Forget Me Not
Chapter 3
Once they were back on the main road, Emma began to relax. She looked out the rearview mirror and when she didn't see any cars behind her she smiled. "I guess we did it," she said. Mr. Gold just nodded his head and checked the back seat to make sure that his Belle was in fact lying there. She seems so peaceful, he thought.
Emma dropped Mr. Gold off at his house just outside the main part of town. "I'm going to take her back to the apartment. Mary Margaret should be waiting with some supplies to help get her settled in." Mr. Gold just nodded; he was too busy staring at the girl to notice that Emma had even said anything. He was still too shocked to see she was real…she was alive. "Mr. Gold, did you hear me?" asked Emma. Mr. Gold snapped back to reality then and looked at Emma, "Yes. I heard you. I still think she would be safer here at my house. Regina wouldn't dare come here." "No, she will be staying with me. She is now officially under my protective custody." Emma just looked at Mr. Gold. He seemed happy that this girl was free but still very worried for her. Emma sighed, "As soon as she is feeling better, I'll call you. If she is up for visitors, you are more than welcome to come see her. We just don't know what kind of damage has been done to this poor girl and the last thing we want to do is overload her." She gave Mr. Gold a sympathetic look begging him to understand that this was best. Mr. Gold just nodded, turned and walked into his house.
As soon as Emma pulled up to the apartment, Mary Margaret was waiting to help carry the girl gently up the stairs. They set her down on Emma's bed and pulled the covers over her. "The poor thing," said Mary Margaret, "What possible reason could Regina have to lock her up like that?" "I don't know, but I am hoping that when she wakes up we can find out," said Emma, "It has been a long night, we all need some rest."
The next day Emma was up bright and early to check on their new house guest. When she peeked into the room the girl was still lying in bed sleeping. They must have really dosed her, thought Emma. She hoped that the girl would wake up soon. In the mean time she decided to go ahead and start on breakfast. It was about an hour later, while Emma was washing her dishes that she heard someone ask, "Where am I? Who are you?" Emma spun around quickly and dried her hands on a towel. "Oh good! You're awake. I was starting to worry that you were never going to wake up," said Emma with a smile on her face. "Don't worry, I'm a friend. We are here to help you, please sit down." As the girl slowly moved towards the table Emma sat down and motioned to the other chair. "So…you got me out of that prison?" the girl asked. "Yes, there was no reason for you to be in there. I'm sure this is very shocking for you, but can you tell me what you remember? How about your name? There was no name written in your file, do you know what it is?" asked Emma, concern in her voice. The girl sat there for a few minutes and seemed to stare off into space. Emma was just starting to worry that the girl had gone into shock when she whispered, "Belle…my name is Belle…and I remember everything." "Ok. Good. That's a great start. My name is Emma. I'm the sheriff in town and the man that helped me get you out is Mr. Gold. You can meet him whenever you feel ready," said Emma with a smile on her face. Belle nodded her head, but she looked like she still didn't understand. "You don't need to worry about Regina anymore Belle. We are here to protect you and help you get better ok?" Belle just stared at Emma for a few seconds, trying to figure out if she should trust this woman, but eventually she smiled. "Thank you so much for helping me. I would love to meet the other person who helped you so I can thank him too," said Belle. Emma laughed and said she would call him as soon as Belle got checked out by Dr. Hopper. At first Belle was scared that Emma was going to send her back, but when Emma explained that Dr. Hopper was "one of the good guys" she relaxed and agreed. Belle ran off to Emma's room to get ready. She was excited to get out into the world and see what she had missed. She was also curious about this mysterious man who helped her escape. I guess I will meet him soon enough… she thought.
That evening Emma took Belle out of the apartment for the first time and they walked to Dr. Hopper's. Although Belle was nervous, she soon realized the Emma had been right. Dr. Hopper was an extremely nice man with a good heart. He listened to her explain her side of the story (at least the part that didn't make her sound crazy) and just smiled at her when she was finished. At the end of the session he told her that she seemed perfectly healthy and appeared to be adjusting well. Dr. Hopper told her to feel free to come back any time if she started to have any problems. Belle thanks him and walked out of the office to meet up with Emma. Emma was standing there waiting for Belle and as she approached she asked Belle if she was hungry at all. "Let's go to Granny's. It will be a nice way to relax and meet some people," said Emma. Belle just smiled and said OK. When they got to Granny's it was actually pretty crowded and Emma and Belle sat down at the bar and ordered. As they sat there talking Emma introduced Belle to some of the people; Ruby, Granny, David and his wife Katherine, Leroy the list of names just went on and on. Belle recognized some of these people, but they were different from the way she remembered them.
While they were eating Emma noticed that Belle got very quiet. "Is something wrong Belle?" she asked. "No, of course not…but I was wondering when I could meet the other guy who helped me get out. I really feel bad that I have not gotten to thank him yet. Everything you have done for me, I am so grateful and I just want to make sure he knows too," said Belle. Emma just smiled and nodded her head. "Ok then, just let me go make one phone call." Belle smiled at Emma as Emma got up to go outside to call Mr. Gold.
As soon as Emma stepped outside Regina was there, almost as if she was waiting for her. "Well hello Madame Mayor, what can I do for you today?" said Emma with a smile on her face. Regina just scowled at her. "Do you have any idea what you have done? That girl is a danger to herself and others. She belongs locked up!" said Regina. "With all due respect Mayor, no, she doesn't, and Dr. Hopper's medical opinion agrees with me. She was a prisoner in that hospital and you know it. You were the one who stuck her there. She wasn't even being treated! As much as you may hate it, you can't win this one. The law is on MY side," said Emma. "We shall see about that," said Regina as she stormed off. Emma sighed and pulled out her phone and dialed. "Mr. Gold, its Emma. I thought I'd give you an update. Regina officially knows, but trust me; there is nothing she can do. Also, she wants to meet you…her name? Ya, she says her name is Belle. Is it ok if we come by later tonight?...OK we will be there around 8pm…No problem Mr. Gold, bye." As she hung up the phone Emma got a strange feeling that the history between these two ran deeper than she thought, and she went back into the diner to get Belle.
