I'm so sorry guys - I meant to update ages ago but days off and sinus infection got in the way :/ Just to clarify - there are a couple of storylines, including flashbacks, going on in this fanfic and I'll try my best to clarify where one ends and another one begins. Still don't own anything.

"You're overpaying me" - Ruby chuckled after she saw the cheque Emma wrote for her the next day.

"I don't believe in overpaying" - was Emma's curt reply. - "Besides, I am your only source of income and you need money to take your girl on dates".

"That I do. That I do" - Ruby nodded, thanked Emma once again and switched off the tech equipment. "Good night, Emma" - she said and exited the apartment.

Emma has known Ruby for a few years now. For the first few months as a renegade, she relied strictly on her own lie detector superpower. That changed, however, when she was hired to expose a corrupt politician named Anita Lucas whose lackeys conducted illegal experiments on victims of lupus who lived in poverty. Emma didn't find out until later that the person who hired her was none other than Anita's daughter Ruby who wanted to do the right thing. Ruby's hacking skills have proven to be invaluable in that case, and that was the only time Emma wasn't paid for a job.

"Consider it an investment, Saviour" - the young woman told her. And Emma accepted. Emma's power, coupled with her determination to survive and want for nothing, were a strange match for Ruby Lucas' code-cracking and hacking abilities and her desire to right wrongs. However, while money wasn't an unwelcome aspect of the job - quite the opposite in fact - Emma hated when innocent people suffered at the hands of corrupt institutions or asshole-ish exes. The system wasn't fair, Emma knew that better than anyone. Whether one was a victim of an abusive relationship or planted evidence, Emma Swan saw to it that no matter how convincingly charming the guilty party presented themselves, they would not get away with their misdeeds. She always stayed away from the limelight though because she couldn't afford exposure. Confidentiality is vital in the superhero business.

Not that Emma ever saw herself as a superhero. She was a survivor, and she was damn good at it. Superheroes didn't blackmail their subjects for money, which was Emma's specialty. She liked living comfortably and in her book, the assholes who she was hired to expose deserved to be parted with their fortunes. While there was no such thing as a typical case for the Saviour, her exchanges with her subjects usually went something like this:

Emma: "So here's how it's gonna go, buddy. I know what you really are and what you did. See, I have a gift - I can see through every single lie you've ever told. I know everything. So if you don't want to spend the rest of your days in a maximum security prison, because believe me, that's what you're gonna get after I submit the evidence, pay up. I want $28,000 by the end of the week, or your days of breathing fresh air and enjoying your little trips are over."

Naturally, once Emma received the payment (and she did most of the time, since most of the criminals were fairly well-off), she split the money between the victims and herself, as fairly as she could. However, the Saviour never stopped there. Random evidence would start popping up all over the place. It wasn't always enough to convict, of course - $28,000 were a very small part of some people's fortunes and many law enforcement professionals were in their pockets. But Emma Swan knew that the victims would never be ungrateful for the money. It was a consolation, however big or small they considered it to be.

Tap, tap, tap. A white dove tapped on the window of Emma's apartment, stopping her train of thought. She opened the window, curious as to why Ruby was mailing her, instead of wining and dining with Belle.

Emma and Ruby both knew that technology left traces every time it was used in any way. The doves were Belle's idea. Ruby's girlfriend was a hopeless romantic but her determination to help people and her knowledge of communications channels were a welcome addition to their little team. Both Belle and Sidney Glass were journalists, but Belle was also an avid reader and loved picking up tips from storybook heroes.

Emma unwrapped a small piece of paper tied to the dove's leg, stroking his feathers lightly. Ruby's message, while coded, was abundantly clear. Emma Swan had a new case to solve. And it appeared that she was heading to a peculiarly-named town in Maine - Storybrooke.

Again, apologies for the lack of Captain Swan but I promise we'll meet Killian in the next chapter! Reviews and suggestions are my bread and butter :)