I know, I know, 10 months is quite a while.

But I am going to not be evil and give everyone quite a chapter! We'll see what Emma says to Regina's confession, plus two new couples introduced!

So I shan't bore anyone with long messages, just add: 200 reviews, wow! Thank you everyone! I'm loving the enthusiasm and the support!

Hope you enjoy this!

"What?" Emma blinked, sure she had heard wrong. Maybe this was a prank?

Regina seemed to understand Emma's inability to comprehend, so she added, "I am, or well, I was, the Evil Queen. The town is cursed, everyone here is a fairytale, and you are the Saviour."

Emma shook her head, taking an involuntary step back. "No, that's crazy. This whole thing is crazy."

"I know this is a lot to process," Regina reassured her, wanting to reach out to comfort Emma, but the step back stopped that plan completely.

"No, a lot to process would be if you were trying to explain taxes to me, Regina. This is madness! If this is a joke, or your way of trying to drive me away, then it's all working a little too well," Emma huffed.

"Drive you away?" Regina repeated, astonished. "I am trying to do the exact opposite!"

"Oh sure, that's a wonderful idea. Invite your new girlfriend in for a nice bonding session to bring the two of us together only to tell her this ridiculous fairytale idea is real!"

Regina scoffed, incredulous that Emma was behaving so stubbornly. "Us arguing is ridiculous, because it's not some fictional idea, this is very much real! That's why I want to tell you this now. I don't want to build this relationship on a lie!"

Her words were enough to make Emma pause, and with a deep breath, Regina continued, "Look, I would want nothing more than to have left the date at that, and continued this wonderful relationship as it is and let our feelings build. But I know the truth Emma. I know what is real.

"For a second, let go of your disbelief. Just imagine, if you will, that everything I just told you is actually real. Fairytales are all around you, and when the curse breaks, as it's due to happen, you realize that Henry's theory had been true all along. Imagine that I hadn't told you until that very moment. Wouldn't you have been angry that I lied to you? That I led you on without informing you what you were getting into?" Regina sighed sorrowfully and added, "As I said, I know that this is a lot to take in. Everything you ever believed isn't as you thought it would be. Magic is real, fairytales aren't just confined to books, and you are at the center of it. So please, try to ask yourself this: Wouldn't everything make more sense if it all was real?" Regina asked.

"It definitely would explain Kathryn and Jim," Emma conceded after a moment of silence. "But that could have been a fluke really. Set an attractive guy and a girl together and there's bound to be some chemistry."

Regina hummed. "Then let's switch things up a bit. Let's find a couple like us. Two women. Not everyone in this town is gay, and surely, according to you, the book can't be right twice, and about a lesbian couple to boot?"

Emma thought about it for a moment. It would be an easy way to disprove it. But..."You could have just frequented the gay bars in town and find two women who you know work well together."

Sighing, Regina tried to remain calm. "You're really enjoying playing the devil's advocate here aren't you? And much to our chagrin, we actually don't have any gay bars, but even if I did know, there wouldn't be an image in the book of two women locking lips who resembled two people in town, would there?"

"The book has pictures?" Emma asked, surprised.

Regina had forgotten Emma hadn't seen the book, and so she beckoned Emma to the desk, bringing the book. She didn't want to show Emma the image of the two of them, so she flipped to Kathryn and Jim's chapter, reuniting after the curse on him had been lifted with Kathryn helping Jim down from the pedestal, while the latter removed his helmet.

"Exhibit A, Kathryn and Jim," Regina showed.

Emma glanced at the entire spread, noting, "Abigail and Frederick. Stuffy names."

Regina smiled. "They were stuffy times. Now, these are our next... targets, if you will"

As Emma once more pored over the spreads, she noted the picture of the dark-skinned woman with long black hair locking lips with a light-skinned woman with short brown hair. "Rapunzel and...Jack? You're going to tell me Rapunzel is gay?"

"Indeed. And in this world, their names are Cassandra and Alex, respectively."

Jack cursed under her breath. As if nearly dying wasn't terrifying enough, now she was on the run and guards were closing in on her. Not something any thief enjoyed.

It was hard to believe that a little over a year ago, she had been bedding a crown prince. Prince James had been a devious partner all around, but she didn't mind at the time, she rather enjoyed it. Until he betrayed her and left her for dead.

She had been ready to get her revenge on him, make him suffer like she had. But from what she had heard, he had now become a proper prince, intent on catching criminals and punishing them with the full extent of the law, so the kingdom's guards were more present, and therefore, they posed more of a danger to her.

No, she had given up going that route. It would just end badly. Now she just wanted to get away from this place. She'd already changed her appearance by cutting off most of her hair so no one would recognize her. All she needed was enough money to travel, and she'd be free. The problem was getting that money. As a thief, her first solution was to steal it all. But that method, combined with the extra vigilance, meant that she was now on the entire kingdom's radar. No one had a good drawing of her face, but her wanted posters were all over, and town criers were promising heaping rewards to anyone who could offer information or directly hand her to the authorities, dead or alive. So, with all eyes on her, the prince's guards were closing in, and she did not want to know what they did to undead thieves.

Now, she was hiding in a tree on the outskirts of the latest town she had exhausted, perched on a branch precariously, trying to make as little noise as possible. After the guards passed by underneath her hiding spot, Jack got down and straightened her vest. Looking up at the sky, she noted the incoming storm clouds. She had to find a place with a roof, and fast. Maybe there would be a hamlet nearby that she could hide in until the heat died down.

She preferred to travel off-road, knowing there was less chance of being caught.

Suddenly, she noticed that the rock face to her left had a patch of vines growing only on a narrow section. The leaves were moving as if a breeze were passing through it, even though the air near her was still. Approaching the rock, she held her hand out, and as she had suspected, her hand phased through, rather than making contact with a surface. Pushing the rest of her body through the leaves, Jack saw she was now inside a cave.

No, not a cave. There was a light source coming from further inside that seemed too large for a campfire. Continuing to walk, she saw the tunnel opened up, and it exited onto a clearing. It was a nice valley, surrounded by cliffs, with a small pond. But the truly perfect thing was the nicely-sized chateau in the middle. It had two floors, and a tall tower protruding from it. There was smoke coming from the chimney of the main house, which meant someone clearly lived here. But surely no one would live in the tower when there was so much free space inside the actual house, right?

It was the perfect hiding spot, but how would she get in?

She looked through the window, no one was there. Knocking on the door, she hid by the side of the house and waited to see if anyone would appear.

Nothing.

She tried the handle, and surprisingly enough, it was open.

Exploring the inside of the house, she found that only a few rooms were in use. A bedroom, the kitchen, and a living room. But there was no door for the tower.

Praising her good luck, she went back outside, and figured she could use the vines growing on the side of the tower to climb to the top.

After climbing a beanstalk, this was easy. Less than an hour later, she grabbed the ledge and heaved herself over.

The top of the tower was dark, and her eyes were taking a while to adjust.

"Who are you and what do you want?" a voice demanded.

Whipping around, Jack tried to locate the source of the voice. It was a woman, that much she was sure.

"I'm just a weary traveller in need of shelter," she tried, hoping the voice wasn't either cunning nor smart.

"If you were looking for shelter, you would have stayed downstairs, not climbed all the way up here. Besides, I saw you when you approached, you went inside the house as if looking for something."

Jack sighed. So much for that. "Fine, I am on the run, and I was trying to see if I could hide here for a while. Happy?"

"Much." There was some rustling, and then Jack saw a figure approach her.

It was a young woman -and in Jack's opinion, very beautiful - with dark skin and long black hair. Well, long was an understatement. Even braided it still made many loops around on the floor and it hung from beams above their heads. "So who are you hiding from?"

Jack glanced from the skillet the woman was holding and back to her face. She couldn't hold her gaze for some reason, so she looked back down and mumbled, "People."

Before either woman could say anything else, they heard a voice sing out, "Rapunzel! Let down your hair!"

Jack whipped around at the new woman's voice coming from below, and as she was about to approach the open window she came through, she felt and heard a dull thunk, and then everything went dark.

The next morning, as Emma made her way to the station, her mind preoccupied.

Regina had dropped quite a bomb down on her last night, but the strangest thing was: she could actually see it being true. Not that she would ever admit it, at least not right now. No, first she had to get concrete proof. Once could certainly be a coincidence, but having two couples fall in love with the right person had to mean something deeper was going on.

So, she agreed to give the theory a chance. Regina promised her that she hadn't talked to either woman recently, nor was she going to contact them.

She was allowing Emma to do this one by herself. Regina merely told Emma where she could find both women, and they parted ways awkwardly, with a lopsided smile and silence.

Now, she checked in with Graham, told him she was going to patrol the outskirts, familiarize herself with the borders and limits of the town. She actually had a destination in mind, but she didn't exactly want to make a big deal of it in front of Graham. He was pretty by-the-book, and taking time off to pursue a potential fairytale character certainly wasn't what she was supposed to be doing.

"That sounds fantastic!" Graham grinned, nodding. "You can also meet Alex, she's a forest ranger, and in charge of making sure the town limits are safe. Not the most social person, but you can learn a lot from her. Tell her I said hi."

She nodded and took a map that he offered, and with a wave, she headed out and went towards the forest in her car.

Half an hour later, Emma was walking down the path towards a cabin, periodically checking the map Graham had given her.

After a few moments, she saw the cabin and she breathed a sigh of relief. She'd never been great with maps or directions, and she didn't want to end up lost and going in circles.

"You there!" a voice called out. "Who are you?"

Emma saw a woman, who she surmised must be Alex. She greeted, hoping the frosty tone would thaw, "Hey, my name is Emma, I'm the new Deputy here in Storybrooke."

"I can see that," Alex responded with a sly smirk, glancing at the badge on her hip.

Emma faltered a bit and then smiled. "Yeah, I can be captain obvious sometimes. Anyway, Graham thought it might be a good idea if we got acquainted and had you show me around the area... for patrol reasons."

Alex didn't react for a second, and then her serious facade broke and she guffawed. "Did he now? How is the old bastard anyway?"

"He's good, he says hi" Emma responded, smiling wider now. At least she seemed friendlier now. From what she'd heard, she was expecting a grouch who loved her musket a little bit too much and would bark at her to leave.

"Oh where are my manners? Name's Alex, forest ranger and sort of a lone wolf." Alex extended her hand and Emma took it, shaking firmly. "Shall we get started?"

Emma nodded, and together, they set off. Emma learned about the toll bridge and the teenage ruffians that frequented here.

"You got a kid, Deputy?" Alex asked. "'Cause I warn you, kids try to pull this 'but my dad's so and so!' schtick to try and get out of trouble, but I have zero interest in hearing about that, and will arrest anyone's kid."

"You don't have to worry about that. I've only got one kid; his name is Henry and he's 10. He's actually Regina's kid legally. She's the mayor." Emma said with an easy smile.

Alex laughed. "Oh I'm well aware who Regina is, but I am curious as to how you fit the picture."

"Maybe after we're done here, we can go to Granny's for lunch and I can tell you all about that," Emma offered, segueing right back onto her plan.

"Done deal. Been a while since I've been into town," Alex mused.

They walked around for a while longer, and the more Emma learnt about the town, the more she felt at home here. Soon enough, it was lunch time, and Alex wrapped things up.

"Now, let's go get some grub," Alex gleefully stated, rubbing her hands together.

Emma let out a laugh, and as they made their way back, she asked, "So why do you keep to yourself so much?"

Alex shrugged. "Dunno. Never had anything of interest to get me to go there. If I do go, it's because I need to buy groceries or talk to someone or other about their kid, or something. Otherwise, got no reason to venture out there."

Once they were out of the forest, Emma started walking towards Granny's. "Don't have a special someone?"

Alex made a disgruntled noise. "Please don't tell me you're gonna be like Graham and try to set me up with someone. Wait...did he put you up to this?!"

Emma quickly put her hands up placatingly. "Whoa whoa, relax, he didn't tell or ask me to do anything, promise."

After glaring at Emma for a few seconds more, Alex relaxed, seeming convinced that Emma wasn't acting on Graham's behalf. "Sorry, he's just been trying to find me someone since forever, and he fails terribly every single time."

As they walked down Main Street, Emma asked, "Any specific reason for that? I mean, I never would have figured Graham to be a competent matchmaker, but-" She stopped talking when she realized that Alex was a bit preoccupied with her hair, which was quite longer than the picture she had seen, it went past her shoulders now. "Alex? Everything alright?"

"Yeah," Alex said with a goofy smile, looking beyond Emma. "Just hadn't realized that my hair had gotten so long."

Glancing behind her at the hair salon that was half a block down the road, Emma smirked as she asked, "I'm sure it has nothing to do with the cute girl that's currently drawing on the sign in front of the salon right?"

Alex looked sheepish at being caught and Emma was quick to add, "No judgment, just go get her! A friend of mine tells me her name is Cassandra, if that helps."

"It really does." After a brief clasp of Emma's shoulder, Alex adjusted her own leather jacket and then added, "Well, I'm going in, catch you around?"

"Definitely," Emma said with a nod, unable to stop a smile from blooming on her face as she saw Alex head towards Cassandra, who was very focused on her drawing. She decided to keep watching for a little while longer, just to see if it really did all work out.

Jack groaned as she came to, seeing darkness all around her. "What the-"

Suddenly, the doors opened and Jack stumbled out of the wardrobe and onto the floor. "Oh I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to cause you any pain, I was just trying to protect you from mother. She can't know you're here!"

"You could have just told me to hide," Jack responded with a wince as she got back up.

The other woman shook her head vehemently. "Oh no, mother can read minds!"

Jack raised an eyebrow. "Read minds? What sort of witchcraft is this?"

"It's true! Mother sometimes can divine things just like that." Rapunzel snapped her fingers to prove her point.

Still skeptical, Jack asked, "Are you sure you aren't just a really bad liar?"

The young woman harrumphed. "Honestly! If I were a bad liar, mother would have found you. The fact she didn't should be a testament of my fibbing abilities."

Jack conceded to that fact. "Thanks then. So she keeps you a prisoner?"

"No, she keeps me safe. A lot of people might want to kidnap me and harm me."

"Why would they do that?"

"I can't tell you why." The young woman seemed like she did want to share the reason why, but then she shook her head and grinned. "But I can tell you my name! I'm Rapunzel. You are?"

Jack faltered. Due to her undead status, she had adopted a pseudonym, that of the dashing Flynn Rider. That name, coupled with her short hair, made her pass as a young man unperturbed. But with Rapunzel, Jack was remiss at having to lie to her. "Jack, short for Jaqueline."

Rapunzel smiled wryly. "Why the pause? Do you have another name you go by?"

"Somewhat." And so Jack went on to explain all that had happened to her in the past year. She trusted Rapunzel, strange as it seemed, and she couldn't deny she felt an attraction to her.

In turn, Rapunzel opened up, talking about her many years in the tower, having very little friends apart from woodland creatures to keep her company. "I just want to explore the world! I've read so much about it, and yet I have never stepped foot outside of this tower."

"Never?!" Jack repeated, flabbergasted.

Rapunzel shook her head.

Jack thought about it for a moment then decided, "Let's go then. You and me. We can go and explore the world."

"But what about the people that would want to do me harm?" Rapunzel asked.

Jack smiled reassuringly. "Look, if anyone had been chasing down a damsel hidden away in a tower, I would have heard about it, and besides, I'll be around to keep you company and make sure no one hurts you."

Rapunzel ducked her head to hide her blush, but Jack saw it.

"What do you say?" Jack asked, holding out her hand.

With a definitive nod, Rapunzel took the proffered hand, and together, they made their way down the tower and out of the hidden valley.

Emma had been watching the two women talk with a smile, but internally she was bewildered. Could Regina have been telling her the truth? Could it be Henry's theory wasn't just a figment of his imagination?

"Perdita! Pongo! Get back here!"

Emma whipped around, and saw a woman chasing after two dalmatians. She ran after them, her mind whirring even more now. Were the 101 dalmatians also part of this?

She eventually chased the woman and her two dogs down to Storybrooke park, where a man with a ukulele was getting tackled by the two dalmatians.

"Excuse me!" Emma called out with a wave.

The two turned to look at her. They looked familiar, though Emma couldn't exactly say where she could know them from. "Sorry to barge in, but I saw you running after your dogs and I was wondering if everything was okay?"

The woman nodded, smiling softly. "Oh yes! Truly sorry about that Deputy, our dogs love my husband's music, and whenever they hear it they go nuts and run right after him, no matter how far away they are. It's one hell of a workout I'll tell you that much."

The man let out a rich laugh. "It's very much like how we met. Our dogs ran away and we met in the confusion."

Emma grinned. "Sounds like a wonderful story- I'm sorry, I didn't catch your names?"

"Oh!" the woman exclaimed with a chuckle. "I'm Tiana, and this is my husband Naveen."

Emma blinked. This couldn't be real. Before she could ask anything else, the dogs began jumping up to greet her. She let out a laugh and petted them. "So what do you two do, if you don't mind me asking?"

Naveen held out his instrument. "I do concerts in the park-"

"And I work part-time at Granny's. I'm trying to get a restaurant opened up, but it's proving to be impossible."

"Oh really?" Emma asked, still trying to figure out what was going on.

"Yeah, bureaucracy is making this a mess. If I get approval from one place then another denies me. I re-apply and then the whole process starts over again."

Emma hummed. "Well maybe I can poke around and see what's the hold-up."

Tiana's face brightened. "You would? That's wonderful! Oh thank you Deputy, you have just made my day."

Naveen shook her hand vigorously, and after they parted ways, Emma managed to keep her composure until she was halfway to Town Hall. She practically burst into Regina's offices, startling Kathryn.

"Is Regina free?" Emma asked, a bit shaken.

Kathryn nodded and then frowned. "You okay Emma? You look a little pale."

Emma waved it off. "Yeah yeah, just a crazy morning."

Once she was inside, Emma let out a deep breath.

Regina looked up from her work and when she saw Emma practically collapse in the chair in front of her desk, she grew worried. She got up from her chair and made her way to stand in front of Emma, leaning against the desk."Emma, what happened?"

And so Emma explained, meeting Alex, getting her to head into town and then Cassandra being there. "It was like magic really, Alex just started talking about her hair being long, I didn't even have to pry."

Regina nodded along. "But that's not what startled you," she stated, more than asked.

"Yeah. Apparently 101 dalmatians existed in your world? But in this world, they are the same characters from the movie Princess and the Frog. So either this is a super crazy prank, or you are telling the truth."

"And which one do you think it is?" Regina calmly asked.

"The latter. You and Henry are telling the truth. You're a fairy-tale character," Emma said disbelievingly.

Regina smiled slightly. "Well, I think that by all technicalities, I'm a villain."

Emma frowned and stood up. "Not to me. To me you've just been Regina. The woman who raised Henry into the amazing kid he is today."

Moving forward, Emma placed a gentle kiss on Regina's lips. "I'm sorry for going all crazy on you last night."

"Don't apologize. It's one hell of a story to wrap your head around, I'm just happy you accepted it sooner rather than later. I was expecting we'd be trying to make you believe for months to come." Regina gave Emma a kiss of her own.

With a grin, Emma riposted, "You're lucky I'm not that stubborn then."

Regina hummed. "Considering your parentage, it's a huge relief."

Emma's face fell at that response. "So wait, they really are my parents?"

"Yes," Regina admitted with a slight nod.

Taking a step back, Emma frowned. "Not that I'm accusing you or anything, but if that is true, why do you like me? I mean, I'd have figured that being the child of your enemies would automatically put me at the top of your shit list or something."

Regina sighed. She figured this would eventually come up. "There's another part to this story that you don't really know."

Emma watched as Regina went around her desk and fished the large leather tome out of her bag. "Do you carry that thing with you everywhere?"

"Well, Henry wants it to be safe, and I figured you might come to my office at some point today with the realization that this was all true, so here we are." Regina flashed a tentative smile, and then grabbed the chair from behind her desk and wheeled it beside Emma. She sat down, and before she opened the book, Regina looked at Emma straight in the eye and said, "I just want to say something first, before we start. This book has a lot of information. Some of it is accurate, and some of it isn't. It might not be totally untrue, but it is biased and skewed to show the heroes always in a good and noble light. Some things you might not enjoy reading, but please let me explain first, okay?"

"Regina, if this is about the things you did as the Evil Queen, I will understand. Obviously I don't condone violence, but I'm-"

"No, this is not about that...not really. You see, there is a reason we didn't show you the book at first…" Regina opened the book to the last pages, depicting Charming placing baby Emma in the wardrobe.

"Oh my god," Emma breathed, grabbing the book and pulling it close to her.

Regina frowned. That had not been the reaction she was expecting, at least not from in this page. "What is it?"

Tears prickled Emma's eyes as she said, "That's my baby blanket. I've had it since forever." Emma's lips quirked into a smile. "You really should have shown this to me, I would have totally believed you from the get go."

"Perhaps," Regina began, before reaching out to grab the pages of the book, and flipping back to the beginning, and the image of Regina with her stable girl. "But then I would have to explain this as well.

Emma said nothing at first. She just looked. Again and again. The similarities were uncanny, this could only be her. "How…what happened?"

"I honestly don't know." Regina explained everything as best as she could, about her mother and what she had done to the stable girl, of her own subsequent grief and hunting Snow down, and of the curse. She also spoke of her investigation as to how Emma could possibly resemble the stable girl.

By the time she was finished, it was dark out, and Emma was reeling. "Wow. That's...a lot to take in. So there's no leads? Nothing that points to how I'm exactly like her?"

"Nothing. You are Snow's child, so you can't be the same woman brought back to life, but your similarities make me wonder if you could be some form of her reincarnation."

"Does that happen often?" Emma asked.

Regina shook her head. "I've never heard of it, but it certainly wouldn't be the craziest thing I'd have heard."

Emma nodded distractedly. "This is a lot to take in."

"I know, if you need time, I understand."

Emma shook her head. "Not really. I'll just sleep on it. Talk to you tomorrow?"

Regina nodded, and smiled when Emma gave her a kiss on her cheek.

Just as Emma was about to reach the door, Regina called her name. When Emma turned in recognition, Regina said, "I just wanted to answer your question and to make something clear. Despite your obvious resemblance to that Emma, my attraction to you is real and of who you are now." Regina gave a faint smile before adding, "Perhaps your similarity opened my heart up to the idea of love again, rather than wanting to run you out of town, but my feelings are for you, not her memory."

Emma walked back to Regina, saying nothing. When she was in front of her, she cupped her face and gave her a soft kiss on her lips. "Of course I know, I can see it when you look at me. You're not looking at a memory. When we first met, yeah you were, but not now."

Regina surged forward to kiss Emma again with fervor, happy she could see the truth. Emma eagerly responded, hands wrapping around her girlfriend's waist.

"See you tomorrow?" Emma asked when they parted.

"Of course," Regina reassured her.

When Emma arrived at the apartment, she found Mary Margaret getting ready to leave. "Hey Mar," Emma greeted. "Heading out?"

"Oh yes, I have to go do my volunteer work at the hospital." Mary Margaret then thought about it for a moment before she asked, "Could you come and help me? I have papers to grade and it would really speed things up if you came along."

Emma had been hoping to head to bed early. After the whirlwind day of discoveries, her oncoming migraine was asking for rest to in order for her to cope and figure out how everything worked. But, looking at Mary Margaret's hopeful expression - and the fact she was her mother was not lost on her - made her reconsider. "Yeah, I could use it."

"Great!" Mary Margaret beamed.

On the drive over, Mary Margaret piped up, "So, what happened that you said you could use this?"

Emma faltered, trying to think of what to say. "Nothing really, just adjusting to this."

Mary Margaret hummed. "No, I think there's more to it. But if you don't want to talk about it now, that's fine. I'm here when you do."

"Thanks, that means a lot to me." And it did for Emma, who had gone for so long without being able to confide in anyone. Especially not a mother - cursed or otherwise.

When they arrived, Mary Margaret was quick to explain what she did. "I basically hand out flowers and say a few words of encouragement. It might not be much, but it brightens their faces, so I keep doing it."

They were nearly done when Emma noticed the remaining flower. "Who is that for?"

Mary Margaret smiled sorrowfully. "David."

When Emma looked confused, her friend added, "He's a patient that's been in a coma forever."

They went to his room, and when Mary Margaret opened the door, Emma recognized the man from the picture. It was her dad.

"He used to be Kathryn's husband, but they had an amicable divorce many years ago. Everyone thought he would leave town after it, pursue other things, but he got into an accident just before he could. It was Regina who found him. According to Whale, if she hadn't found him, he would have died. Not that his current state is much better," Mary Margaret explained with a hopeful tone. She rested her hands on David's forearm and looked at him. "I'm hopeful he'll make a full recovery."

Emma nodded along, and then she looked at him. This was her dad, and something within her made her want to reach out and touch him. She would forever wonder if maybe it was some greater force at work, or if she just wanted to feel a connection to her father and feel him near her. Whatever the reason was, she reached out and touched his other forearm.

Immediately, the lights pulsed on and off and the machine hooked up to David started beeping like crazy. Both women jumped back and exclaimed in surprise. As the lights returned to normal and the machine stopped beeping, Mary Margaret sighed. But when she looked at the monitor, the screen was off.

"I'm going to get someone," Mary Margaret stated, hurrying out of the room.

Emma nodded dumbly, and looked once more at David. Had she caused this? She shook her head. That would be impossible, even if she did consider the situation with curses and fairytales. Then she wondered, maybe if she touched him again, she would wake him. So that's exactly what she did, she brought her hand closer to his, but before she could touch him, his hand shot up and grabbed her wrist.

Emma gasped and looked up at David, who was wide awake and looking at her. Then his face softened and his grip loosened. "Emma," he rasped, "You found us."

Before Emma could even react, his eyes closed again and his hand fell back onto the bed.

Nurses burst in, with Mary Margaret towing behind them.

"Emma! What happened?" Mary Margaret asked.

"He woke up," Emma stated, shocked and numb, cradling her wrist.

The nurses began to murmur as they took his vitals. The man Emma assumed to be Doctor Whale came in with a chart on his hand. When he saw Emma and Mary Margaret, he asked them to wait outside or to go home.

They did as he asked, going to the waiting room. Mary Margaret - the pile of tests long-forgotten - did not want to leave until she knew what had happened, and as Emma did not fancy having to walk back home alone, she waited along, but she sat down in the waiting room, rather than stand close to the door of David's room.

Some ten minutes later, Regina walked in. When she saw Emma, she sighed in relief and walked over to her. "What happened?"

Emma explained everything, since there was no one around to overhear them. When she was finished, she asked, "What are you doing here though? Is the mayor notified for these kind of things?"

Regina shook her head. "Not really. Rather, as I'm the one who found David, I was listed as his emergency contact, and I was notified about his little incident."

Whale then came back outside and spoke to all three women together. "So, his vitals have greatly improved, it's almost like magic really. We can't explain it at all, but he's improved greatly. We'll keep monitoring him and let you know of any developments, but now I think the best thing for you three to do is to head home."

And so, they did just that, Regina cordially saying good night to both women and heading back to her car without a further glance. She wished she could have kissed Emma again, but with Mary Margaret there, it made it harder. She didn't want her to know about their relationship, whether she was cursed or not. That woman had already ruined one relationship for her, Regina would be loathe to let it happen again.

It was the middle of the night when Emma's phone started ringing. She groaned and saw the digital clock on her nightstand show that it was 5am. Whoever was calling had better have a good reason otherwise she was going to chew them out.

"Hello?" she greeted sleepily.

A frazzled woman responded, "Hi Deputy Swan. I understand you were here earlier when the incident with Mr. Nolan happened?"

It took her a few seconds to organize her thoughts and realize what the woman was talking about. "Yeah. Did something happen?"

"Yes. I'm afraid Mr. Nolan has escaped."

Quite a chapter huh?

A lot's been going on hasn't it! I decided to include Rapunzel's story because the way ouat handled it was super poor, and when trying to figure out a potential partner, I figured Jack was a viable alternative. She was a thief and could totally be the Flynn Rider to Rapunzel. Plus, how can you say no to more lady love?

As for Tiana and Naveen, I've always enjoyed Princess and the Frog, and when I was trying to think of their cursed names, I realized that Tiana is an anagram for Anita from 101 dalmatians, and that's how that came to be! We'll learn more about them in the next chapter, so you haven't heard the last of them yet.

And oooh David is awake! And he's not cursed, which of course means he ran away from the hospital!

So that's that for now! Meanwhile I'll be updating How many times can a heart break? and Date in the Name of the Law!

Let me know your thoughts on this!