Chapter Three

I skipped down my front steps, my plastic bag full of Lucky Charms clutched in my hand and the strap of my backpack resting on my shoulder. I saw the school bus parked at the bend in the road and I started running to meet it. I passed his house, barely giving it a sideways glance. A flicker of movement in one of the windows caused me to stop abruptly, turning to face the house. I saw him wave, slowly, a barely noticeable motion. It seemed almost desperate to me, but I backed away anyways, my normal fear taking over. I'm sorry, I whispered into the wind; I knew it would never reach him, but it had to be said. I ran away as fast as I could towards the bus. His hand dropped limply at his side.

I climbed up into the yellow bus, my breathe ragged from running and my heart heavy with guilt. "Good morning, Paige," the bus driver said, less than cheerfully.

"Morning," I said. Henry said he was one of the seven dwarves. This one was 'Grumpy'. Here we called him Leroy, and he held many jobs besides driving the school bus. The bus began its route on the edge of town, so I was always the first on the bus. I took my normal seat in the front (Henry always sat beside me and it was best to stay away from the older children in the back who made fun of him because of his story book.) I pulled out my schoolbooks and began to start on my homework. I had five worksheets to complete and I knew I wouldn't be able to finish them all in the bus ride to the school. I spent the next few minutes writing down anything that made remote sense in the spaces provided.

"Hey Paige," Henry said, slipping into the seat next to me.

"Hi Henry," I said, barely looking up from the worksheet.

"You didn't do your homework?" he asked, looking over my shoulder.

"Forgot to," I said, and it wasn't exactly a lie.

"Do you want to copy mine?" Henry asked, pulling the papers out of his backpack.

"No, I couldn't," I replied, putting away my papers, even though I was not yet done with them. "Can we read from your book?"

"Sure," he said, a wide grin spreading across his face as he pulled the storybook out of his backpack. He flipped to a page with the evil queen on it. "This is the part where she rips out her father's heart. Do you want me to read it?"

I nodded, yawning slightly. He read the story for the rest of the bus ride. The yellow school bus rolled up to the school and Leroy shouted, "Go on kids!" I hopped up, grabbing my stuff, and followed Henry off of the bus.

We sat on a bench in the schoolyard as I stuffed Lucky Charms in my mouth. "Want some?" I asked, holding out the bag to him.

"No thanks," he replied. "It looks like you need them more than I do."

I laughed and nodded. "I guess so." He pulled out his storybook.

"The mayor is the Evil Queen," he said.

"Your mom?" I asked, glancing over his shoulder. The image had a likeness to the mayor.

"She's not my mom. Emma is," he said.

"Oh yeah," I said, looking at my hands. "I'm sorry."

He shrugged off my apology. "It's okay." The bell rang at that instant, and we gathered our things and headed into the school building.

. . . . . . . . . . .

"All right, I'll be coming around to collect your homework," Ms. Blanchard said, that ever-present smile still gracing her elegant features. I groaned, as I pulled my half-finished worksheets out of my blue homework folder. "Everything okay, Paige?" she asked, standing in front of my desk. I gave a small nod and handed her my worksheets. She looked over my (unimpressive) work with raised eyebrows. She nodded slightly, before going to gather the other students' papers.

"Are you okay?" Henry asked from his seat next to me.

I shrugged. "I bet I failed that homework. I'm going to have to meet with her after class… and maybe… maybe she'll even call my parents." Feeling hopeless, I buried my head in my hands.

"It's okay," he said, reaching out to take my hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze. I looked up to meet his eye and offered him a small smile.

"I'm okay," I said. "Thank you." Ms. Blanchard walked to the front of the room and our hands instantly separated as we started the next lesson.

. . . . . . . . . . .

As we rushed out of the classroom for recess, it was no surprise that Ms. Blanchard called me to stay behind. Henry shot me a comforting look before I turned back around, heading to the front of the room. "Yes Ms. Blanchard?" I asked, trying to remain calm.

"Well, your homework is not complete or done satisfactorily," she said, shuffling through my papers nervously.

"I know. I'm sorry," I said. "I forgot about it last night and tried to rush through it this morning."

"You are normally such a good student, Paige, so this is why it comes as a surprise." I nodded slowly. "I'll let you re-do it tonight," she said, moving to her desk to get me fresh copies of the worksheets.

"Thank you, Ms. Blanchard," I said, smiling. I couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

"It's no trouble," she said, handing the papers to me. "Now go on out to recess," she said, smiling at me.

"Yes ma'am," I said, rushing towards the door. Turning around to say one last thank you, I saw her standing at her desk, her hand fingering the edge of it, a melancholy look etched on her face. I quietly left the room and exited the school building, greeted by the mid-morning light.

I walked over to the bench where Henry sat. "How was it?" he asked.

"All right," I replied, but I couldn't shake the look on Ms. Blanchard's face from my mind. "What's Ms. Blanchard's curse?" I asked, sitting beside him, a look of urgency on my face.

"She has to live without true love," he said, flipping to a page that showed Snow sitting on the ground, holding onto a man with a red stain on his front. "This is her true love." He pointed to the man. "He died before the curse hit. True love's kiss failed. I don't know who he is here, or even if he is in Storybrooke."

"Even if he was here," I said slowly, "they wouldn't remember each other."

He nodded. "Exactly."

"Do you think anyone actually remembers who they were before the curse?" I asked. I wasn't sure if I really believed Henry, but I played along. It was fun.

"My mom does. And I think Mr. Gold does too," he said, furrowing his eyebrows in thought.

"Anyone else?"

"I think that's it," Henry told me, his book snapping shut as the bell rung.

. . . . . . . . . . .

I hopped off the bus, thanking Leroy and wishing him a good rest of his day. He grumbled in reply. Walking along the asphalt, I came to a stop in front of his house. There was no sign of him, but I could hear a kettle whistling inside. Not seeing any car in my driveway, I figured that my parents were at work. Just as they always are… Shrugging, I climbed up his front steps.

Just in time for tea.

. . . . . . . . . . .

A/N So yeah, that's the chapter. I hope you all liked it. I included more Henry and Paige moments, and I might have some more in the next chapter.

Please review.