A/N: Charming's fairytale name in this story is going to be James to help separate everything out later and it always annoyed me how he doesn't get a second name like everyone else does in Once.
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Enjoy this one!
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James and Graham raced through the double doors of the hospital like a hurricane, neither speaking a word as they ignored the receptionist and raced down the nearest corridor in the search for their family. They had both been gripped by the same icy cold fear as soon as Snow had called them and told them what had happened.
Henry.
They didn't have time to process anything, James hanging up with a hasty promise that they were on their way now. They left the station as soon as he had explained the situation to Graham and neither man gave a second thought to the body on the floor of the cell or the events that had occurred that led to it being there.
The only thing that mattered now was the little boy fighting for his life.
James barely took note of the patients and staff all but barrelling out of their path as they continued their journey to the emergency room, Graham matching him stride for stride.
"If anything happens to that little lad, I'll…" Graham's sentence trailed off and James could hear the brokenness of his best friend's statement.
He wanted to reassure Graham that Henry would be fine, he was a fighter and as strong as any of them but he didn't know if he could make that promise. This was magic and James knew that came with its own set of rules.
Graham loved Henry as much as he loved Emma, that was plain for James to see from the look in the Sheriff's eyes and if it were any other situation James would have smiled at the realisation that Emma's happy ending might be closer than she was willing to admit. He could see it as clearly as when he knew he wanted Snow to be his wife. This little family that Henry had brought together and Emma had grown to accept.
He owed Graham more than he realised where his daughter's happiness was concerned.
The sound of shouting is what brought James and Graham out of their frenzied search through the clinical corridors of the hospital. He'd know Snow's voice anywhere, even if the anger in it wasn't something he heard often. The second voice caused his eyes to harden and his hand to grip the hilt of the sword at his waist. Regina.
"He's my son! I'm allowed to see him." Regina shouted, her tone biting.
Snow practically scoffed, "You nearly killed him, Regina. He is in a critical condition because of your actions."
"It was meant for Emma, I didn't know Henry would run over. I was never intentionally…." She trailed off as she saw James and Graham approaching, Snow turning slightly to see what had caught Regina's attention.
James' eyes were on Snow's silently seeking reassurance that their grandson was okay, she had been crying that was clear but she still had her fight which meant there was still hope.
Graham took an entirely different approach though, he lunged at Regina as soon as he saw her. He stared her down defiantly as he shoved her forcefully against the nearest wall with dark eyes. His hands held her in a bruising grip as she tried to shrug him off but Graham shoved her back to the wall again.
"What did you do?" He ground out, never loosening his grip.
Regina's eyes lost their fire, "I didn't know… I didn't." She protested.
Graham sneered, "He could die, Regina. For what? Your revenge? To get even? He's just a little boy!"
"Graham." James called out gently, approaching his friend with a hand outstretched. This wasn't helping he knew and it wouldn't help Graham feel better either.
"She needs to pay, James." He replied, eyes still trained on the Evil Queen, "She shouldn't get away with this."
James nodded, "She won't. She's just lost everything because of her actions. Don't give her the satisfaction of chipping away at the man you are as well. You have to be better than this, better than her. For Emma and for Henry."
Graham turned to him, a tear slipping down his cheek, "Gods, James what has she done to us?"
The Sheriff looked back at Regina again, "I pity you, Regina, because you'll never understand what you threw away for this." He replied coldly before shoving her away from the wall and him. She looked too stunned to speak and Graham staggered back, needing to put more space between himself and the woman trying to destroy his family. James gripped his arm with one of his hands to anchor him and for a brief moment the Prince saw more than the Sheriff, more than the Huntsman.
He saw a father. A father worried about his son.
His heart clenched for the Huntsman. This was a pain he knew well.
"I need to see Henry." Regina's voice cut through the stony silence and James was quick to act this time. He drew his sword aiming the tip at Regina's throat in warning.
"You need to leave." He replied, "You aren't welcome here, Regina. You don't deserve to be here, you don't deserve to be that boy's mother. Not now."
She looked sad for a brief moment before her features turned malicious once more, "You want to cast me out? Fine. Let's see how well that serves you, Charming. I've only just begun."
Regina barely spared any of them another glance as she turned on her heel and strode down the corridor, coat billowing behind her.
James didn't bother to watch her go.
"How is he?" He asked Snow, knowing Graham wanted to know as well.
She looked at the door to her right and James knew that was where Henry was, "Not good. Emma's with him. Whale said only one of us could go in right now. They need space to work."
Graham wiped his cheek with the back of his hand, "But they can fix it, right?"
Snow sighed, "I don't know. It's magic, Regina has her magic or she found some at least. I don't know if Whale can treat something he can't see or understand."
"No," James shook his head, "Henry is going to be fine; he'll fight this. We'll fight this. We aren't losing him." He stated with conviction because they weren't going to lose faith now, not when Henry needed them to have it the most.
Graham's eyes met the floor for a moment, contemplating James' words. "Gold." He said suddenly, eyes snapping up again, "He must know. No one knows magic like he does."
Snow nodded, "We go find him."
"You two should stay here, I don't want Emma to be alone right now." Graham replied, "I'll deal with Gold."
James wanted to protest because Graham looked like he was about to drop any second and letting him go to see Gold on his own wasn't a smart plan but he understood that Graham needed to do something to help his family and this was their best chance. He nodded at the Huntsman once, an agreement between them before Graham left. He spared one look at the door to Henry's room before disappearing though and James thought that one look could have broken his heart alone.
"Regina's never going to stop." Snow sighed brokenly, eyes closing in defeat.
James pulled her to him, "We'll beat her, Snow. Good always wins."
"Good always has to sacrifice something to win." Snow amended, "It shouldn't be Emma or Henry that have to pay that price."
His fingers brushed over her hair, "It won't. I'll do whatever I have to do to make sure all of us are going to be okay."
Snow sniffed and pulled out of his arms then, taking a steady breath, "I don't know what to do, James. I don't know how we fight her this time."
"Together." James vowed, "Always together."
The door to Henry's room opened then, causing the pair to turn to see Emma leaving the room. Her cheeks were red and stained with tears, arms clutching her stomach lightly as she saw her parents.
"How is he?" James asked gently.
Emma sighed, "Stable but he is getting worse and Whale is doing everything he can but…" She trailed off, "I can't sit there with him like that… he looks so small… I can't…"
She looked up at James then, the exhaustion and fear in her face the only thing he registered before she all but collapsed against him. James caught her, holding her to him as he supported her and kept her from falling to the ground. Snow watched them with tears in her eyes as James' hand came to rest on the back of her head.
"It's okay, Emma." He whispered, "Graham's already working on a way to fix this. It will be okay."
Snow shook her head softly, "I'll go sit with Henry, and I'll let you know if anything changes." She said, placing a hand on Emma's back as she passed. She knew Emma was more likely to open up to James because she had more time to get use to him than Snow so she allowed them space as she slipped into the room with her grandson.
"I want Graham." Emma whispered so quietly that James almost missed it, "I need him."
James nodded against her head, "He'll be here. He is trying to find answers, he thought Gold might know how to heal Henry."
Emma pulled back, "I should go, I should help…"
"No," James replied softly, "You need to be here for Henry right now. Graham loves that little boy as well. He'll get the information, Emma, I can promise you that."
She nodded, knowing he was right, "It should have been me. Regina was aiming for me."
"Henry was trying to protect you because he loves you, Emma."
"Well I'm the one meant to be protecting him!" She exploded and James knew it was because she felt helpless more than anything.
He looked at her then, "It's not always that easy, believe me."
"I don't know how to be his parent." She whispered, voice softer now.
James sighed, "I don't know how to be yours either."
Emma didn't say a word but James she had reached the same conclusion as he did. They were more alike than they both realised.
…
Regina was the very image of evil determination as she stormed out of the hospital with barely a flick of her wrist. Henry was fighting for his life and she wasn't even allowed to see him. How dare they? She raised him, she loved him more than Emma Swan had in the past 10 years.
Now her son belonged to that tribe of heroes? He had a mother and a protector in Graham, although the term 'guard-dog' came to mind when he thought about the Huntsman. A wolf protecting his cub, how very sweet. Then there was the Charming's, they had stolen her happy ending before and how they were destroying this one and making sure they took Henry with them.
They started this, Regina thought bitterly, they couldn't just leave well enough alone and so what happened next would be on them.
Because if she really had lost Henry than what else did she have to lose?
She could run any risk she wanted now and Regina wasn't known for doing things by halves. No, they would pay for this.
The whole town would pay for this.
Grieving mother, Evil Queen. She was both and that made her even more dangerous.
She glanced back at the hospital where her enemies were standing vigil at her son's bedside.
No, she thought, this was a call to war.
A war greater than the one against Snow and Charming in the Enchanted Forest. A war where petty acts simply wouldn't do.
She wanted to make them hurt, to suffer the way she was suffering. To feel every ounce of pain and helpless at losing the people around them.
And she knew just how to do it.
It was going to be a cold day in Storybrooke, Maine indeed.
…
Graham pushed open the door to Henry's room gently, after passing Snow and Charming still in the corridor. Emma was inside, sitting on a plastic chair by Henry's bed with her hand in his. Her eyes were trained on the boy's face, the gently fall and rising of his chest.
He gulped as he entered the room and let the door shut softly behind him. Gold had been as cryptic as ever and Graham had to admit it took all of his resolve not to punch the man until he gave him answers. He settled for threatening him instead and Gold seemed to response well enough to that to give Graham the information he was looking for.
Emma hadn't noticed his presence yet and Graham didn't want to startle her so he made his way around the other side of the bed to the one Emma was sitting on. He didn't want to look at the little boy lying on the mattress like he was simply asleep but he couldn't help it. Henry's pale skin and the wires connected to him made Graham want to throw up.
He moved closer, his lips finding Henry's forehead as if it was the most natural thing in the world. In some ways he supposed it was.
Emma watched him curiously, her face unreadable.
"Thank you." She whispered softly.
Graham frowned, "For what?"
"Loving him like a father should love a son."
Graham's heart stopped.
He went round to Emma's side now, crouching down next to her chair, "I didn't choose it, Emma. Loving Henry seems to be ingrained into my bones. He might not be mine but that doesn't change anything for me."
She wanted to smile, he could tell, if it was any other circumstances she probably would have. "What did Gold say?"
Graham sighed, "You're the trigger, Emma."
"I don't really feel like the saviour right now." She responded dejectedly.
He shook his head, "Not because you're the saviour. Because you're his mother."
"I don't understand."
Graham smiled softly, "Yes, you do. I know why you've been afraid to let people in, I know you've lost so much but it's time to change that. This is your little boy, your flesh and blood."
Emma looked over at Henry again, "I don't know how." She said brokenly.
"Tell me." Graham offered, "Tell me why you're so afraid, Emma."
She paused for a moment, "Because everyone I ever cared about leaves. Or I leave them. If I admit to caring about Henry or anyone else then it becomes real and I could lose it."
"And we don't get a say?" Graham asked, "This involves our feelings as well. Did you ever think that we might want to take that risk for you?"
Emma sighed, "I can't. I just… I can't."
Graham placed a hand on her knee reassuringly, "That's the fear talking. I know, I've felt it. Don't shut me out."
"I'm afraid because I love you." She admitted softly, "I'm afraid because that means you can hurt me, that means I'm giving you the power to hurt me and I'm trust you with it."
"I love you too, Emma." Graham replied, "In every way I never thought possible until I met your parents. I'd rather die than see you hurt."
That seemed to break a wall inside her that had been crumbling for a while, her shoulders slumping.
"I think I could love them too." She continued, "My parents. I see myself in them and the love they have for me in their eyes and I think it would have been nice to have that."
Graham nodded, "You can have that now."
"Mostly I'm afraid that giving up Henry was the worst decision of my life and it's too late to take it back." Emma said, tear slipping down her cheek, "I never told him how much I regretted it. How much I want him."
"So tell him now." Graham responded.
Emma looked at him and Graham offered her and smile and a nodded, "Love is the most powerful magic there is, Emma. Just ask your parents."
She sighed, recollecting herself before she stood up. Graham stood with her, slipping his hand into her own for support as Emma's eyes shifted back to Henry.
"Listen, Kid." She whispered, "I've done a lot of things I'm not proud of in my life but you. You are the best thing to ever happen to me. The one thing I did right. I'm sorry I didn't realise it sooner, I'm sorry I wasted so much time." Emma's voice was wavering in the effort to control her sobs, "I love you, Henry. I love you so much it hurts to breath. I love you…"
Emma leaned down to place her lips to Henry's forehead. A small kiss to his pale skin as his hair tickled her nose.
She was sobbing now, her body shaking from the release of them as Graham held her from behind, lips against the shell of her ear. He had a tear in his eye as well.
Neither noticed the purple mist surrounding them and spreading rapidly, clouds rolling through the hospital out towards the rest of the town.
Graham held Emma tighter in his arms.
She closed her eyes as the fog got too thick to see.
Then it cleared as quickly as it came.
The room the same as it was before, except with one small different. One voice that wasn't there before.
"I love you too, mom."
/
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Next chapter includes: Regina's call for war has major repercussions for the residents of Storybrooke and Emma comes to a decision about her future.