Author's Note: I apologize for taking forever to update. Things got busy and when things get busy, I don't tend to write much. Hoping to change that! Hopefully those reading are still sticking around, it'll be worth it to get through all this slow burn in the end, (before the end) I promise!

Henry drummed his fingers on the table inside the diner as Mary Margaret desperately tried to get the waitress' attention. Henry just frowned and turned to Riley that sat beside him coloring on the backside of the kids' menu with the few crayons the waitress had given her.

"Do you want to play tic-tac-toe?" Henry asked and Riley just shrugged, barely paying him any attention. "Do you know how to play?"

"Of course I do, silly. Mommy taught me."

"Do you want to play?"

"Nope."

Henry sighed and played with the straw wrapper from the straw he had in his chocolate milkshake—something his mother very rarely ever let him order when they ate at Granny's. He felt a little bit guilty for indulging, but Mary Margaret had insisted he get anything that he wanted, anything at all.

It had been five days since he'd watched his mother collapse. Five days without any answers or explanations and he was tired of not knowing what was really going on. Nobody was of any help and Beth still hadn't called since she left for Boston to look for Emma.

He had nobody he could talk to about what may just really be going on. Archie had tried to talk to him that morning, but after he'd taken his book from him, Henry was very reluctant to speak with him at all anymore. With Beth gone, Henry had nobody. He couldn't even trust Sheriff Graham.

He knew he had to try and keep trying to find another way to break the curse. Breaking it was his only chance right now at saving his mother's and his aunt. The next obvious choice to him was having Mary Margaret figure out just who she truly was and wake up her Prince Charming with True Love's Kiss.

Easier said than done.

Everyone who believed him was gone from Storybrooke. There was absolutely nothing he could do. He couldn't even go to Boston to look for Beth to find out if she'd found Emma. He'd spent some time at the hospital with his mother before they ended up at the diner, but there had been no change to her condition and the doctors still couldn't figure out how to help her.

"Something bothering you, Henry?"

Henry looked over at Mary Margaret and sighed. "Just worried about my mom," he said. "And Beth. And Emma."

"I'm sure Beth will call soon."

"What if she doesn't?"

Mary Margaret frowned. "She will, Henry. I'm sure she just got caught up. Maybe she lost her phone or—"

"What if something bad has happened to her?"

"Henry—"

"I have a bad feeling, Mary Margaret."

"You're just worried because we haven't heard from her yet. Tell you what, as soon as we get back to the loft, I'll try calling her cell again."

"Her cell has been off for five days, Mary Margaret."

"Then I'm sure she just lost it and that would explain why we haven't heard from her."

Or something bad really did happen to her, Henry thought. He just nodded, deciding not to press the issue any further with Mary Margaret.

"I was thinking since it is such a nice day, why don't the three of us go to the park?" Mary Margaret suggested after they had sat there quietly for a few minutes. "Henry?"

"I think Riley would like that," he said with a small nod and Riley looked up at the sound of her name. "Do you want to go to the park?"

"Yeah!"

Henry smiled and reached out to ruffle Riley's hair like he'd seen Emma do a few times. Now all he had to do was figure out how to get away from Mary Margaret long enough to pay Mr. Gold a visit. He'd been afraid of going to the man, but at this point, he had no other option. He needed some answers and he was hoping that Mr. Gold would have them.

After they ate and Mary Margaret paid the bill, the three of them walked down to the park by the harbor. There were a few other kids there, which surprised Henry because nobody ever went there other than him. Riley was just as fascinated with the park as she'd been the first time they went, running around as fast as she could, climbing and jumping off the structure and nearly giving Mary Margaret a heart attack every time she fell face first into the sand.

As luck would have it, one of the teachers from the school came by to talk to Mary Margaret and he used that as a chance to slip away without being seen. He ran until he was out of sight and stopped to catch his breath before he headed towards Mr. Gold's shop on Main Street.

Nobody took a second look at him as he walked down the street alone. When he walked into the pawn shop and the bell tinkled overhead, Mr. Gold was nowhere to be seen.

"Hello?" Henry called out as he approached the counter with the register. "Mr. Gold?"

"What can I do for you, Henry?" The old man asked as he hobbled out of the back room. "Are you here alone?"

"Yeah," he nodded and he pulled at his scarf to loosen it. "I need to ask you a couple of questions."

"Oh?" He looked surprised. "About what, my dear boy?"

"I think you know."

Mr. Gold studied him for a moment before nodding his head. "Come with me, we'll talk in the back. That is if you don't mind?"

Henry shook his head and followed the old man into the back room which was ten times more cluttered than the rest of the shop. As fascinated as Henry was with the many things he could see, he kept his focus on why he was really there. He had to muster up the courage to begin since speaking to Mr. Gold ever was daunting.

"What can I assist you with, Henry Mills?"

"I uh—I have a few questions," he stammered. "And I think you already know what I'm going to ask you."

"You want to know about the dark curse?"

"Not just that," he said and Mr. Gold looked at him curiously. "I want to know how else can it be broken if Emma isn't here to do it. Is there a way?"

"I'm afraid I don't know the answer to that specific question, but I do know the answer to the one you haven't yet asked."

Henry frowned as a slight chill ran through his body. "I don't—"

"You want to know about your mother's fate," he said. "And of Elizabeth too."

"Ye—yeah. Do you know what happened to them?"

"Elizabeth is being held somewhere not far from here, in an old farm house just outside of town."

"But she went to Boston to look for Emma!"

"She was in Boston, but someone took her the same way that they took Emma," Mr. Gold said evenly. "Your mother and your birth mother, however, are in a place neither you or I can go."

"They're there in this place together?"

"Yes."

"But—"

"It is another curse, my dear boy, and rather than explain things further that will make things far more confusing to you. This curse was cast by a powerful witch, someone your mother Regina knows rather personally. As for the reason why this curse was cast, I do not know, but I can tell you it is because of a book similar to the one you once possessed, the one that made you a believer."

"Another book?"

"One the foretells the future, not the past as yours does."

"Cool," Henry said under his breath. "So, a witch cast my mom and Emma into this curse because of that book?"

"Because of what is foretold," Mr. Gold clarified. "I, however, don't know what this book says, but whatever it is, Henry, it is something that made this witch cast this curse to try and prevent it all from coming true."

"Who is this witch?"

"Regina's mother," he said with a look of distaste.

"Cora?" Henry asked. "That's her name, isn't it?"

"Yes, how do you know?"

"My mom told me about her when she told me everything."

"I see. What else has your mother told you? Did she tell you about me? About who I am?"

"Who are you?"

Mr. Gold laughed and placed a hand on Henry's shoulder. "I think you know exactly who I am, but not who else I am either. One day, my dear boy, you will know."

"Know what?"

"That wasn't what you came here to ask me."

"But I—"

"Soon, the curse that has trapped your mother's in another realm will break and they will return."

"How do you know that?"

"Your mother will find a way," he said in a matter-of-fact tone and he smiled as he gave Henry's shoulder a light squeeze. "Your mother was one of my best students. I have no doubt she'll find herself out of this one in due time. How long has it been now? Five days?"

"Yeah."

"Then don't fret, Henry, your mother will return home soon."

Henry frowned as Mr. Gold backed away and sat down at the table in the middle of the back room. "You remembered who you were, didn't you?"

"Yes."

"When?"

"When Emma Swan came to town, of course."

"Has anyone else—"

"No," he said without looking up from the clock he was tinkering with on the table in front of him. "Not yet, at least."

"But they will?"

"Oh yes," he chuckled as he glanced up at Henry. "All curses are meant to be broken in time, this is just one of them."

"One of—what do you mean?"

"Go on now, boy, I'm very busy. I'm sure Mary Margaret is fretting at the moment since you're supposed to be under her care."

Henry hurried out of the shop and out onto the street. He found it suspicious that Mr. Gold knew as much as he did. If he knew, why didn't he say anything? Or was it true what his mother said that to get anything from Rumplestiltskin, it always came with a price? He never mentioned a price, but Henry was smart enough to know there was one. He just needed to figure out what that price was before his mom, Emma, and Beth came back.

[X]

Emma sat at the wood table in the tavern and sipped the warm wine Regina had ordered for them. It wasn't good, but it wasn't horrible either, and it soothed her tense body just a little. Regina, on the other hand, had barely touched her wine and she was watching the two knights like a hawk.

"Staring at them is not going to do anything, Regina."

"What did I tell you earlier?" Regina hissed. "You are not to use my name when other people can hear!"

"Sorry," Emma muttered into the mug before she took another sip of the warm wine. "Look, they don't look like they are going anywhere right now. Why don't we—"

"What? Wander off? Explore the village? Miss our only chance in getting out of this godforsaken place?"

"I was going to say just relax, have a bit to drink and try—"

"Shut up."

"Fine."

"I mean it, Miss Swan," Regina said with a warning in her voice. "Do not test me right now."

"Sorry."

Regina clenched her fists and turned to look at the two knights she was convinced were the two idiots in love, as she called them, that would break this curse they were under and send them home. In the last two hours since they walked into the pub, all Emma wanted to do was tell her that she was wrong, that the two idiots in love that would break the curse were the two of them.

Emma downed the last of the warm wine and slammed the mug down on the table causing Regina to jump. Regina, as tense as she was, recovered with a small cough and a shake of her head before she reached for her mug and sipped her own wine.

She could not stop thinking about what the old witch had told her and she could not stop thinking about what if it were true, what if she and Regina were the ones who would break this very curse with their very own True Love's Kiss? What would happen then?

There were a lot of what if's and Emma had not been the type to hold on to hope when hope always came crashing down one way or another. She had a feeling Regina would deny it no matter what her feelings truly were and Emma was ready for that, for the rejection, for anything.

"Emma," Regina said as she grabbed onto Emma's hand. "I think they're leaving. We must follow them."

"Regina—"

"Come!"

Emma sighed and allowed Regina to drag her out of the pub and after the two knights that were stumbling out onto the street. In the time since they had arrived there in the village, the sun had set and darkness settled. The darkness would give them a little bit of cover and the amount of alcohol the two men had drunk would steal their attention away from the fact that they were being followed.

Regina hadn't let go of Emma's hand and after following the two men for a few minutes, Emma casually intertwined their fingers and it caused Regina to steal a glance back at her curiously. Despite Regina's reaction, Regina didn't let go and Emma smiled inwardly as they continued down the village street and rounded a corner down a dark, narrow alleyway.

Emma stopped short when she saw the men suddenly locked in a close embrace. One backed the other up against a wall and they were kissing ferociously. She felt Regina tighten her hold on her hand and wait with bated breath for something—anything to happen and after five long minutes, she turned to Emma with a scowl.

"This isn't working," she said tightly. "We were wrong about these two, weren't we?"

"Regina—"

"Now what are we going to do?"

"Maybe they aren't the ones," Emma shrugged. "Maybe we're just not in the right place."

"The right place…the right place! We should be where we were when we first came here!"

"Regina—" Emma gasped as she felt herself being pulled, but not by Regina, but by magic. "Warn me next time you're gonna do that, will you?"

Emma took a look around at their new surroundings and sure enough, they were right back where they started. Regina let go of Emma's hand suddenly and started to pace along the ground, muttering under her breath as she held her hands out in front of her as if she were trying to feel for something that wasn't there. Regina's desperation to leave that realm was all too clear, more than it had been before, so much that Emma could feel it now.

Even in the darkness, Emma could see the dark clouds beginning to roll in overhead. She shivered as the wind picked up and she approached Regina, tentatively reaching out to place a hand gently on her shoulder to get her to stop pacing. Her own desperation was overwhelming and she couldn't keep the truth from Regina much longer. She had to try something.

"We're stuck here, Emma."

"We can't be—"

"We are!" Regina exclaimed as she stared at her with a look of desperation and hopelessness. "We're stuck here, Emma. There is no way home. We're never going home!"

"I refuse to believe that."

"You heard what the witch said," Regina said to her with a shake of her head as the rain began to fall from the dark clouds in the sky. "In order to create the magic we need to get home, we need to find two idiots in love and have them break this curse with true love's kiss. Those two idiots we found obviously aren't—"

"Regina?" Emma stopped her as she moved to stand in front of her and shook her head. "Just stop talking. Let me try something."

"What could you possibly try now?"

"This."

For the first time since they had been trapped in the spell that had them in the asylum and then there in the Enchanted Forest, they kissed. Emma pulled Regina in as close as she could and crushed their lips together, the initial meeting of lips awkward and brash, but as thunder crashed off in the distance, she felt Regina melt into her arms and the kiss softened and deepened ever so slowly.

It felt different than it had before and it felt unlike anything Emma had ever felt in her life. It felt like magic, it felt like home, it felt like warmth, and most of all, it felt like love. Real and true love.

She smiled as she opened her eyes just a little to see that Regina was doing the same, but neither backed away from the kiss just yet, both shaking as the world around them began to spin. She could feel Regina slipping out of her hold, slipping away, and she did all she could to hold onto her as the world continued to spin wildly around them.

"Regina—"

"Don't let go, Emma!" She cried out, but her voice quickly faded into darkness and Emma landed on hard concrete with a thud.

"Regina?"

It was cold, dark, and damp. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, panic filled her when she realized exactly where she was. She rushed to the door and banged on it loudly, furious that her moment had been ripped away from her. From Regina.

"Hey!" Emma yelled. "Hey, you stupid bitch! Let me out of here! I know you can hear me, Cora! We broke your fucking spell!"

Emma breathed heavily as nothing but silence followed. She banged hard on the door once more before pushing back, feeling deflated and angry and every single emotion she could possibly feel in that moment including the fact that she was now confused as hell.

"That is impossible," Cora said as she suddenly appeared in the small room in front of Emma. "Absolutely impossible!"

"Where is Regina? Why am I back here?"

"Back?" Cora snickered. "Dear, you never left."

"But—"

"It was indeed a very powerful spell," Cora continued and with a flick of her wrist, she had Emma pinned up against the furthest wall. "One nobody, not even someone as powerful as my own daughter could break. Tell me, dear, how did you do it?"

"True Love's Kiss."

"Excuse me?"

"True—"

"With whom?"

"Regina," Emma said as a smile curled over her lips while she watched the anger flood through Cora like a monsoon in India. "Regina broke the spell, Cora. Bet you didn't see that coming, huh?"

"That is absolutely impossible! You lie!" Cora yelled and Emma fought the magic that gripped her tight and tried to squeeze the last of her life from her. "Her true love is long dead! I know because I killed him!"

"Then you were wrong about him," Emma said tightly and she gasped as the magic that held her suddenly released her. "Maybe he was her true love, maybe he wasn't. All I know is that when I kissed her, the spell broke and I ended up right back here in this shithole. With you."

"That is impossible."

"Why?" Emma asked and she pushed off the wall, a small burst of excitement in her little victory filling her. "Why is it impossible? Because of who I am? Who I am supposed to be?"

"Dead, Savior."

[X]

"Henry!" Mary Margaret exclaimed as she rushed over to him and hugged him tightly. "Where have you been?"

"Exploring."

"Expl—never mind," she sighed. "The hospital just called. Your mom is awake. Isn't that wonderful?"

"She's awake?"

"Yes!" She exclaimed gleefully. "Let's go, I am sure she will want to see you."

"She's awake?"

"Yes, Henry, she's awake."

"How?"

"I don't know, the doctor wouldn't tell me anything, but the main thing is she is awake again."

Henry wasn't sure what to think, but he was relieved, to say the least. If his mom was awake, that meant she and Emma had broken the curse they'd been trapped in for days. If his mom was back, it meant Emma was too, but he had no idea where Emma was. Was she in the same place as Beth, the same place that Mr. Gold told him? Was Emma truly in Storybrooke just like Beth was when they both were supposed to be in Boston?

After they managed to talk Riley into leaving the park—and of course she didn't want to—they were on their way to the hospital in Mary Margaret's Jeep. Henry had so many questions, ones he knew only his mother could answer now, and the anticipation of seeing her and hearing about everything was almost too much to handle.

When they arrived at the hospital, they were led to a small private waiting room and told by the nurse to wait for Dr. Whale to come in to talk to them. Mary Margaret looked both worried and anxious as she tried to get Riley to settle down on one of the hard leather chairs in the room. Henry, on the other hand, was standing by the window with his mind racing a mile a minute.

Questions after questions barreled through his mind all at once. He just wanted to know why everything was happening, for what reason, and why was Beth a part of it all? Was it because she was Emma's twin? And why did Cora send Riley into town to be found instead of taking her too? Did his grandmother have a soft spot for children?

"Henry?" Mary Margaret said in the tone that reminded him of the way she used to speak to him to get his attention whenever he was daydreaming in class. "Henry, can you sit with Riley for a minute? I'm going to run down to talk to a nurse who is a friend of mine. She can tell us more about what is happening by the time Dr. Whale comes to see us."

"Okay."

Henry walked over to sit in the chair beside Riley. He had spent a lot of time with his little sister—half-sister but who was really counting? He adored Riley and it was easy for him to be around her, which was unlike the way it had been for him his whole life with anyone. Riley was a part of him, in a way, and he felt protective of his little sister, especially now with his mom being awake and knowing that everything was going to change again.

"Hey," Henry said and he smiled at Riley. "I got some dice in my bag," he said as he gave his knapsack a little shake. "Do you want to learn a new game?"

"No."

"It's easy."

"I want my mommy," Riley pouted, her eyes filling fast with tears. "Where is my mommy, Henry?"

"I'm sure she'll come back to get you soon, Riles."

"No call me that, only Mommy can call me that."

"Sorry," Henry frowned. "But I'm your big brother," he said and that caught Riley's attention. "Can't I call you that too?"

"Why?"

"Cos we're family, Riley."

"Yeah?"

"We have the same mommy," Henry explained. "Emma."

"That's a funny name."

"Why?"

"Cos," she said as she tried to imitate him and she burst into giggles. "You're funny, Henry."

"Yeah?"

Riley laughed. "Very funny. Like Mommy."

"You're funny too."

Her laughter died and she looked up at Henry. "When is my mommy coming back, Henry?"

"I don't know," he frowned and he got up from the chair, wishing for Mary Margaret to come back now since he wasn't sure how to avoid that very question.

He walked over to the door of the small waiting room and poked his head out into the hallway. He spotted Mary Margaret just down at the nurses' station talking to her friend. Henry ducked back into the waiting room and sat back down beside Riley.

"Is your mommy okay?"

"Yeah," Henry smiled down at her. "She's awake now."

"Henry?" Mary Margaret said quietly as she stood in the doorway. "You can go and see her now, but they're only letting you in right now."

"Okay."

"Come with me, Riley," she said as she held out a hand. "I want you to come and meet some of my friends."

Henry was the first to walk out of the waiting room and he was approached by the same nurse Mary Margaret had just been speaking to. The woman led him down a long corridor and into his mother's private room where he was surprised to see her sitting up and sipping from a plastic cup of water.

"Henry!" Regina exclaimed and she tried to get out of the bed, but the nurse was right at her side. "Please, let me see my son."

"Madam Mayor, you've been unconscious for five days," the nurse said gently. "You need to stay in bed until Dr. Whale has run some tests."

"I'm fine!"

"Mom," Henry smiled as he walked over to her bedside and he hoisted himself up so he could hug her tight. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Henry," she whispered into his hair as she held onto him for a long moment. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Mom," he said and she let him go to cup his face and she just stared at him. "Mary Margaret has been taking care of us."

"Us?"

"Riley and me," Henry clarified. "The day that you came here, Beth found Riley out in the rain all alone. We don't know where Emma is and Beth, she went to Boston to find her and we haven't heard from her since she left."

"Beth went to Boston?"

"To find Emma."

Regina frowned. "She's not in Boston," she said and Henry nodded. "You know that? How do you know that, Henry?"

"I talked to Mr. Gold today," he said quietly and Regina frowned even deeper. "I wanted some answers, Mom. I didn't think you'd ever wake up again."

"What did Mr. Gold tell you?"

Henry looked over at the nurse and then back at his mother. They shared a knowing look and neither said a word until the nurse had left the room to give the two of them a moment of privacy.

"Is it true you and Emma were stuck in a curse together?"

"Yes," she nodded and she reached out to stroke her fingers soothingly through his hair. "We were. It was all because—"

"Of your mom," Henry finished. "Why would she do that?"

"I don't know, Henry, but whatever the reason is, I have to figure it out so that I can stop her from trying to cast us into another curse," she whispered. "Do you know where Emma is?"

Henry shook his head. "No, but Mr. Gold said that Beth isn't even in Boston. She's being held in an old farm—"

"Oh no," Regina gasped. "My mother is in Storybrooke?"

"I guess, but Mom, we need to find Emma too."

"Yes, yes we do."

"Mom?"

"Yes, Henry?"

"How did you get out? How did you break the curse?"

"Henry—"

"Did you use magic to escape?" Henry asked, suddenly growing excited and desperate to hear the story. "Did Emma help you break the curse, Mom?"

"She did."

"So, she really is the Savior!"

"Henry—"

"Mom, we've got to find her and bring her home."

"Henry, there is something I need to tell you," she said and her voice was soft. Tired, but soft. "I need you to listen very carefully and not jump to any conclusions, all right?"

"Okay."

"I've told you before how many curses can be broken," she began and Henry nodded as he shifted on the bed beside her anxiously. "There is only one way to break most of them and that is with a kiss, True Love's Kiss."

"I know that," he grinned. "So, who was it?"

"It was us, Henry."

"Huh?"

"Emma kissed me and the curse was broken."

It took Henry a moment for that to truly sink in and once it did, he felt a whole host of different emotions, most of them delightfully happy and filled with glee that his mom and birth mother shared true love with one another. Another feeling washed over him and it was the feeling of "what now", what would happen now? Would his mom and Emma end up together? Would—

"Henry," Regina said as she cupped his face again and interrupted his stream of thoughts. "Do try not to jump to any conclusions."

"I'm not! I'm just happy! Happy for you, happy for Emma!" He grinned and he took both of his mom's hands in his own. "What happens now, Mom?"

"I am not certain, but since Emma and Beth are both missing, I think we need to make it our mission to find them."

"Do you think Mr. Gold was telling the truth?"

"We will find out," Regina said with a small nod. "Just as soon as Dr. Whale lets me leave."

"Okay."

"Now, tell me everything that I've missed."

"Actually, Mom, I want to hear about what happened to you and Emma," Henry said and she saw her roll her eyes, but in a way that she was slightly amused and not at all surprised. "Will you tell me?"

"Yes, of course, Henry. I promised you that I would not keep anything from you ever again."

"I know."

"So, it all began just before Emma left to return to Boston…"

[X]

Emma paced the small room and noticed how different it was than the room she'd been held in before. It was smaller and there was no hole in the wall with the man on the other side. It was quiet aside from the steady drip of water that came from an old pipe that ran overhead. There was also a draft coming from the far wall, a window that had been boarded up, and poorly at that.

After Emma had been knocked out by the witch who had put her in that place and sent her through a curse she'd thought she'd never escape from unscathed, she woke up furious and more determined than ever to get out of there, wherever she was.

Pacing wasn't going to get her anywhere and she walked over to the boarded-up window and tried to reach for the wood plank closest to her. Despite that it was just out of reach, she stood on her toes and grabbed a hold of the damp wood, feeling how brittle and old it was as she tightened her grip as best as she could. After a few tugs, the board started to come loose and the rusty nails that were holding it shut started to pull free.

With a hard grunt, Emma pulled the board off and it clattered on the ground loudly. She gasped and tried to jump up to grab onto the second board, but it was just out of reach. She groaned in frustration before taking a look around the small room she was trapped in. Off in the corner by the steel door was a small crate. It didn't look too sturdy and it wasn't big, but it might just work, she decided as she grabbed it and brought it over to the boarded-up window.

Her desperation was making her antsy and anxious. After breaking free of the curse, she wanted nothing more than to get the hell out of there and find Regina, if only just to make sure that she was okay. They'd deal with Regina's evil witch of a mother together, she had no doubt about that, but how was the question that was currently going through her mind.

She had tried not to think about the way they'd broken the curse or how the old witch had been right all along. She tried and failed as she struggled with the second board and her mind drifted to that very moment they had kissed, to the way it felt, to how quickly they had been ripped apart and out of the curse.

It angered her that they'd been pulled apart in their moment and she practically roared as she ripped the second board off of the window. The crate she stood on wobbled and she jumped off before tossing the wood board to the cement floor. The opening in the window wasn't very big, but the glass was broken on one pane and it didn't look like there was anything else to stop her from slipping out.

After waiting for a few minutes and listening carefully to make sure that Cora wasn't coming for another surprise visit, she heard nothing aside from the steady drip of water from the pipe overhead. She moved the crate on its side to give her another two inches and she pulled open the broken pane of glass, the metal tough and rusted to the frame.

"Fuck, come on!" Emma groaned as she pushed it open as far as she could and she stumbled back off the crate. "Come on, you can do this. You're almost out. Just pull yourself up and out. No different than all those times you'd done it before."

She took a few deep breaths before she leaped up onto the crate and grabbed a hold of the edge of the windowsill. Using what little energy she did have, she pulled herself up and tried to squeeze through the small opening. It took a lot more effort than she thought it would and when she managed to get halfway through, she reached up for the edge of the window well and pulled herself out the rest of the way.

With a sigh of relief, she fell back onto the damp grass and looked up at the sky. Light was starting to fade with the dark clouds that were rolling in overhead. She had no idea just how many days had passed, but she was just more than relieved that she was back in her world.

Emma laid there for a few minutes before she got up and walked around the house. It was an old farm house and to the unknowing eye, it looked to be abandoned, condemned. She walked around until she saw the front porch light switch on and she hugged the corner of the wall before peering around. Cora walked out of the front door with a steaming hot cup in her hand and she exhaled sharply as she stood on the porch and looked out over the large and empty front yard. She moved back the way she had come quietly, wondering if she should just make a run for it or if she should try to rescue the man that was trapped down in the basement.

She quickly checked the perimeter aside from the front where Cora was still standing on the porch by the front door. There were no other windows, boarded up or otherwise. She was about to give up and just run when she spotted an old cellar door, almost hidden in the darkness beyond some brush that hadn't been cleared away in many, many years.

She got to work, quickly and quietly clearing away the brush that blocked the cellar door. After about ten minutes, it was clear, but she didn't trust that Cora was still out front. After she made her way around the side of the house and peered around the corner, sure enough, Cora was no longer standing on the porch and the light was off. She sighed in frustration and moved to hide in the shadows as headlights came up the gravel drive. An old car stopped, the brakes squealing loudly before the lights and the engine shut off and the driver's door opened.

It was mere seconds after that the porch light turned back on and Cora emerged. Emma carefully peered around the corner to find Mr. Gold getting out of the car slowly.

"Well, it is about time you showed your face, Imp."

"I figured it was due time, your majesty."

Emma shook her head and crouched low as she moved to take cover just beyond the front porch to get a better vantage point.

"As you know, the curse was broken," Cora said and there was such venom in her voice that it gave Emma chills. "It wasn't supposed to be possible, Imp. Why did it happen?"

"I have no idea, your majesty," he replied but he kept his distance, even backing up as Cora approached him. "But you called and I came. How can I be of assistance to you?"

"I need the Savior dead," Cora said and she reached out to grab him by the red tie he was wearing. "I—"

"I'm sorry, your majesty, but the Savior is going to stay alive," Mr. Gold said tightly and he reached out to grab her by the throat. "You, on the other hand, are the reason I cannot find my son."

"No—I—"

"Enough, I am done with you," he snapped and in an instant Emma watched Cora disappear. "Now, Emma, you may come out. I know you're there. You and I have a few things we need to discuss."