Author's Note: So, what is this, the third hiatus of the season? That's insanity. The good news is, this story won't be ending before Once comes back, so you and I will have something to look forward to on Sundays. The bad news is, there's only a few more weeks of this story left. I'll save my big "thank you" speech for the end of the story, but know that we're rolling into the home stretch now. Just a few more letters to go before the epilogue that you all unanimously voted that you wanted. So, it shall be written. It may even span two weeks (and answer both your questions, nahbois68) depending on how I feel about it. Sometimes, current show events line up with my preplanned (since January, seriously now) story lineup, and I get excited because things work out great. You'll see what I mean after reading the chapter.

Happy Easter to all my readers who celebrate it today!

Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon a Time. If I did, there would be new episodes every week (not bitter about the hiatus or anything, nope).

*This chapter takes place in no specific episode, but it's near the end of season 1*

What a long day. It just seemed to drag on and on without any hope of ending. This Storybrooke resident walked into Granny's hoping a drink could prove to be a good distraction from the ongoing failure.

The entire endeavor had been a mistake and a waste of time. How many months had been spent trying to convince her? She obviously wasn't going to listen. Sighing, the person ordered a drink and took out a notebook and pen.

Maybe a different angle. Yeah; maybe the problem had been the wrong approach. But what angle would work on her? Everything that was plausible had already been attempted. The frustrated individual jotted down ideas hastily in the notebook. They'd be transferred to something more permanent later, but that contraption was too clunky to carry around town all the time. It was taking its toll on the leg.

After a while, it became obvious that nothing good was forthcoming. With the drink drained and Ruby paid, the person hobbled out of Granny's, ready to give up for the day. Tomorrow could be a fresh start.

Suddenly, the box still hanging on the telephone pole in front of the diner caught the person's eye. Intrigued, the finder stepped over and checked for a letter. There was a single folded sheet pressed into the bottom of the box. The finder took it out, thinking it might do some good to focus on someone else's dilemma for a bit. Selfishness certainly hadn't done any good so far. Upon reading the letter though, the reader had to conclude that this was perfect. It was exactly what they were looking for. The childish scrawl that lined the page held the key, and proof that this mission was not crazy.

Dear Friend,

You gotta help me. No one believes me. My mom thinks I'm crazy. She doesn't actually say that, but she makes me go to Dr. Hopper every week. I think we both know what that means. But I'm not crazy. You gotta believe me, no matter how weird it sounds. Ready? This whole town is cursed. The Evil Queen cast a curse on all the fairytale characters, and now they're all trapped here in Maine and they don't remember who they are. Everyone in this town is actually a fairytale character. For example, Dr. Hopper's whole thing is listening to your conscience and not lying, because that would be giving into your dark side. Remind you of anyone? He's actually Jiminy Cricket. The rest of them are fairytale characters too. Need proof? I have a book full of all the fairytales. They're all here, in Storybrooke. They even look like their fairytale counterparts!Mary Margaret- she's Snow White. Ruby's Little Red Riding Hood. And my mom? She's the Evil Queen. She's the one who cast the curse that brought everyone here. No one believes me when I try to tell them. They all think I'm just making stuff up. But I'm not! It's all true. My real mom, Emma, she's the one who's supposed to break the curse. I tried talking to her and telling her that, but she doesn't listen. She just thinks I'm some silly little kid. Do you agree with her? Do you think I just have an overactive imagination, or whatever other name adults give to it when they don't want to say they think you're nuts? Someone needs to believe me. The time has come for the curse to break, and I can't do it alone. How do I convince people that I'm not lying?

Sincerely,

Book Believer

The reader chuckled in amusement. This was perfect. Someone else was on the same side. The task didn't have to be done alone; it could be done with help. And who better to help than the savior's son? This was the angle they'd been looking for. As soon as the person arrived home, a response was quickly penned and returned to the box. The sooner Henry read this, the better.

Henry slung his backpack over his shoulder as he headed toward Granny's. He sighed. Today he'd tried talking to Emma again about the curse, and she'd met his efforts with the same kind of lackluster response she usually did. Sure, she never outright told him he was crazy, but he could tell that she didn't believe him. Disappointed, he went to see if anyone had responded to his letter. Maybe he was crazy, but he didn't think so. Maybe someone, somewhere, believed him.

A quick check of the box yielded his letter, addressed To Book Believer in sturdy handwriting that would have been elegant if it didn't appear so stiff. Eager to read the response, Henry rushed home and plopped himself on his bed before unfolding the letter.

Dear Believer,

I don't think you're crazy, or a silly little kid. I'm a believer too. I've actually come across your book once or twice in my life myself. Don't let any of the rest of them get you down. The curse is real; far more real than anything else they remember. You're the one who's right, not them. So don't give up, and don't stop believing. They'll learn the truth someday. That being said, you can't force anyone to believe you. They have to see it for themselves. Your youth made it easier for you to believe, because you are more open to new ideas. It'll be harder for them, especially for your mom. She'll have the hardest time believing, because her part in breaking the curse is so big. Trust me; you're not the only one trying to convince her. I have my own reasons to persuade her to believe. Some might say that sounds selfish, but this is the first thing I've done in a while that wasn't actually selfish. But I'm going to level with you now, so listen. Neither one of us has had much success convincing her on our own. Maybe we should team up. Two heads are better than one, and with your youthful enthusiasm and my greater experience, we could make this work out. I'd tell you more in the letter, but the rest of the information is probably not safe to write on paper, in case someone else finds it. It could be disastrous if it falls in the wrong hands, like your other mother's. If you believe that I want to help you and want to work with me, meet me at Granny's tonight at 5. We have a plan of attack to figure out.

Sincerely,

A Friend

Henry beamed so widely he thought his mouth might fall off. Finally! Someone else believed he wasn't just making this up! And they were going to help him with Emma! Operation Cobra was back a go.

He glanced at the clock which hung on the wall. It read 3:45. There was a little time before his mystery correspondent wanted to meet him at the diner. Still, Henry decided to go there now. Maybe he'd run into Emma while he waited there. Seeing that someone else was on his side was very encouraging, and it revved up his zeal for the operation.

When he arrived at the diner, Henry made himself comfortable. Ruby came to take his order. At that moment, he saw Emma walk through the door out of the corner of his eye. Awesome.

"Two hot chocolates with cinnamon, please" Henry requested, as he motioned Emma over with a wave. It was time for Operation Cobra 2.0.

Henry's responder decided to go back to the diner around 4:45. Surely if he'd gotten the letter, the boy must have been curious about exactly who it was who believed him and wanted to help. Placing a letter into the box outside the diner, the person passed Emma, who was just leaving, on the way in and sat next to Henry.

A/N 2: Okay, so the letter writer had a bit of a personal agenda, but the person still does genuinely want to help Henry! They have the same end goal. Hopefully I did the character justice and the letter was okay. Kudos to nahbois68, kb5000, flagurl1j, CandyApple75, sudoku (watched the episode and still can't say I give two cares about August), janeaustenite6 (hopefully your fears have been assuaged by the above A/N!), Linzerj, and the guest, who all guessed correctly last week that Henry wrote the letter. It was a bit of an easy chapter, but some end up easier than others. sudoku, I agree that Henry is the biggest shipper of all canon ships. He literally does things by the book (sorry, the pun was too good to pass up).

Enjoy the chapter; just a few more to go before the hiatus is over and this story reaches its close. Thanks to all my readers, old and new, for reading, reviewing, following, and favoriting. You guys all rock! Don't forget to review about this week's chapter or the story in general with guesses, questions, or comments! See you back here next week!