Title: Brand New World
Chapter One: Family
Author: snarkysweetness
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Emma, August, & Henry; Emma/August
Summary: Twenty-eight years ago, Pinocchio chose not to abandon the Princess. Now on the eve of her 28th birthday, August and Emma embark on a journey to Storybrooke to break the curse.
Warnings: None.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Author's Notes: This was originally supposed to be a multi-chaptered AU of season one but I lost my desire to really do this. Maybe I'll go back one day and do it, but for now I've reworked this into a one-shot because I really liked the interaction that I had in this. Think of this more as a beginning of what could have been and let your mind go on from there. I have a ton of finished and started things I just want to put out there because I want to move on to other things, so I apologize for spamming you all with fics this week.
He pushed opened the front door, cursing when he realized his wife had not only neglected to turn on the porch light but also the entry light as well. He used his hip to force the door closed, his hands busy carrying his newly fixed typewriter in its heavy case.
"Princess? Kid?" He called, receiving no response.
August Wayne Booth, who had been Pinocchio once upon a time, pushed his way through the dark house, swerving to avoid discarded toys along with the way. With a groan, he set his box down on the floor carefully and began picking up the kid's playthings as he went through the house, turning on the lights as he went.
He loved his wife more than anything in the entire world, second only to their kid, but was it really too much for him to ask that she take a break from playing with their son long enough to clean up after him?
"Ems, what have I told you about-"
"Shut up!" Emma hissed under her breath, glaring up at him from the sofa. Once she was certain he wasn't going to speak she turned her attention back to the kid who was currently asleep with his head in her lap, wrapped up in an old quilt. She moved her fingers through his dark hair with a small sigh before leaning her head back and closing her eyes.
"He just fell asleep," she whispered, clearly exhausted.
August carefully dumped the kid's toys into his toy box before moving to sit on the arm of the couch. He leaned down to cup her cheek, noting the dark circles under her eyes. He placed a soft kiss on her lips before turning his attention to their son who was so pale it reminded August of the first snowfall. He pulled off his glove and rested the back of his hand against the kid's forehead.
"He's burning up," he whispered, worried. Even as a baby he'd never been sickly. The kid was the picture of perfect health. He rubbed the back of Emma's back with his free hand, knowing how worried she had to be.
"He's been like this since this morning; I had to get someone to cover my shift. This is the third time he's been sick this month, Pinocchio. He rarely gets sick and now we can't keep him out of the Emergency Room?"
Her bottom lip protruded out into a pout as she gave him a knowing look.
August closed his eyes as he exhaled. He really hated being called by his real name, even by her, but she only used it when she was feeling particularly vulnerable, when she needed him to fix things for her, which made him unable to be annoyed with her. For all of her brass she was still capable of needing him, which somehow made him love her more.
He buried his lips in her hair, pulling her against him.
"He's a kid, they get sick, and I know you worry about him, but he'll be fine, trust me. Have I ever lied to you?" He whispered, stroking her hair.
"No, but my birthday is tomorrow, maybe the curse-"
"No," August insisted, pulling away from her. He knew where this was leading and she wasn't backing down from this, not when they were so close. "He probably just didn't get over whatever virus he had the first time. You're not getting out of this so easily, Princess."
"But what if he's not well enough to travel?"
August gave her a 'no' look.
"We're going."
Emma shot him a death glare but it did nothing to him. Once he may have feared it but they had been together far too long for anything but her sexual wiles and the occasional pout to affect him in any way that would allow her to manipulate him.
"We don't even know how to break the damn curse! What good is showing up in Storybrooke going to do us? Am I supposed to talk up to Snow White and say 'Hi, I'm your daughter'? We don't have a real plan."
August rolled his eyes before silencing her with his lips.
"That's how we're going to break the curse."
It was her turn to roll her eyes.
"Yes, because a curse that powerful is really going to be broken with True Love's Kiss? This isn't that damn book you wrote for Henry, this is real life. Or…our version of it."
She'd been stubborn to believe, even as children. They'd been separated into different foster homes, of course, but he always found a way to get thrown out of his homes when they were too far from her. Eventually he got out of the system and worked his ass off to make sure he had a proper place for them to live once she was old enough to leave as well.
As a child she'd loved hearing his stories and getting his letters but the longer she stayed in the system, the more she moved around, unable to find a family who wanted her, the more cynical she became, until she refused to believe his stories of their home were real.
Her thirteenth birthday had been the first time she'd called him a liar and the accusation had stung.
The day she was released from the system, he talked her into taking a trip with him on his bike. They ended up in Storybrooke, where he began pointing out the different 'characters' from his stories. She still refused to believe, so he made her take note of the children. When she shrugged him off with a 'so what' he produced pictures he'd taken years ago from his own trip to Storybrooke after he finally located the place where their families were trapped; everyone looked the same.
Of course Emma didn't believe him still, so he dropped the matter, until after Henry was born. When they returned to the town years later with the same children being the same age, not having aged a day, did the truth finally hit her.
Emma had been insistent on breaking the curse then and there but August knew enough from the time he'd lived in their land to know it wouldn't work that way, so they went on with their lives, knowing that they'd have to break the curse eventually.
He knew she was terrified, Hell, so was he. They'd been in this land for nearly three decades, grown accustomed to life here, started a family of their own, and now they'd have to give it all up to be reunited with their parents and to save everyone. They didn't know if they'd ever return to their little townhouse or if they'd be sent back to their world, but he knew that as long as they did it together, the way they were meant to, they could get through it.
"Ems, trust me, I've lived in that land, I've seen incredible things. Your father brought your mother back from death with a kiss, trust me, it will work."
"And if it doesn't?"
He smirked.
"That's a big 'if', but 'if' it doesn't work, then we'll figure it out. That's what we do, Princess, we adapt."
"Dad?"
He looked down to find Henry stirring sleepily.
"Hey kid," August whispered, leaning down to kiss his son's feverish forehead. "How are you feeling?"
"Tired," Henry mumbled, shifting so he could bury his face in his mom's shirt.
Emma and August exchanged a look before August carefully lifted Henry into his arms.
"Come on, let's get you into bed."
"What about your leg?"
August shrugged. He'd manage. With a bit more care than usual, August carried Henry up the stairs and into his room before tucking him into bed snugly. He stretched his aching leg out, cursing to himself. Whatever magic had kept him flesh and human all of these years was fading. If they didn't break the curse not only would the town be screwed, but he would be as well.
He pushed a sweaty piece of Henry's hair away from his forehead, watching him slowly drift back to sleep.
It wasn't the breaking the curse part that worried August, it was the part that came after; the final battle with the Evil Queen business. He'd be damned if anything happened to Emma or Henry. She was right, he had no idea what breaking this curse would entail, but he was more than prepared to fight for them if he had to. He'd already lost his father, he wasn't losing them too.
The weight of the bed shifted as Emma joined him, wrapping her arms around his waist from behind.
"Are we going to be okay?" She whispered, resting her chin on his shoulder.
He reached to take her hand and turned his head to kiss the bridge of her nose.
"Yes," he whispered, having faith that they'd make it through this.
"So, this is it," Emma announced, slamming the door to the bug as she stepped onto the sidewalk, joining her boys. She looked up at the boarded up clock tower, feeling a sick knot form in her stomach.
August took her hand while Henry took the other. She gave his hand a squeeze as she looked up at him. She wished she could have the same unyielding faith that he and Henry seemed to possess. The most she could manage was to not think too much about what they were about to attempt to do.
"What are we going to do first, mom?"
August gave her a small nod of encouragement.
"First we're going to find your grandparents and then I'm going to kiss your dad and see what happens."
Emma was sure this would all be more complicated than August made it out to be, but as long as she had him and their kid along for the ride, she was sure she would handle anything this town sent their way.