Well, I wasn't going to post this today, but I had it ready and I'm sick with spare time on my hands...so yeah, here ya go! :D

Couple notes here: 1, if Henry's vocabulary seems a bit advanced for a 10 year old, it's because I'm writing this as if he's telling the story to someone a few years down the line.

2, If anyone reading is an Evil Regal, I'm sorry to say Regina isn't going to come off very...flattering in this chapter. But Henry isn't exactly flattering himself either, so I hope I have it balanced out. :) I'm just trying to keep to how these characters behaved in the beginning of the series.

3, This story just went from a 3 parter to a 4 parter. Just saying.

Thanks to those who reviewed! It means a lot! To those who didn't...I'm sick so you should make me feel better by reviewing. :P

Part 2

"Dearie…you know I'm right," Rumpelstiltskin pleaded, reaching his long, wiry fingers through the bars, entreating the Princess. "The child…what's her name?"

Snow White turned to face the maniacal imp, ignoring her prince's warning look. She knew as well as any that it was unwise to break a deal with The Dark One, regardless of his imprisoned state.

"Emma," she breathed, letting the beloved name that she had held in her heart since the moment she learned of her child's existence leave her lips for the first time. Her prince tensed beside her, but she kept her eyes fixed on the sorcerer. "Her name is Emma."

Rumpelstiltskin smiled, his eyes gleaming. "Emma…"

Emma.

It couldn't be, right? It was just a story. And there are probably tons of girls named Emma.

But how could everyone in the book be just like people from my town? And no one except my mom and me knew my birth mother's name...so could it just be a coincidence?

I couldn't get it out of my head. It just kept swimming around, teasing me, yelling at me.

Rumpelstiltskin said that the curse would be "time."

No one except me grew or changed, and the clock on the tower never moved.

Happy endings would be gone.

No one was really happy in Storybrooke. Snow White was without her baby or prince. She was just alone. Geppetto, or Marco, who once was given the gift of a son, now had no one.

I carried my book into class one day.

"You liking the story?" Miss Blanchard asked, smiling softly.

I hesitated, nervous of revealing my idea. "You said you read this?"

She nodded. "Mmhmm."

I opened the book, showing her the picture of Snow White. "These stories, these people, they're just like everyone in this town!"

Miss Blanchard blinked several times and shook her head. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Just look! See how Red Riding Hood looks just like Ruby? In this book it says that the Evil Queen cast a curse, sending everyone in the fairy tale world to another world. A place with no happy endings, except for hers. I know it sounds crazy, but I think that place is here, Miss Blanchard!"

"Henry, they...they're just stories."

"But what if they're not?" I insisted, terrified by my own words. If I wasn't crazy before, maybe now I really was. "This could explain everything. Why this town is on repeat, why no one ever comes or leaves."

Space Face. "People come and leave, Henry..."

"No! They don't! No one EVER comes to Storybrooke! And when they try to leave? Archie broke his leg in a car crash, Billy drove into a ditch, Tom's mom was lost in the woods for weeks..."

"That doesn't mean it has anything to do with trying to leave," she argued. "Things just happen."

"How do you know?" I felt myself getting angry, and tried hard to squash it down. "Have YOU ever left Storybrooke?"

It took a good Space Face and several seconds of silence before she could answer. "I...I don't remember...I think I must have, when I went to college. Yes, that's it! I went to college in Boston."

"What was it like?"

She shrugged it off. "It's been so long, Henry, I don't remember."

"How old are you?"

Blink. "28..."

Again, I was 10, not stupid. "That means you graduated, what, 5 or 6 years ago? I'm old enough that I can remember back then, and you were here, bumping into my mom every morning."

"I don't bump into her every morning," she argued. "And it just seems that way to you because you were so young."

Miss Blanchard was starting to get upset, and I just couldn't understand why she couldn't see what was happening. It was like she just...couldn't. Something was stopping her. The curse?

My shoulders slumped and I carefully closed the book. Miss Blanchard must have felt bad for upsetting me, which was silly because I was the one upsetting her, so she pulled the book back to her and smiled again.

"So tell me, let's say this town is full of characters from this book. Who am I?"

My eyes widened and I bit my lower lip. So maybe she didn't believe, but this was a start, right?

I took the book and flipped to the first story. "You're Snow White!"

Miss Blanchard giggled and examined the drawing of herself. "Really, Henry? That's so sweet. I love Snow White. Too bad I'm nothing like the one in this book."

I opened my mouth to say that it was because the curse turned her into the worst version of herself, but luckily I realized in time how bad that would have sounded to her. And besides, the book didn't actually say that. I figured it out on my own.

Every day I was surer and surer that the curse was real. I didn't play a whole lot anymore, my fun coming from sitting in my castle for hours trying to figure out who was who.

Mom must have noticed my preoccupation, even if she didn't know about the book that I worked hard to hide, so she increased my sessions with Archie.

I told Archie about the curse too, but not too surprisingly, he didn't believe me either.

"Why do you think we're all cursed fairy tale characters?"

"I don't think. I know." I insisted stubbornly.

Archie nodded, not arguing. "I suppose it would explain to you why the town doesn't age."

I knew he didn't actually believe that, either, but I played along. "It makes perfect sense! You're Jiminy Cricket, you just don't remember!"

Archie leaned forward. "Right. Now tell me, who do you think your mother is?"

I bowed my head and fiddled with Archie's umbrella. "The Evil Queen."

"Why do you think that?"

"She's in the book! She cast the curse because she hated Snow White, Miss Blanchard! You know how much my mom hates Miss Blanchard."

"I don't think she hates Miss Blanchard, but that isn't for me to say," Archie sighed. "Henry, I know things with your mother haven't been going well since you found out about your adoption. But she loves you."

I didn't say anything, because more than anything I wanted it to be true. But I was starting to wonder if she really loved me at all. Can the Evil Queen actually love anyone?

Like most mornings, I followed my mom to Granny's diner for breakfast. It was actually a good day for her, she was talkative and smiling, and for the first time in a month I found myself enjoying being with her.

"Do you remember that time I decided to make you breakfast in bed for Mother's Day?" I asked.

Mom laughed - a sound I had missed. "Oh I remember all right, you nearly burned down my kitchen making bacon and I'm STILL cleaning pancake batter off the ceiling!"

I laughed too. "I thought I was going to be in huge trouble!"

"How could I be mad when you were just trying to do something nice for me? Besides, it turned out to be a nice day, didn't it? I helped you make pancakes..."

"And we drew faces on them with strawberry syrup!"

Mom grinned and put an arm around me. "That was one of my favorite days."

"Mine too. Can we make pancakes again sometime? And draw faces?"

She looked at me, as if surprised by the suggestion. "Of course, Henry. I'd like that.

We got to the diner and froze when Mom tried to open the door, only to find it locked.

"What's going on?" she mumbled, frowning.

"It's closed," I said unnecessarily, then inwardly cringed. Mom hated when anything threw off her routine.

She looked all around and in the windows; her horrified expression looking like the place had burned down, not just unexpectedly closed.

"Why the hell is it closed? It's past time to be open!"

"Maybe there's an explanation..." I said quietly, but she wasn't listening to me anymore.

"Didn't you hear?"

I jumped and my mom and I both turned to find Mr. Gold on the sidewalk behind us.

Mr. Gold was the one person in Storybrooke I was actually afraid of, though I never admitted it. But maybe afraid is a strong word...more like...intimidated.

I took a step back, so that I was behind Mom.

"Hear what?" Mom snapped. She, perhaps, was the one person in Storybrooke who wasn't afraid of Mr. Gold. It was something I always kind of admired about her, how she could stand tall in the face of the man who made everyone else cower.

"Mrs. Lucas had a heart attack last night," he said, sounding more like he was talking about the weather then about poor Granny.

"Is she okay?" I exclaimed, my worry for Granny overriding my fear of Mr. Gold.

"She'll be fine, lad," he said, and it dawned on me that it was the first time he'd ever addressed me directly. "She's in the hospital, Ruby is with her. The doctors say she should make a full recovery."

"Oh dear," Mom said, and I scowled at the complete lack of sympathy in her voice. "Well I'm relieved Granny is on the mend. Hopefully she'll be back in her diner soon."

Mr. Gold smirked and his voice dripped with sarcasm. "Yes, yes, it would be terrible to throw off your day any more than absolutely necessary. I'm sure you can convince the hospital staff to release her early, no one wants you to miss your breakfast."

With that he walked away, somehow looking strong and commanding even with a limp.

Mom sneered at his back. "Come on, Henry, we should go and wish Granny well."

Mom let me pick out some flowers from Mr. French and we hurried to the hospital so I wouldn't be too late for school.

Granny's hospital room was filled to the brim with flowers, balloons and cards. It seemed the whole town had already paid a visit to its favorite resident.

"Henry!" Granny exclaimed, then nodded politely to my mom. "Mayor Mills."

"These are for you," I said, feeling a tad shy, and held up the roses.

Granny's eyes lit up as if she didn't already have a room full of flowers. "Oh, thank you my boy! They're beautiful!"

"We just wanted to stop by and say we hope you're on your feet again soon," Mom said, sounding her most polite.

"Thank you, Madame Mayor," Granny said. "Don't you worry about me, I'm tough as nails."

I grinned. "I know you are, Granny!"

Granny ruffled my hair and Mom told her that she had to get me to school.

I was just deciding to ask Miss Blanchard if our class could make a giant card for Granny when I caught sight of Ruby, sitting in the waiting room by herself, wearing a red and black outfit that showed more that it hid. Used to I thought her clothes were funny, but lately I was finding it harder not to stare at her sometimes.

Breaking away from Mom, I stepped over to her. "Ruby? What's wrong?"

"This is all my fault," she said miserably, hiding her face in her hands.

"What is?"

"Granny!" she looked up on me, her face a disaster from all the piles of makeup she wore that was smeared everywhere. "I caused this!"

I fidgeted awkwardly, half-hoping my mom would come and rescue me - I had no idea how to comfort anyone - but knowing she wouldn't. "How could you cause it? She had a heart attack. Not a Ruby attack."

I hadn't meant to be funny, but Ruby burst out laughing anyway, new tears rolling down her cheeks. I walked over to the receptionist's desk and grabbed a handful of tissues to bring to her. She blew her nose and wiped at her eyes, only succeeding in smearing her eye makeup even more.

"Thanks, Henry," Ruby said, half-crying half-chuckling. "I needed that. But I'm afraid it really is my fault. I was going to leave last night..."

"Leave?" I asked. "And go where?"

She shrugged. "I just got so sick of doing the same thing every day..."

I perked up. Was she realizing the truth?

But she continued, "Every day I wake up and work at the diner, but I've always wanted more. So Granny and I had a fight last night about it and I started packing to go to Boston. That's when she collapsed."

I put an awkward hand on her shoulder. "It wasn't your fault, Ruby," I said. "I know you'd never mean to hurt your Granny. But she needs you now."

Ruby sighed and nodded then flinched when she caught sight of my mom behind me. Then it was like she only just realized who she was talking to. Ruby liked me, but I knew she didn't trust me. Mayor's kid and all that.

"Thank you, Henry," she said sincerely. "I better get in there."

"Henry, you're already late," Mom said impatiently.

I followed my mom out of the hospital, my mind spinning. It never failed; every time someone tried to leave Storybrooke, bad things happened.

"Henry, come on," Mom said when I started to lag behind. "I have to get to the office."

"She tried to leave," I blurted, halting in my tracks. Part of me screamed not to talk to the Evil Queen about this, but the other part of me, the part that remembered making pancakes and drawing silly faces with syrup, desperately wanted the assurance of my mom, for her to tell me the truth and insist I wasn't losing my mind. Maybe she was the Evil Queen, but there was good in her, I'd seen it. If she would just tell me the truth, say she was sorry for causing so much pain, I could forgive her. A cursed town wasn't such a terrible place to live so long as I knew the truth.

She stopped and turned to face me. "What?"

"Ruby...she tried to leave and...bad things happened. Whenever anyone tries to leave Storybrooke, bad things happen!"

"That's ridiculous," she scoffed, rolling her eyes, the same way she did at other people, and my heart started to sink. "Granny had a heart attack because of the stress."

"What about when Archie was going to go on a trip and crashed right at the town sign? Or when Tom's mom was going to go out of town to visit her mother no one knew she had?"

"Henry..."

"Why am I the only one who changes in this town?" I screamed, my voice getting even higher pitched and panicky.

"Henry! Lower your voice!"

"No! What is going on?! Why is this town like this?! Tell me the truth, please, Mom!"

Mom stepped forward and grabbed my shoulders roughly, painfully. No one else was around, not that anyone would dare question the way Regina treated her son. But she'd never hurt me before. Ever.

"Stop it!" she snapped, shaking me slightly. "You're talking crazy!"

"I'm not crazy!" I exclaimed, fighting back the tears in my eyes. "Why can't you just tell me the truth? I'm your son!"

"There is NOTHING going on in this town!" she hissed. "And I don't EVER want to hear you talking like that again, do you understand me? NEVER!"

"What if I do?" the tears were falling then, I had no way of stopping them. "What I keep talking about it? What will you do? Lock me up?"

Something in my mom's eyes changed in that moment...darkened. Her voice lowered to a whisper, and never had I wished more that she would just scream. "That's what happens to crazy people."

It felt like my heart stopped beating. It felt like I was dropped off a tower and couldn't stop falling. I took a step back, then another, and another.

My mom's eyes widened and her face went slack. I knew she couldn't believe what she'd just said. I knew she wanted to take it back, but she couldn't. Not even the Evil Queen was capable of that.

"Henry..." she whimpered, tears forming in her own eyes. "I...I didn't..."

I bit my lip and shook my head, searching my mind for something to say that would hurt her like she hurt me. Suddenly I knew what would do the trick.

"It doesn't matter," I said, trying in vain to steady my voice. "You're not my real mother."

"Henry..."

"No! I'm going to find my real mother!" I took off, dodging her arms and ran the rest of the way to school.

When I said it, I had no real intention of trying to find my mother, but when I got to school, and Miss Blanchard saw my anguished face and promptly pulled me into the hallway so she could hug me, I realized suddenly that it was exactly what I needed to do.

If my gut was right, then my mother was Snow White's daughter. The only one who could break the curse, and defeat the Evil Queen once and for all.

And then the final battle could begin.