Disclaimer: Not mine.
A/N: Hey everyone, so I'm really sorry. A lot of things have happened that have prevented me from posting sooner. One is my horrible job, which thankfully will be over in two days. The other is unfortunately more pressing: my computer is now down for the count. This has made writing difficult and will make posting for a while nearly impossible, especially since I will be going out of town for a few weeks. With that said, this is probably going to be the last chapter for a while.
But there's still this chapter! Thanks so much for everyone who reviewed the last one. I know I say this a lot, but seriously, you people make my day.
Much thanks to Melissa for betaing.
When Henry opened his eyes, it was finally morning. He was relieved he had managed to fall asleep at last. Although David had done his best to make him comfortable on the forest floor, Henry had lain awake for hours, his mind tormented by thoughts of what could have happened to Emma and Regina. He tried to take comfort in the fact that David was finally on his side, had seemed to accept the story about the curse and Storybrooke without argument, but even this could not dispel the feelings of dread welling in his chest.
Although he and David had spent the rest of the day searching for signs of Emma and Regina around where Storybrooke had once been, they had found none. There was no indication that the town had existed at all. Even landmarks like the Toll Bridge were gone. Henry had tried to stay positive for David's sake, but by the time night had fallen, they had both accepted defeat and gone to bed with heavy hearts.
Henry was bothered by the fact they still hadn't met anyone else from Storybrooke running around the forest. He supposed it was possible they had stayed together after the failsafe went off, and had all taken shelter somewhere, but there was no sign of them anywhere. He wondered how far away the neighboring towns were, and whether or not their residents would be welcoming to a bunch of people claiming to be fairytale characters.
David was still asleep next to him on their makeshift bed of leaves. Henry sat up and hugged his knees to his chest. His stomach grumbled, reminding him that he had barely eaten in the past day, but Henry didn't feel remotely hungry. On the contrary, his constant worrying over the fate of his mothers was making him feel sick. Despite the fact his grandfather was right next to him, Henry had never felt so alone.
Tears threatened to fall and Henry hurriedly blinked them back. He didn't want to upset David or worry him further. He had to stay strong. He had often envied the adventures of his grandparents, but now that he was on one of his own, Henry thought he preferred to just read about them in books. No one wrote about the emotional toll that these adventures took. Henry sniffled and buried his head in his knees.
A moment later, he felt a gentle hand on his back. "It's all right," David said softly. "I'm worried, too."
Henry didn't trust himself to look up, not wanting David to see him crying. He merely nodded, his forehead digging into his knees.
"Why don't you tell me about her?" David suggested.
Henry knew that he was talking about Emma. It was strange to think that David didn't even know what she looked like. Henry had avoided giving too many details about Emma yesterday because he hadn't wanted to overwhelm his grandfather. David finding out that he was a grandfather had probably been overwhelming enough.
Henry sat up and rubbed his now dry eyes. David slid his arm around Henry's shoulders, and Henry was inwardly grateful that his grandfather didn't expect him to turn around just yet. He would never cease to be amazed at his grandparents' compassion. It was one thing to read about it in stories, but another to experience it firsthand.
"She's a lot like you," Henry began. "She's blonde, for one thing. And she knows how to fight. She was the sheriff of Storybrooke, and before that she was a bounty hunter."
"A bounty hunter," David repeated. "Cool."
"Yeah," Henry agreed. "She is very cool. She's tough, too, and pretty stubborn," Henry added, thinking about how long it had taken him to convince Emma that the curse was real. That felt so long ago now.
"That sounds like my daughter," David said. "Did we ever fight together?"
"Sometimes," Henry answered. "You were her deputy sheriff. It was kind of like the family business."
David laughed. "And does she like me?"
"She likes you," Henry assured him. "She likes Mary – I mean, Snow - too. They used to be roommates."
"Then what happened?"
"Well, they still live together," Henry replied. "But after the curse was broken, you moved in, too." He smiled, thinking of the one particularly embarrassing incident, shortly after Emma and Mary Margaret had returned from the Enchanted Forest, that was forever imprinted on his brain. He decided not to remind David of that just now.
"Is she happy?" David wanted to know.
"I think so," Henry answered. "She wasn't always, but she's been happy since she finally found her parents."
"Did she forgive us?" David asked quietly. "For putting her in the wardrobe, and for sending her away?"
Henry turned to face his grandfather at last. He could read in David's expression that this question bothered him most of all.
"I think she has," Henry said. "She knows why you did it. She understands sacrifice. That's why she went back to slow down the failsafe." It's also why she gave me up for adoption, Henry wanted to add. But he left that detail out. He didn't want to explain Regina's presence in their lives just yet.
"We're going to find her," David reassured him. "I know it."
Henry nodded. He was sure they would find Emma eventually. The question was the state they would find her in.
"Come on," David said, standing up and extending his hand to Henry. "Let's try to find something to eat for breakfast. Looking for her will be easier with a full stomach."
Henry allowed David to pull him to his feet and noticed that some of the sickening weight in his stomach had been lifted. He brushed the dirt off of his clothes and followed David through the trees.
"These berries look fine," David said, pointing to a blackberry bush. He picked some off and handed them to Henry. "Don't worry," he assured him. "They're not poisonous. Snow and I used to eat these in the Enchanted Forest."
Henry smiled. As strange as it was, he liked hearing David talk about Mary Margaret as Snow White. It was like his fairytales were coming to life before his eyes.
"So," David began as he picked more berries, "when we find Emma, will she recognize us?"
Henry appreciated that his grandfather had said if and not when. "I think so," he said. "I mean, she never had a Storybrooke identity, since she wasn't cursed. So she wouldn't have an identity to lose. She was also able to cross the town line, back when the town still existed. I think she'll be fine…as long as she made it over the line in time."
"What do you mean?" David asked.
"I mean…I'm not sure where she was when the failsafe went off. And the idea was that it would destroy everyone not born in this world." Henry sighed. "So even though Emma wasn't cursed, she would still be affected by the failsafe because she wasn't born here."
"But only if she was still in Storybrooke at the time?"
"That's what I think," Henry replied. "It seems like if you crossed the line, you're okay, because, well, you and Snow survived."
David nodded as he processed this information. Henry bit his lip, wondering if he should have said anything. He hadn't wanted to worry David, but at the same time, he had to prepare his grandfather for the possibility that they wouldn't find Emma at all.
"So we just keep looking," David said finally. "Until we find her."
"Until we find her," Henry agreed.
"Let's keep going," David suggested. "We should try to cover as much ground as possible. Maybe we can find someone who's seen her."
"Maybe," Henry replied, although he was doubtful. Even if someone from Storybrooke had seen Emma, they wouldn't have recognized her.
They continued in silence, the dead leaves crunching beneath their feet as they walked. Henry looked around, but all he could see were trees. He wondered if Emma and Regina had even recognized where they had ended up after Storybrooke had been destroyed. Henry found the never-ending trees extremely disorienting.
As they continued on, something on the ground near one of the trees caught Henry's eye. He squinted, wanting to make sure he was really seeing what he thought he was seeing. Henry's heart beat wildly in his chest. He wanted to be right, but if he was, it would change everything.
They moved closer, and suddenly Henry was sure.
"Mom!
A/N: I know, I know. It's really mean to end on a cliffhanger. Think of it like the midseason finale. It's keeping in the spirit of the show to torture us fans this way. I will be doing everything I can to update soon (including writing out chapters by hand to be typed later). Hopefully when all my computer issues get resolved, I'll have a string of chapters waiting to be posted. Thanks for reading and bearing with me.