's side of things. As much as he wanted Emma and Mary Margaret back, finding out pieces of how his mom got to being the Evil Queen made the young boy less than impressed with the pawnbroker.
"We will be there shortly," David ended the call. The acting Sheriff was in turn was less than thrilled about needing the Queen's and Rumple's help, but knowing what he does now from the story causes the Prince to be a little worried that Regina will want retribution for the loss of her sister. He hoped that she would wait until after his family was back.
