And here we are again, another chapter. I hope you guys are still enjoying it. Please note that althought this is obviously a Gremma fic, I also feel obliged to tell parts of other character's stories, in order to make the entire fic work. Let me know what you think!

ENCHANTED FOREST, 11 MONTHS AGO

"… and that's when I woke up here, with him by my side," Graham concluded his story. "It was quite confusing at first. The last thing I remember is being in my office with Emma, feeling this sharp pain in my chest, and then I'm here all of a sudden. It took me a while to figure out. Still not sure I know everything."

"Well, neither do we. Not entirely. We know it has something to do with the Curse, but don't ask me to explain it. We barely understand it ourselves." Charming replied.

A few feet behind them, Belle and Neal were following them, catching bits and pieces of the conversation, while Belle was still looking for more food. "So, that's the guy. Henry told me about him. Said Graham was the first one to regain his memories." Neal mumbled to Belle.

"I never knew him," she replied. "I was still in that basement when he died, and I've never seen him around the lands here either. He seems nice."

"How can you tell?"

"Do you really think David would be having a friendly conversation with him if he was up to no good? Besides; has Henry told you bad things about him?"

"No, he didn't. Just that Graham was starting to get his memories back after he kissed Emma." Neal muttered.

"Emma? They were a thing?" Belle asked. When Neal gave his head a little jerk that could pass as a nod, she continued. "More men to vie for her attention, then."

"If she'd be here, yeah. But she's not. She never will be."

Belle hooked her arm into his. "We'll get through this. Together. And who knows, maybe we haven't run out of miracles yet."

Neal smirked. "I have never met a more positive person than you, you know that? It's nice."

A few feet ahead, Charming was trying to explain everything that happened to Graham. "So, everyone's back now? Here, in our land?" The Huntsman asked him.

"Yeah, except for Emma and Henry. They had to stay behind." Charming explained.

Graham remind quiet, which Charming noticed. "You know, she took your death pretty hard. Not that you could tell at first. She worked harder than ever, especially after she was made Sheriff. But Snow could tell. Something about Emma's behaviour, like she was back to having those walls up again."

Graham smiled. "Yeah, those walls weren't easy to tear down. I don't think I ever did, though."

"But you did," Charming protested. "Maybe not everything, but Emma allowed herself to care about you. And that's a huge deal for her."

"Not that it matters now," Graham spoke. "But at least she's with Henry, and they're happy, right?"

"Yeah, I think so." Charming said. "I hope so."

Graham smiled. "Then that's all that matters. So, shall I help you gather food?"

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In another part of the Forest, Snow and Hook found themselves in a bit of trouble. Running from flying creatures they had never seen before, Snow shot one arrow after another at them, while Hook tried to wound them with his sword.

"What in the hell are these things?! I don't remember these roaming this land last time we were here," he yelled, while fending off yet another creature. Another dropped next to him, and arrow sticking out of its chest. "Nice one, love."

"That's not my arrow," Snow shouted back, scouting the sky for more creatures.

"No, that's my arrow." A voice from behind them informed them.

They turned around in union, weary of the man standing in front of them. He slung his bow over his shoulder, however, and extended his hand. "The name's Robin. At your service."

Hook cautiously shook his hand, but Snow's face broke into a smile. "I've heard of you. He who steals from the rich to help the poor. Sounds like a man with his heart in the right place."

"Well, what can I say. What's the point in keeping all the money and gold if you can share it?" Robin replied with a broad grin on his face.

"Yes, lovely how you two are getting along," Hook said, while poking the dead creature with his sword. "But is this a bloody monkey… with wings?"

"Looks like it," Robin replied, investigating the creature. "We've seen more of them in the last few weeks. We're actually out here trying to determine their nest, or cave, or whatever they sleep in. That's when we saw you."

"Thank God you did, I'm not entirely sure we could've taken them out by ourselves," Snow smiled.

"So, where did you come from?" Robin asked. "I know who you are, your majesty, but last time I heard, you were in that dreadful place of Neverland."

"Right, you helped Neal get back to us. Thanks for that. Well, as you can see, we managed to escape Neverland. Unfortunately not without a price. Some of its residents came back with us and cast another Curse. Coming back here was the only way to escape that," Snow explained.

"Well, no offense, because I realize it might not be what you wanted, but I'm glad you're all back. A lot of strange things have been happening in the forest for the last few weeks, and I think we need all the help we can get trying to figure out what's going on."

Robin pulled the arrow out of the monkey, wiped it clean on the grass, and put it back with the rest. "So, how do you feel about teaming up, your majesty?"

"It's Snow, no need to address me with anything else. And it sounds like a good idea, as long as you don't mind teaming up with a lot more people than just us two." She slung her bow over her shoulder and nodded at Hook. "It's why we're out here. We're trying to find as many of our friends as possible."

"Then we shall help you find them, Snow." Robin smiled as he gestured with his hand. "Lead the way."

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With fruit, herbs and some small wildlife in their bags, Charming and his group had slowly started making their way back to the palace. He and Belle had been talking about how to best take back their entire land, and so Graham had take in upon himself to talk to the man he had never seen before.

"So, who are you then? I don't remember seeing you anywhere in these lands before the Curse hit."

"That's because I haven't been here in centuries," Neal replied, and he smirked when he saw the confusion on Graham's face. "My father, Rumplestiltskin, or Mr. Gold, we got separated a long time ago when I'd found a way out of this world. I went through the portal, he stayed behind. I ended up in a place where children don't age, and it took me a very long time to escape. I didn't come to that other world until 20 years ago."

"I honestly have no idea what you're talking about," Graham frowned. "But it sounds terrible. I'm sorry."

"Don't be. My last world wasn't so bad. I met Emma, we had Henry… It wasn't a fairytale, but it was still a good life."

Graham studied Neal's face. "You're Henry's father? I thought you died in a fire, years ago?"

"Yeah, apparently that's the story Emma told the others. Guess that tells you how much she resented me for leaving her."

"She definitely deserved better." Graham couldn't help but sound accusing.

" What, like you? Yeah, I heard about you two. You weren't exactly the most stable option either, were you?" Neal had stopped walking and grabbed Graham by his arm.

"You might want to let go of me, Neal. I'm not much of a people's person as it is." Graham glared down at Neal, and his grey eyes seemed to have gone dark.

Before any of them could say another word, they were distracted by a loud bang a few yards ahead from them, followed by a loud groan.

"Okay, that hurt," Charming grunted, getting back on his feet after he had inexplicably been slammed into the ground.

"Oh God, are you alright?" Belle asked him worriedly, checking him for any injuries.

"Yeah, I'm fine." he replied as her rubbed his neck. "What happened, though?" He stretched out his hand and a few seconds later, he felt the same electric-like shock going through his body again.

"What is it?" Graham asked him.

"I don't know." Charming mumbled, carefully prodding the seemingly clear air in a few other spots. "There seems to be some sort of barrier here. Be careful though, it shocks you when you touch it."

"It's the same here," Graham said several yards to their left. "It seems to go on for miles."

"So, what the hell is it?" Neal asked.

"I don't know. Some kind of magic, obviously. But who would do this, and why?" Charming wondered.

"To protect whatever is on the other side," Belle stated. "Something or someone powerful is in there. And I don't think it's a good idea to provoke them when it's just us four."

Charming nodded in agreement. "Alright, let's go back a few hundred yards, and take a different path to our palace. We need to inform the others. Graham, you're with us?"

Graham marched back out of the bushes with the wolf right next to him. "Of course I am."