"So let me get this straight" Kat mused; plucking idly at a stray thread that had managed to stick itself to Henry's jacket while she waited with him at the bus stop "You want me to talk Mary Margaret into running interference with me against mom, so that you can go running off to find your birth mother?"
"Yep."
"And what makes you think Mary Margaret will actually go along with this?"
"She likes you. She likes me. It'll be easy" Henry stated simply; the grin he directed his companion prompting a resigned snort of amusement, and causing him to manage a light shrug before rocking back on his heels as the bus came into view "Promise me, Kat. Promise me you'll do it!"
"What about when mom finds out what we've been up to, hmm? Have you given any thought to that?"
"I thought you were supposed to be good at talking your way out of things."
"And I thought you were supposed to be unaware of that until you're older" Kat quipped; wincing against the sudden shrill shrieking of the bus' brakes, while simultaneously drawing Henry a bit closer in a one-armed embrace "You're too smart for your own good, kiddo."
"I've heard that a few times—"
"I'm sure you've already heard what I'm going to say next, then?"
"Get on the bus?"
"Yep" Kat confirmed; ruffling Henry's hair and laughing as he squirmed away with a faint groan of embarrassment, before he was turning back to permit her a brief hug "Love you, kiddo."
"Love you too. Promise you'll ask her?"
Shaking her head, Kat nudged Henry gently towards the bus; a faint smile taking over as he persisted in holding her gaze, thus forcing himself to walk backwards until he obtained the answer he so desperately needed.
"Yes. I promise."
"Cross your heart?"
"Cross my heart" Kat repeated; performing the gesture to go along with the promise, and laughing in response to the wide grin Henry gave her before finally turning to bound up the steps of the bus while she finished.
"You know me. I never go back on a deal…"
…
"I should have never given him that book" Mary Margaret sighed; plopping down in the cushions of the sofa across from Kat's own place in one of the armchairs in the teacher's lounge, and dragging a hand through dark hair before going on "I thought it would help him; but I never once imagined he'd take it to heart like he has."
"Well he is only ten. I remember what I was like at that age" Kat replied; smiling faintly as her eyes met those of her companion, and she simultaneously reached across the table to place a hand over Mary Margaret's own "But I don't quite see what the book has to do with him getting his mom back."
"That's because you haven't read it yet."
"Okay—so assuming I do read it; what will I find?"
"He thinks everyone here is a fairytale character."
"What?"
"It's like I said. I should have never given him that book" Mary Margaret repeated; leaning forward to place her elbows on the table, and using one hand to rest her chin against as she elaborated further "He thinks his birth mother is the only one that can break the curse."
"What curse?" Kat mused; quirking a brow at her companion and only just reigning in her skepticism so that she could give Mary Margaret a chance to explain, without passing judgment "Come on, if you're going to lay that on me, the least you can do is explain—"
"According to the book, the Evil Queen sent all the fairytale creatures to a land with no magic as revenge. And Henry thinks that land is—well—here."
"Storybrooke."
"The one and only" Mary Margaret confirmed; holding out a hand to waylay Kat's impending protest so that she could attempt to elaborate further "He's even gone so far as making up identities for most of us in the town."
"Identities such as?"
"Well for one, he thinks I'm Snow White."
"Snow—Snow White. You're kidding."
"I wish I was. But he seems to believe what he thinks is very much true. And I don't think I need to tell you who he believes your mother to be—"
"Let me guess. The Evil Queen" Kat quipped; fully intending her remark to be taken as a joke, but finding herself forced to pause as Mary Margaret's expression indicated that the truth was anything but a laughing matter "Oh you can't be serious. And you—you've let him believe this?"
"It seems better than the alternative" Mary Margaret replied; pausing just long enough to take a sip of tea from the glass she held before her, and closing her eyes to savor the taste before going on "I don't have it in me to crush his dreams when it seems like this is all that's keeping him going; and I really don't believe you do, either."
Releasing a sigh, Kat simply nodded; resignation very near to overwhelming as she acknowledged, albeit reluctantly, that Mary Margaret was most likely right in her assumption that this was their best option. Henry always had possessed a rather vivid imagination; even when he was much smaller, and knew nothing of the reality of his own adoption. And although she was nothing short of reluctant to encourage him in his current line of thought, Kat knew that shutting him down directly would only increase his desire to press his current course.
For now, at least, it seemed better to simply play along with what he so fervently believed to be true…
With such a thought in mind, Kat moved to stand from the armchair she occupied as the bell rang from out in the hall that signified the time to return to class; her hands shifting to rest within her jacket pockets for a moment while Mary Margaret rose to stand as well, and she finally found it within herself to speak.
"Okay. No dream-crushing. But we will need your help if he's going to find his mom—"
"Oh believe me" Mary Margaret began; smoothing the fabric of her skirt, and offering Kat a smile, before leading the way toward the door that would lead them back to the hallway outside before she finished:
"I'm in. That kid has a way of sticking you with things that make you question your sanity; and I have to say I kind of admire him for it."
…
"You seem a bit—distracted, dearie. Penny for your thoughts?"
"I think we'd both need more than a penny for these thoughts" Kat stated; reaching up to rub her temples with the pads of both forefingers as yet another attempt at focusing on the particular book she had selected for the afternoon's reading failed miserably "And a straight-jacket, probably."
"Questioning your sanity already? That's never a good sign—"
"Neither is thinking that you might actually be believing the imaginings of a ten year old."
"What imaginings might those be, I wonder?" Gold mused; smiling faintly as he maneuvered carefully around one of the glass cases that housed some of the more valuable pawns, and leaning against the table Kat occupied before going on "Come on now, dearie, you can tell me."
"Promise you won't judge?" Kat implored; one brow lifting in silent inquiry while her attention shifted from staring blankly at the book on the table before her to investigating her companion's features more carefully to gauge his response. It was apparent, through her observation, that Gold appeared simply curious, rather than questioning; his brown eyes fixed on her with nothing short of a return of the observation she had directed upon him. And that fact alone seemed enough to prompt a faint sigh of resignation; the fingers of one hand coming up to rake through her hair before she finally spoke again.
"To be fair, the entire thing is Henry's idea. He thinks—well, he thinks we're all fairytale characters."
"Does he really? And who does he believe you and I are?"
"He hasn't actually said. But he seems to think my mom—Regina—is an Evil Queen."
"Ah! Then you must be an evil princess" Gold supplied; chuckling a bit at the scoff and eye-roll that his remark earned him from his younger companion, and shifting slightly in his position leaning against the table before going on "What makes you believe it?"
"I don't know. His—determination?" Kat began; shrugging with half-hearted certainty, and shaking her head in disbelief that she was even having the current conversation to begin "You have to admit, he's stubborn for someone so young."
"Hmm. Sounds like someone else I know."
"I hope you're not referring to me—"
"And what if I am, dearie? What then?" The pawn broker questioned; the amusement that was so apparent in his expression prompting a small smile from his companion in spite of her apparent inner turmoil "Will you grab Henry from school and unite your stubbornness against me?"
"It is a fair idea" Kat replied; laughing openly at the look of feigned offense Gold offered her, and reaching forward to shut the book that had long since been forgotten so that she could place it in the bag she had brought along for carrying it, and some of its kin back home "I think we might stand a fighting chance."
"Do you now?"
"I do" Kat confirmed; lifting a brow at Gold's apparent disbelief, and suppressing a rather amused smile in favor of attempting to continue the apparent game they were engaged in a bit longer "We do happen to have the advantage of youth."
"Now you resort to insulting an old man. Very clever."
"I try."
"Well you may want to try harder, my dear. You're a bit out of practice" Gold suggested; the corner of his mouth twitching a bit as Kat tried, and failed to direct a light swat at his upper arm "A bit slow on the draw, too, by the looks of it."
"Maybe I'm just going easy on you."
Before any manner of reply was possible, however, the faint tinkling sound of the bells attached to the shop's front doors reached them; prompting Kat to stand quickly enough to force her to stumble backwards a bit, and provoking a small chuckle from Gold as he reached a hand out to steady his companion, while the familiar sound of heels clicking against the wooden floor drew near. It did not escape his notice, how Kat had tensed as soon as she recognized the sound; a fact which prompted Gold to keep his hand at her elbow, while the source of the approaching footsteps finally came into view through the back door of the shop—
"Hello, Regina."
"Mister Gold" The mayor returned; sparing only a cursory nod for the man she addressed, before turning to face the girl beside him so that she might speak to her directly "Time to go, Katarina. Or did you forget you're helping make dinner tonight?"
"I didn't forget, Mom—"
"Good. Then we'll leave Mister Gold to his work."
"Maybe we could do something different, for once, and invite him to dinner?" Kat suggested; quirking a brow at how her mother's expression had frozen into something almost resembling abject horror, for a moment, before it rearranged itself into something more neutral while she replied.
"We'll see."
Kat would have been blind, had she missed the scathing look that her mother granted the seemingly mystified pawn broker as she placed a hand upon her arm to guide her from the store, and towards their home…
…
Hello again, dearies! And welcome to another new chapter! I have to say, the further I go into the episodes of this show, the more in love I am with everything about it! I guess I can say that's what prompted this chapter; along with the lovely review I received from a guest that prompted some more ideas on pairings (particularly since I am now about halfway through season two, and I think I know who you might have been thinking of…wink wink).
Before I get too carried away, though, I just want to take a moment to thank everyone that gave this little guy a chance, and took the time to favorite, follow, and/or review! I truly do appreciate the support; and I cannot wait to hear what you think of this chapter! Please don't hesitate to leave your thoughts!
More flashbacks to come in the next chapter, to better explain Kat's origins. What can I say—I like to prolong the mystery.
Until next time…
MJR
Oh, and as one last addition, I'm toying with the idea of a Mr. Gold/OC story; but am interested in whether or not such a thing would be well received, and worth the read. I myself am really rooting for Belle and Rumple at this point in the show; but my poor little heart can't help but concoct another idea for him, anyway. I'm anxious to hear if you'd all be interested—because I certainly wouldn't want to go into something that no one would want to read!