The pair of men walked in silence as they made their way through the forest. The castle had turned up nothing, and David had nearly broken his hand when he hit the wall in frustration. They had lost time; a lot of it. Both had hoped they would find some sign of Emma; some sign that told them she was alright. "Where to now, mate?" Hook asked. He had made no mention of David's hand, though he had offered some rum to clean the cuts on his knuckles.
"There has to be an easier way to track her. We can't just wander around, hoping to stumble on a clue that will lead us to her," David sighed, disappointed. He stopped and looked at the man. "You spent time with her here. Do you have any clue where she could have gone?"
"This place doesn't exactly hold happy memories for us," Hook looked down at he continued walking. He thought about the first time he had seen Emma. She was beautiful, and he had known it even then. Something about her captivated him; to the point he was ready to betray Cora. He would have followed her even then. He thought about the sinking feeling he had as she clasped the cuff on his wrist and he knew she was going to leave him. He felt angry at himself as he remembered aligning with Cora again, trapping Emma in that cell; leaving her behind. And now, as he thought of their fight at the lake, he felt pride. His Swan had put up quite the fight for someone never formally trained in swordplay. "I don't know. The lake, maybe. That's where they jumped through the portal last time."
"It's a start," David nodded. "It's around this mountain," he pointed to their left. "It'll take some time, but I think it's worth it to check out. It's not too far from Regina's castle. If she came through near the lake, perhaps she's taken up camp there."
"Great. That place surely holds some dear memories for the both of us," Hook closed his eyes, not wanting to reminisce about the times he was at that castle. That wasin his past, before Emma. That was the man who was hellbent on revenge and would stop at nothing to get it.
"Wouldn't be my first choice for a vacation home," David shrugged.
"Is that a joke?" Hook grinned at the man. "Are you actually joking with me?"
David laughed lightly as he nodded. "I suppose so." His face turned back into the mask of seriousness. "Don't get used to it."
"Wouldn't dream of it," he chuckled as he followed the prince.
Henry ran through the woods, branches catching him in the face as he went. His skin was burning as each small wound opened up. His hand, arms and face would be covered. He knew it without having to stop and look. It didn't matter though. He had to get away. That awful roar; the sight of the trees moving. He had heard someone screaming, but that had stopped abruptly. That was when he ran. There was nothing else he could do. He was unarmed; not that he knew how to fight anyway. He remembered his talk with Emma about this place when she had returned to Storybrooke. She was right. They did need to seriously reconsider his definition of the word awesome. He looked behind him as he ran, against his better judgement. He should know better than to continue running through an area he didn't know without looking where he was going. But he had to know if it was still behind him. The trees were still in his rear. He had lost it. Unfortunately, his body collided with something and he went tumbling. He felt the air leave his lungs as he hit the ground. It took him a moment to regain his wits. Once he did, he looked at what he had run into. There was a man brushing himself off as he stood up. The moment the man looked at him, he recognized him from his book. He just couldn't seem to remember his name.
"Are you alright?" The man held his hand out to help Henry up. "What were you running from, young man?"
"Ogres," he croaked out as the man pulled him to his feet.
"What's your name?"
"I'm Henry," he looked up at him.
"Phillip," the man shook his hand formally. "Looks as though you've lost the ogre. Why don't you come back to my castle? You can have a rest, and some water."
"You're Aurora's prince," Henry spoke, mostly to himself. This was good, he thought. Aurora had been with his mother the first time. Maybe she could help him reach her this time.
"I am," he smiled. He put his hand on Henry's shoulder and guided him. "Come on. It's not far from here."
As they walked, Henry asked him about Emma, but to his disappointment, he hadn't seen her. Of course, that would be too easy. And one thing he knew, a hero's journey was never easy. But he would find his mother. He was determined.
"Aurora, we have company," Phillip called out as they crossed a bridge toward the castle. Henry could see her as soon as they reached the courtyard. She looked just as she did in the netherworld, only happy.
"Phillip," she smiled as she walked toward him, a smile on her face. She stopped when she saw Henry. "Henry?" So she remembered him. That was silly, he thought. Of course she did. That place was hard to forget. "Henry, what are you doing here?" She was alarmed.
"I came to find my mom."
"Emma?" she frowned. "Emma's back here? How? Why? Wh-"
"Darling, don't overwhelm the boy. He was just chased by an ogre. Let him take a breather," he turned to Henry. "We'll get you some water. Wait here," he spoke softly, like a father would.
"What are we going to do?" Aurora hissed once they were out of earshot. "Phillip, he can't stay here. If she-"
"We can't leave the boy to wander the forest alone. It's dangerous."
"But our child will be in danger."
"We can't endanger another child," he reasoned. "No one has to know he's here. We can send a message to Mulan. Maybe she can take him to find his mother. Aurora, how would you feel if it were our child?"
She nodded slowly. It was true. If it were her son, she would hate for someone to throw him out just because they feared someone else. And Emma had helped to get her heart back. She would help Henry get to Emma if possible. "Please, Phillip. We need to be careful. Just as it would be foolish to risk this child's life, it would be foolish to put ourselves in danger as well. If she finds out we hid this from her-"
"We'll be alright."
"She's not forgiving. She'll want to know that there are people coming to this land."
He put his hands on her face and kissed her forehead. "I promise I will protect you and our baby. No harm will come to either of you."