Once Upon A Time
There was an enchanted forest filled with all the classic characters we know.
Or think we know.
One day they found themselves trapped in a place where all their happy endings were stolen.
Our World.
This is how it happened.
"Again."
Mal ran a hand through her short purple hair in frustration, growling to herself before allowing herself to give in to her magic, her anger, her emotion.
She fought back the urge to cry out as green flames licked her body, completely swallowing her form.
"Focus, Mal!" Maleficent snarled. "Focus it!"
Mal tried. She really tried. But it hurt. It hurt so much. And she couldn't shift her focus inward...the flames covered her body and she screamed before the world faded into darkness...
...Only to be slapped awake a moment later. "Get up!" Maleficent practically shrieked, digging her fingernails into the skin of Mal's shoulders to pull her daughter to her feet. Mal nearly stumbled before her mother's eyes glowed green, dragging her out of her tiredness and into fear.
Mal broke eye contact once she was steady, glaring at the floor.
"Again."
Mal growled and bit her lip, willing herself to give in, to focus...she didn't want to be hurt again, her mother was right there, watching her with glowing green eyes... fear flooded her, and her vision went black.
Mal gasped and fought the urge to curl in on herself as a kick to her stomach jolted her awake.
"Get up," Maleficent snarled, and Mal, biting back tears, forced herself to stand.
"Again."
And this time Mal absorbed everything she was feeling into herself. All the pain, the anger, the humiliation, everything that was messy and hard and uncomfortable. She blended it into one feeling and drew her magic into herself.
And when she opened her eyes, she was flying.
"YES!" Maleficent shrieked from the ground, cackling. "YES! That's my little dragon!"
And suddenly all of the pain, all of the anguish, all of the anger and complicated feelings were swept away and replaced with a glowing warmth.
It was moments like these that she lived for. Moments where she did something right, where she gained her mother's praise. It was even better than flying.
Although flying was amazing.
Mal's dragon form soared through the sky, blowing green smoke lazily through the air as she dipped and twisted to the sound of Maleficent's gleeful laughter echoing through the air.
But it wasn't long before her mother called out to her from the ground, beckoning her to land, and Mal did so, transforming back as she did so, landing gracefully on her feet.
Maleficent's green eyes gleamed. "Excellent," she praised her daughter. Mal beamed.
"Only seven and you've already achieved dragon form," she marveled. "That's my girl. At this rate, you'll be truly evil in no time."
Mal fought the urge to bounce excitedly. Maleficent noticed and glanced down at her daughter. "Remember, Mal, temperament is everything," she told the little girl. "You don't want people to get any impression that you're..." she trailed off at this and frowned as if trying to think of the proper word for it.
"...All I'm saying, dear, is don't be so obvious with your emotions. Contain yourself."
Mal nodded.
"...I think that's enough for today. Find something to eat and then get some rest," Maleficent commanded shortly before turning and heading back into the castle.
Mal watched her go, feeling some kind of longing stirring inside of her. Some foreign emotion she wasn't supposed to have...She shoved it aside. No. There was no room for love in her heart.
And it was at this moment that Mal made a promise to herself that she would do anything and everything to make her mother proud, so that one day, someday, she could be as evil as her.
Emma winced slightly as she slammed the door to her car. She hated wearing heels. But hopefully, if things went well (or as well as they could go, considering the situation), she would be out of them soon. She smiled upon entering the restaurant and seeing her "date." The dick.
He smiled and rose to greet her. "Emma."
"Ryan? You look relieved," she said mildly, sitting.
He smiled charmingly. "Well, it is the internet. Pictures can be..."
"Fake. Outdated. Stolen from the Victoria's Secret catalogue," Emma interrupted bluntly. She wanted to dispense with the pleasantries as quickly as possible, and the fastest way to do that was to move the conversation forward. "So..."
"So... tell me something about yourself, Emma," Ryan smiled, eyes wandering as he looked her up and down appreciatively. Emma fought back a shudder of disgust before racking her brain for something to say.
"Oh... Uh, well, today's my birthday."
"And you're spending it with me? What about your friends?"
"Kind of a loner."
"And... you don't like your family?" The asshole just had to bring that up, didn't he?
"No family to like," Emma shrugged, masking any discomfort in her voice as best she could.
"Aw. Come on, everyone has family."
Not. Helpful. Emma fought the urge to punch him out right here and now.
"Technically, yeah, but not everyone knows who they are." She smiled playfully. "Ready to run yet?"
Ryan laughed, far more at ease than he had been at the start of their conversation. Emma fought back the urge to smirk. It was almost time to give this asshole his comeuppance.
"Oh, not a chance," Ryan chuckled, snapping her out of her reverie. "You, Emma, are, by far, the sexiest friendless orphan that I have ever met."
Emma laughed. "Okay!" Then she smiled. It was time. "Your turn. No, wait, let me guess. Um...you are handsome, charming..."
"Go on," Ryan said flirtatiously.
"The kind of guy who...and now, stop me if I get this wrong, embezzled from your employer, got arrested, and skipped town before they were able to throw your ass in jail."
Ryan froze. "What?"
And it was here that Emma let the facade drop entirely and embraced both her sadness for his wife and her disgust for him to tell him this. "And the worst part of all this is your wife. Your wife loves you so much that she bailed you out, and how do you repay that loyalty? You're on a date."
"Who are you?" Ryan practically spat.
Emma smiled wryly. "The chick who put up the rest of the money."
Ryan's eyes widened in realization "The bail bondsman."
"Bail bondsperson," Emma corrected lightly. Ryan was still for a moment, and then he abruptly flipped the table and began to run, spilling water over Emma's dress in the process. She groaned in annoyance before following him out as rapidly as her high heels would allow.
He was trying to start the car, but of course, she'd prepared for that. It was booted. She walked calmly up to him.
"You don't have to do this, okay?" Ryan said desperately. "I can pay you. I've got money."
Emma almost laughed at the sheer falsehood of that statement. "No you don't. And if you do you should give it to your wife and take care of your family."
Ryan gave her an ugly, rage-filled sneer. "The hell do you know about family, huh?"
Red filled Emma's vision and without thinking, she reached out and slammed his head against the steering wheel, knocking him out.
"Nothing."
"Mal," a voice called out from behind her.
Mal looked up from the wall she was graffitiing. "Hm?"
Mayor Regina Mills stood behind her, clearly too worried to be unimpressed with her illegal actions.
Mal stopped what she was doing and turned to the mayor, ignoring the prickle of anger she felt whenever she saw the face of the woman who currently had her mother imprisoned in the library basement. It wasn't like Regina to show... really any emotion at all, so something must be terribly wrong. "What is it?" She asked suspiciously.
"I was wondering if you'd seen Henry anywhere." Regina tried to keep this statement casual and not loaded, folding her arms across her chest. But Mal could tell by the slight tremble in her voice and the way she bit her lip that she was rattled. Very.
"No, I haven't," Mal answered honestly. "Why?"
"He's been missing all day," Regina's mask almost cracked now, the worry showing in her eyes. "He didn't come home after school."
"Shit," Mal swore.
"Do you know where he'd be?" Regina asked.
Mal bit her lip hesitantly. "I might know a few places...give me some time to look and I'll get back to you as soon as I can."
Regina nodded. "Okay. And... thank you. Really."
"Of course."
As the clacking of Regina's high heels grew fainter, Mal gave one last regretful look at her partially graffitied wall before putting the spray can back in her bag and turning to leave the alley.
Despite it all, she couldn't help but feel worried about the kid. He'd been having a hard time with his mom recently, and he'd even been a bit secretive from her for whatever reason. They'd always been so close...
Mal shook her head. Whatever. It didn't bother her.
All that mattered now was finding the kid.
Henry didn't seem like the type to run away... but he'd been acting so strange lately.
On her way down the street, she paused before she nearly ran into two people crossing the street. She blinked and looked down at them. "Sorry, guys."
Celia and Dizzy didn't seem to be bothered, smiling up at her with ice-cream cones in their hands. "Hi, Mal!" They chorused.
"Hey..." Mal bit her lip, trying to force herself not to smile, but they were too charming to ignore. The two ten-year-olds were practically in awe of Mal, Storybrooke's resident "bad girl."
Or at least, as of a year ago, when she'd arrived in the town for the first time and been adopted and begun attending school.
They were also in Henry's class...
"Hey..." Mal said slowly. She knew they both ate lunch with Henry, even if they weren't terribly close to him. "You two haven't seen Henry, have you?"
The girls shook their heads. "He wasn't at school today," Dizzy said, causing Mal to freeze.
"Thanks, guys," she smiled at them. "See ya!"
"'Bye, Mal!" They called after her before walking onward, hand-in-hand. Mal frowned... where could he be? It wasn't like him to skip school... hm. Well, she might as well check his old haunts before panicking. He was probably just hiding from his mom... and maybe her, too.
David frowned as he watched his wife standing in the balcony doorway, gazing out worriedly and absentmindedly stroking her pregnant belly. "What's wrong?" He questioned.
"Nothing," Snow White lied, shaking her head.
But David knew his wife too well to believe her and he loved her too much to leave her alone with her thoughts. "You're thinking about what the Queen said again, aren't you? Snow, please..." he begged. "I can't keep having this conversation, you have to let it go. We're about to have a baby!"
Snow shook her head exhaustedly, turning from him to enter the room. "I haven't had a restful night since our wedding."
On the day of their wedding, the Evil Queen Regina, who'd spent the past few years trying to ruin Snow's life, had barged in and given an announcement that she would destroy all their happiness. And knowing Regina... she had a way. But David chose to ignore it, shaking his head. After all they'd been through, it had to be over. She had to be done... this couldn't be their lives forever. It couldn't. "That's what she wants, to get in your head! But they're only words. She can't hurt us."
"You have no idea of what she's capable."
David sighed, desperately racking his brain for some way to help his wife. "What can I do to ease your mind?" He asked, coming up with nothing on his own.
She met his gaze. "Let me talk... to him."
David froze. "Him. You don't mean—"
"I do," Snow confirmed.
"No," David refused, shaking his head. "No, no. It's too dangerous."
"He sees the future."
"There's a reason he's locked up."
"Can you promise me that our child will be safe?" Snow's voice rose desperately at this as she practically begged her husband. "Can you guarantee it? Because he can."
And David sighed, finally relenting. He knew she was right. "All right. For our child."
Mal growled in frustration, running a hand through her long blonde hair, playing with the purple ends as she often did when she was thinking.
She'd checked all of Henry's favorite places and he wasn't at any of them. Which could only mean one thing: He'd run away.
But the worst thing of all was that he'd run away from her and that her instincts were right; he was avoiding her.
The thought hurt her more than it should.
Ever since she'd arrived in Storybrooke, the two had become fast friends, assuming almost a younger brother/older sister relationship with one another. Henry had always had a somewhat difficult relationship with his mom, that was true. But now he was avoiding her too. And Mal hated it. She hated that he was keeping secrets from her. She hadn't even done anything wrong, as far as she could tell. She couldn't remember getting into a fight with him or anything.
But one day, he'd started being distant with her, spending more time at home, locked in his room. And when Mal did go over to have dinner with the Mills, as she often did, he avoided eye contact and didn't talk much while he ate, although she did sometimes catch him staring at her when he thought she wasn't looking.
It was so horribly frustrating and... hurtful, as much as it pained Mal to admit it. Years of suppressing emotions weren't exactly helpful when they suddenly all hit at once.
So, it was with a heavy heart that Mal trudged to the mayor's house to give Regina the news, although she would insist upon looking with both her and the sheriff when Regina inevitably called him.
She... loved that kid. Loved him like she hadn't anyone since her mother and now Bobby and Evie. Maybe Doug... Maybe.
It was dark by the time she knocked on Regina's door, and unsurprisingly found both her and Sheriff Graham there, painstakingly trying to figure out ways to find Henry.
Regina was practically frantic, which was a rare and slightly satisfying sight to see.
For all the decency she'd shown Mal, it wasn't easy to forget that she currently had her mother imprisoned... Mal shook her head to clear it. She couldn't show any emotion. She'd get her mother out someday... someday soon. And then they'd take over the world together. As they'd always planned.
The important thing now was Henry.
"Well?" Regina practically snapped, snapping Mal out of her reverie.
"I checked all his favorite places..."
"And?"
Mal sighed, raking her hands through her hair in frustration. "Nothing..."
Mal raised her green eyes to meet Regina's brown and offered one of the very few apologies she'd given in her life. "I'm sorry."
Rumplestiltskin lifted his head as the sudden sounds of footsteps filled the cavern. He smiled to himself before lifting himself up onto the bars of his cell, listening intently. This might very well be the meeting he'd been waiting for.
The guard looked up from murmuring to the two hooded figures to call out to him as they approached his cell. "Rumplestiltskin. Rumplestiltskin! I have a question for you."
Rumplestiltskin rolled his eyes to himself before climbing down from the cell bars to land softly on the floor. "No, you don't. They do," he corrected the guard, looking towards the two hooded figures and grinning broadly. "Snow White, and Prince 'Charming'!" He laughed wildly. "You insult me. Step into the light and take off those ridiculous robes."
The prince and princess exchanged a glance with one another before doing as he said and removing their hoods. "Ah, ha-ha ha... that's much better," Rumplestiltskin chuckled.
Prince Charming dispensed with the pleasantries. "We've come to ask you about the—"
"Yes, yes, I know why you're here!" Rumplestiltskin snapped, cutting him off. It was quite insulting that they'd think he wouldn't. As if he hadn't waited so long for this very day... "You want to know about the Queen's threat," he continued.
Snow White spoke up here. "Tell us what you know," she commanded, gaze fixated on him, attempting to cut into him.
"Oh!" Rumplestiltskin mocked. "Tense, aren't we? Fear not: for I can ease your mind!" He leaned in, now for the kicker. "But it's gonna cost you something in return."
Charming shook his head, turning to go. "No. This is a waste of time."
But Snow wouldn't relent. "What do you want?"
"Oh..." Rumplestiltskin looked down at her and said as casually as possible, "the name of your unborn child?"
"Absolutely not!" Charming practicality roared.
"Deal! What do you know?" Snow White undercut him, and Rumplestiltskin almost felt a glimmer of admiration towards her dedication to her child.
"Ah," he dipped his head to her, smiling. The deal was made. "The Queen has a powerful curse. And it's coming. Soon you'll all be in a prison, just like me, only worse! Your prison, all of our prisons, will be time. And time will stop. And we will be trapped, someplace horrible, where everything we hold dear, everything we love will be ripped from us while we suffer for all eternity, while the Queen celebrates, victorious at last!" He finished his speech with a flourish before looking down sneeringly at Snow White, who had come closer in the midst of his tangent. "...No more happy endings," he added.
"What can we do?"
"We can't do anything?"
"Who can?" Ah, she was a smart one. Always had been.
Rumplestiltskin looked down at Snow White's pregnant stomach, transfixed, and subconsciously began to reach toward the source of power. "That little thing," he answered her. "Growing inside your belly."
Charming drew his sword and slapped his hand with it just as he'd come close enough to touch it. Rumplestiltskin hissed in pain as Charming threatened angrily. "Next time, I cut it off."
Rumplestiltskin glowered at the prince. "Tk, tk, tk, tk, tk. The infant is our only hope." He turned to Snow. "Get the child to safety. Get the child to safety and on its—" he frowned in concentration here, trying to pinpoint the exact date. "—twenty-eighth birthday, the child will return. The child will find you, and the final battle will begin!" He laughed in delight at this, smiling happily at the image.
Charming shook his head. "Heard enough. We're leaving." He guided Snow by the small of her back out of the cave and Rumplestiltskin stopped suddenly as they were about to leave.
"Hey! No!" He screamed, grabbing the cell bars and shaking with anger and desperation. "We made a deal! I want her name! We had a deal! I. Need. Her. Name! I want her name!"
"Her?" Charming muttered, bluffing. "It's a boy."
But Rumplestiltskin called out to Snow White, knowing she wouldn't lie, she was too good, she wouldn't break a deal with him. "Missy, missy, you know I'm right. Tell me. What's her name?"
Snow sighed, stopping suddenly before turning to look at him. "Emma. Her name is Emma."
Rumplestiltskin smiled in victory, savoring the name on his tongue as he spoke it for the first time. "Emma."
"I don't understand... where could he have gone?" Regina asked desperately.
Mal rubbed her eyes tiredly. It's was in the early morning hours now, she'd had to call Bob to tell him she'd be late, Henry was missing. He knew her feelings on the kid and had a bit of a soft spot for him himself and had told her she could look for him so long as she'd be at school in the morning.
Now Mal wasn't promising that, but she was glad to have the opportunity to look for the kid. To get some answers. Surely, she was owed at least that from him?
"Did you have a fight or anything?" She asked, looking up at the mayor.
"Of course not," Regina snapped, glancing at Graham. "We're fine."
Mal sighed, not sure why she was bothering to put up a front. She literally had everyone in this town under her control in one way or another. What did it matter what they thought of her?
"I'm not saying anything..." she held up her hands in defeat. "I'm just wondering whether there might be any sudden motivation for him to up and leave."
Regina sighed, apparently deciding to give them a straight answer. "No... I mean, we have been fighting lately. But nothing really happened today... nothing really happened this morning, or last night, or even in the past week, really."
Mal nodded, frowning. "Hm."
"Did you notice anything when you've seen him?" Regina asked.
Mal bit her lip and answered honestly. "I haven't seen him this week," she confessed. "We've kinda... been in a bit of a rough patch for a while."
"Wait... if he hasn't been seeing you... then where has he been going?" Regina asked.
"I wasn't aware he was going anywhere," Mal shrugged. "I kinda assumed it'd be his usual spots, but I checked all of them, and I know this town. There aren't a lot of places to hide."
Regina narrowed her eyes suspiciously at this, as she always did when Mal mentioned Storybrooke. As far as Mal knew, she didn't suspect anything, but all the same, she knew it was weird that this girl had shown up out of nowhere and started living in the town where time stood still, aging even as they didn't.
The truth was, Mal was tired of being away from her mother. She hadn't found any answers or cures out in the rest of the world, so she'd returned here to search for something. So far, nothing. But life was certainly better here than it had been in the foster system.
...even if she was surrounded by her mother's enemies.
At least Sleeping Beauty wasn't here.
...as far as she could tell. She didn't exactly know what she looked like.
...to be honest, she didn't know who most of these people were. She hadn't met many other people growing up, mostly being raised in isolation by Maleficent.
True, she'd snuck out quite a bit and wandered, but she didn't see or recognize most of those people... quite possibly all of them. She wasn't great with faces, and she'd only met them once or twice at best.
Regina had been easy to guess, considering she hadn't even bothered to change her name and it was obvious she was at the forefront of this whole thing, everything was so obviously under her control.
Not to mention she'd been the last one to see her mother before she'd disappeared. She'd gone to visit and Mal had taken the opportunity to sneak away, and when she'd gotten back both Regina and her mother were gone... and the Curse orb, too.
And now here they were... Maleficent hadn't exactly explained the Curse to her, but Mal knew enough that this wasn't a complete surprise. Although waking up here certainly had been. And so, had been growing up in this strange new world.
Sheriff Graham's voice snapped her out of her musings. "Well... I guess I should drive around town. See where he could've gone."
"Unless he isn't in town," Mal murmured.
Regina turned to her, horrified. "You don't think he'd have left?"
Mal shrugged. "It's a possibility..." she turned to Regina, curious about what the effects of leaving town were. "Should we go look for him? Put out a notice online or something?"
"We could put out missing signs around town," Graham suggested.
"He could be anywhere by now..." Mal murmured. "If he left this morning... even before school started..."
"What?" Regina asked, looking up.
"Oh yeah... I ran into two of his classmates. They said he hadn't shown up to school today."
Regina narrowed her eyes. "I'm going to be writing an email to that teacher of his... if he's missing, she should tell me... I swear, that woman needs to be fired."
It was reactions like these that made Mal surmise that Mary Margaret Blanchard was most likely Snow White.
She hadn't much luck with her other guesses... but even she had known about Snow White and the Queen. Everyone did.
Mal sighed. "Well, I could try to go find him in another city..."
"Mal, you're fourteen years old," Graham said sharply. "You're not going anywhere by yourself."
"Well, are you gonna go?" Mal rounded on him, eyes flashing.
Graham frowned to himself. The idea clearly didn't appeal to him. The town line must be cursed or something.
Mal had had her suspicions about it for a while, but considering Regina wasn't offering up any suggestions... maybe even she couldn't leave.
Mal made up her mind. "Well, I'm going," she retorted, whipping around and opening the door as Sheriff Graham and Regina made to protest... And then they stopped upon seeing who was in the front yard.
"I say we fight!" David said, slamming his fist into the table.
"Fighting is a bad idea. Giving in to one's dark side never accomplishes anything," Jiminy Cricket responded from under his magnifying glass.
David shook his head. "And how many wars has a clear conscience won? We need to take the Queen out before she can inflict her curse."
They'd summoned the council for a meeting to discuss what they'd learned and how best to prepare for the upcoming Curse. They needed to hurry... the Queen could strike any day now.
"Can we even trust Rumplestiltskin?" Doc asked, uneasy.
"I've sent my men into the forest. The animals are abuzz with the Queen's plan. This is going to happen unless we do something," David emphasized.
Snow stared hopelessly into the distance. "There's no point. The future is written."
"No," David shook his head. "I refuse to believe that. Good can't just lose!"
"Maybe it can."
David was stunned. His wife, of all people... losing hope? No. He'd have to carry the hope for the both of them. "No. Not as long as we have each other. If you believe him about the curse, then you must believe him about our child. She will be the savior." His speech was suddenly interrupted as the doors suddenly opened and the Blue Fairy entered, followed by soldiers, carrying a tree trunk.
"What the hell is this?" He asked, raising an eyebrow in confusion.
"Our only hope of saving that child," the Blue Fairy said serenely, gesturing towards Snow White.
Grumpy scoffed. "A tree? Our fate rests on a tree?" He looked back at David. "Let's get back to the fighting thing."
"The tree is enchanted," the Blue Fairy clarified. "If fashioned into a vessel it can ward off any curse. Geppetto, can you build such a thing?" She turned to the old carpenter.
"Me and my boy. We can do it," Geppetto smiled.
The Blue Fairy smiled back and turned to David. "This will work. We all must have faith." She paused. "There is, however, a catch." She frowned. "The enchantment is indeed powerful, but all power has its limits. And this tree can protect only one."
David looked down at his wife and she at him. They both knew who it was going to be... however much they didn't want it to be true.
"Henry," Mal breathed, and some instinct carried her forward, off her feet, towards him. Regina followed in her wake, soon surpassing her and wrapping her arms around her son in a tight hug.
Mal stopped right before she reached him, slowing herself in an effort to overcome her instincts. She wasn't really... the hugging type. She had no idea where that had come from.
Henry met her eyes through his mother's eyes, watching her curiously. She met his gaze unflinchingly.
Finally, Henry looked away as Regina released him from her embrace.
"Are you okay? Where have you been? What happened?" She asked frantically.
Henry's steely, sad calm suddenly broke here as he pushed her away. "I found my real mom!" And then he ran into the house and up the stairs, and Mal glanced at the blonde woman behind him for the first time, quirking an eyebrow at her, before heading after him, up the stairs and into his bedroom, slamming the door behind her.
"Okay, kid," she practically snarled at him. "You and I need to have a talk."
Henry glared at her resentfully. "There's nothing to talk about."
Mal swore loudly. "The least you owe me is an explanation!" She lashed out. "I mean, come on! One day we're fine and the next day you're ignoring me and treating me like shit! What the hell, Henry?"
Henry said nothing, taking a seat on his bed and crossing his arms, staring down at the floor. Mal let out a feral growl, aggressively twirling her purple tips and pacing the room. She wasn't going to be leaving until she got an answer out of him.
Henry seemed to sense that too, because a few moments later, he finally spoke.
"I know who you are. What you are."
Mal froze where she stood, dropping her hair but keeping her hand where it was, not turning around. Ice enveloped her tone. "Oh? And what is that?"
"You don't have to listen to her, you know. Your mom," Henry's voice was suddenly pleading, desperate. "You can be good."
Footsteps sounded on the stairs and suddenly a knock came at the door. It was Sheriff Graham. "Everything okay in here?"
Mal forced her voice to be steady. "Yes. We're fine. Just chatting."
"All right," he didn't sound completely sure, but the sound of his footsteps fading away meant that he was leaving, at least.
Voices sounded from downstairs as Regina and Henry's birth mother entered the house.
Mal sucked in a breath, finally turning around to address Henry. "I don't have a clue what you're talking about," she lied easily, as easily as breathing.
"Don't play dumb," Henry said angrily. "Don't be like my mom, Mal. Stop lying."
"I would never lie to you, Henry," Mal steadied her tone and brushed off her clothes, moving to the door. "But I guess if you think I'm evil, or something, then I'm better off far away from here. And you." She turned to him, placing a hand on the doorknob. "Goodbye—"
"Mal, wait," Henry said desperately, and she dropped her hand, turning to meet him, surprised to find tears pricking his eyes.
"Please don't do this," he begged. "Please. I... I love you. You're like my sister. You don't have to be a villain. You can be a hero."
"Where did you even get this crazy idea in your mind in the first place?" Mal's voice rose momentarily, and she fought to keep her volume under control. The last thing they needed was anyone coming up here.
Henry went silent at this. "Can't tell you," he said after a moment, avoiding her gaze.
"Why not?"
"Because I don't trust you," he looked up at her, anger in his voice.
"Oh," Mal said blankly, not meeting his eyes. She didn't want to be hurt.
"...Not until you trust me, anyways," Henry finished, looking up at her, wide-eyed. Dammit. It was hard to ignore him when he was giving her "puppy eyes", like he was so innocent and sweet.
"I..." Mal growled in frustration, raking a hand through her hair. "Henry, I..."
She wanted to scream, to cry out, to break something. It was too much. She had to get out of here.
She ran to the door, opening it and slamming it behind her, ignoring Henry's cries of "Mal, wait!"
She had to get out of here.
She didn't bother to disguise how much noise she was making as she fled down the stairs. Regina was just escorting Henry's birth mother out of the house when she fled past them, pushing Regina aside.
She didn't stop until she was out in the front yard, out of breath. She whipped around to glare at the blonde woman, at Henry's mother, if she could even be called out. The woman stared back at her curiously, and Mal ran out of the yard, stopping only to briefly glance up and see Henry looking down at his birth mother out of the window, and she looking back up at him.
Emma frowned as she began the drive out of Storybrooke, thinking back on the events of the past day. Everything was so...confusing. The best thing to do was to forget it all. She glanced down at the front seat suddenly and laughed. "Sneaky bastard." Right beside her was Henry's book. Of course, he'd left it there. Of course. She looked up, focused on keeping her eyes on the road, then gasped as she saw a wolf standing in the road. The car spun, crashing, and Emma's head thumped against the steering wheel, her world going black.
Mal ran as fast as she could. She still had a good amount of time to get home before Maleficent noticed she was gone, but she was still paranoid. Past experiences with sneaking out had not been kind to her.
She supposed it was hurtful that half the time her mother didn't even notice she was gone, but when she did, she was in for a world of hurt, then prompted by an even stronger magical spell to lock her room that would take her longer and longer to figure out how to break again before she could escape.
In a way, it was a test of Mal's strength more than anything else. There was always a glimmer of pride in Maleficent's eyes even as she punished her daughter each time she escaped. Mal lived for that look.
But not wasn't the time. She'd like to enjoy her burst of freedom for now. At least she'd finally gotten some food... there were times Maleficent forgot to feed her when she locked her up.
Her mother hadn't always been this bad, but ever since she'd returned from... Mal shook her head, forcing the memories away. She wouldn't dwell on that. She couldn't.
She heaved a sigh of relief as she broke back into her bedroom, flopping down on her bed, before focusing her magic on putting up the binding spell once more. It didn't look like she'd been found out.
She wondered whether Queen Regina had left by now...
Grumpy's eyes scanned the horizon, even as he took a swig from his canteen. Sleepy snored next to him and Grumpy fought the urge to laugh at his brother. He certainly lived up to his name... But then he squinted in the distance. No... it couldn't be. He kicked Sleepy. "Wake up. Wake up! Look!" A dragon soared forward, and trailing close behind it was... a cloud of purple and green smoke. Just as the creature flew over the castle, Grumpy ran to ring the warning bell. "The curse! It's HEEEEEERE!"
Mal groaned and rubbed her eyes tiredly as she arrived in the classroom, flopping down in the desk next to Evie.
"Rough night?" Her best friend asked dryly, prompting Mal to laugh dryly.
"You could say that." She glanced over at her friend as she pursed her lips, looking into the compact mirror to check her make-up. Evie frowned and took out her hairbrush to run through her raven locks. Mal fought the urge to laugh.
"Hair out of place, E?"
"Mm," Evie responded, focusing on brushing whatever nonexistent tangle she'd found. Finally, she stopped, a smile of satisfaction on her face as she put up the compact then turned to Mal.
"So. What happened?"
"Henry," Mal responded. "What else?"
Evie frowned sympathetically. "What happened?"
But at that moment, Doug entered the room and plopped into the desk on the other side of Evie, greeting her with a smile.
"Later," Mal muttered, and Evie nodded, turning to talk to her boyfriend.
Mal sighed, groaning and laying her head in her hands. She'd barely gotten a wink of sleep last night, and considering she was sitting at the very front of the class. Evie always arrived first and picked where they sat, and she preferred the front. It was unlikely she was going to be able to nap through it.
She just wanted to know how Henry knew. How was this possible? It was so bizarre, there was no way he could know. And yet he did.
He knew who she was, and he hated her for it. He was asking her to change.
But she couldn't. She had to follow her mother. She had to save her. He didn't understand. This was the only way. And yet...
Mal pushed aside the familiar inkling of doubt that had crept into her mind. There was no room for that. Mother wouldn't approve.
But Mother isn't here now, a small voice reminded her, and she shook her head to clear it. No. She couldn't think like that. Things would just get messier than they already were.
Maybe she'd just have to cut off everyone in her life. That'd make it easier when the inevitable came. Wouldn't it? Mal took a peek through her hands to look at Evie, talking and laughing with Doug, and her heart wrenched.
No. She'd worry about that later.
At any rate, at least Henry had gone and made things easier for her...
Mal fought back the urge to sob.
Emma frowned as she perused through Henry's computer, looking through his emails. After she'd crashed last night, she'd ended up in jail for drunk driving. Luckily for her, Mayor Mills had shown up crying that Henry had run away again. She'd agreed to help find him in exchange for her freedom. "Smart kid," she remarked, ignoring the surge of pride that unexpected arose in her as she said this. "Cleared his inbox. I'm smart too, a little hard disk recovery utility I like to use."
"I'm a bit more old-fashioned, in my techniques," Sheriff Graham remarked. "Pounding on the pavement, knocking on doors, that sort of thing."
Emma shrugged. "You're on salary; I get paid for delivery. Pounding pavement is not a luxury that I get." She squinted. "Ah, there's a receipt for a website, who's your , it's expensive. He has a credit card?" She questioned Regina.
"He's ten," the mayor scoffed.
"Well, he used one," Emma remarked. "Let's pull up a transaction record. Mary Margaret Blanchard, who's Mary Margaret Blanchard?"
Regina's tone was pure ice. "Henry's teacher."
Mal drummed her fingers against the desk impatiently, glaring at the clock as if willing it to move forward. She just wanted to go to lunch. Five minutes left… four… three… two… Mal jumped out of her seat as the bell rang, swinging her backpack around her shoulder and practically sprinting to the door. She was going to find Henry. She dashed down the hall to his classroom to see if he were still there… thankfully the school was small enough that it wasn't too far, but she skidded to a stop upon seeing who was in the classroom. She'd nearly collided into Henry's birth mother, who was standing inside the doorway. The woman put out her hands to steady her. "Whoa there." She frowned as she looked Mal over, but Mal pushed past her. Regina was inside, talking to Mary Margaret, although they'd stopped upon hearing the commotion.
This could only mean one thing. "Where's Henry?" Mal demanded, eyes sweeping the room, narrowing before finally settling on Mary Margaret.
Mary Margaret glanced at Regina. "Henry… I assumed he was home with you."
"You think I'd be here if he was?" Regina snapped. "Did you give him a credit card so he can find her?" She gestured toward the blonde woman standing in the doorway.
Mary Margaret frowned. "I'm sorry, who are you?"
"I'm, I'm his-" She couldn't finish the sentence, so Regina did it for her.
"The woman who gave him up for adoption."
Mal couldn't listen to this. "She obviously doesn't know anything about this. Let's try someplace else."
"Mal, hold on," Mary Margaret said exhaustedly, looking up from searching her purse for her credit card. "Clever boy," she murmured. "I should never have given him that book."
"What in the hell is this book I keep hearing about?" Regina snapped, and Mal frowned. This was the first she was hearing about it…
"Just some old stories I gave him. As you well know, Henry is a special boy: so smart, so creative, and as you might be aware, lonely." She glanced at Regina at this before continuing, "He needed it."
"What he needs is a dose of reality. This is a waste of time," Regina grumbled. She glared at the birth mother. "Have a nice trip back to Boston." And then she left, knocking over a stack of books. Mal rolled her eyes at the theatrics, joining the birth mother and Mary Margaret in picking up the books.
"Mal, don't you have somewhere to be," Mary Margaret said exhaustedly once they'd finished.
Mal shrugged. "It's lunch. But I'm more concerned about Henry."
Mary Margaret smiled slightly at this. "Of course you are."
"Why would he be lonely?" She wondered aloud. "He has me."
"Of course he does, sweetheart," Mal glared at her at the nickname, and Mary Margaret sighed and hastily finished. "Look… you and Henry aren't exactly the same age. You're more like a sister to him than a friend, and you can't always be around. You know he's pretty much ignored by his peers, even his little friends…"
"Dizzy and Celia aren't his friends," Mal interrupted, raising an eyebrow at her. "He third-wheels them when they're eating lunch together because he doesn't have anywhere else to sit."
Mary Margaret sighed, nodding. "Any more questions?"
"What's the book about?" Mal asked sharply.
"You know. Fairytales. Snow White, Cinderella… Sleeping Beauty..."
Sleeping Beauty… Mal paused at this, shaking her head to clear it, biting her cheek so hard that she drew blood. She swore aloud and turned to leave just as Mary Margaret cried out to admonish her. She knew where he was. And she knew how he knew. She had to know what it said… what this book said… what was going on. She wasn't sure just how yet, but… Mal ran. Henry was at his castle.
"Ahhh! Help!" Snow White's screams rippled throughout the palace. "I can't have this baby now!" She begged some imaginary god, whatever cruel entity had timed the birth before the wardrobe was finished, just as the Curse was coming.
"Doc," David begged. "Do something." He turned to wife. "It's gonna be okay," he soothed. "The wardrobe's almost finished, just—just hold on."
"Nooooo! Ahhh!" Snow screamed again, writhing on the bed...the pain was like fire and ice all at once, agony seizing her whole body. Her vision swam in and out of focus, sweat dripped down her body.
Geppetto's voice suddenly sounded in the doorway, "It's ready."
"It's ready," David said softly, moving to lift her.
Doc shook his head. "It's too late. We can't move her."
David froze for a moment, and Snow would've felt the same sense of defeat if it hadn't been for the pain. "Push," he encouraged finally. "Push."
Finally, after several more pushes, the baby came... Emma. They wrapped her in the blanket with her name embroidered on it, smiling down at the newborn. Love, unconditional love filled Snow's heart as she stared down at her daughter. David kissed her forehead affectionately, and for a moment they basked in their baby's presence, allowing themselves to be a family.
But then Snow remembered, "The wardrobe. It only takes one." They looked at each other, then away as the sounds of battle began to ring throughout the halls. The Queen was here.
David sighed. "Then our plan has failed. At least we're together."
Snow was almost ready to give in, to resign herself to fate, but some deep, niggling feeling pressed at her. "No," she said suddenly. "You have to take her. Take the baby to the wardrobe."
"Are you out of your mind?"
"No. It's the only way, you have to send her through."
"No, no, n-n-n-n-no," David practically begged. "You don't know what you're saying."
"No, I do," Snow protested. "We have to believe that she'll come back for us. We have to give her, her best chance." David hesitated, kissing Emma on the forehead. But he knew she was right. Snow knew that he'd do what had to be done. "Goodbye, Emma..." Snow called desperately as he lifted her, grabbing his sword on the way out, and Snow dissolved into desperate sobs.
Her baby... gone... it was all Regina's fault... this couldn't be happening...
She allowed the pain to consume her, wailing and weeping. She'd lose her child... twenty-eight years... but she'd find them. She'd save them. She had to believe that...
She found Henry at the one place she hadn't looked, because she hadn't even thought about it. He hadn't ever hidden here, as far as she knew, but it was a castle, and it was tied to fairytales, so she'd decided to check it out. And lo and behold, she was right.
"Hey," she greeted, swinging her feet over the ledge to sit beside him.
He said nothing, and she sighed. "Heard about your book."
"What about it?" Henry asked dully.
"Think I know where you got the idea that I'm evil."
"You're not evil," Henry protested, looking up at her. "Not yet. You don't have to be."
Mal sighed. "Henry..." She threw her head back and looked up at the sky before mussing her hair and putting her head in her hands. It was just too much.
"Please," Henry begged. "Please, Mal. Don't lie to me."
Mal groaned, sighing. She was going to have to relent. "Fine," she said. She reached into her backpack, pulling out a little book. Her songbook. She flipped it open to the place she had bookmarked. "You wanna know how I really feel? Just... just read it. I don't... I can't..." She trailed off here, folding her arms across her chest.
She didn't look at him as he read. She didn't want to see his reaction. It wasn't often she opened up... She hoped this didn't backfire on her. Finally, the sound of the book shutting sent a shot of dread through her heart. She held her breath, waiting for his reaction.
"That's really good," he said finally, and there was a kind of stiffness to his voice. "You should perform it sometime... I didn't know you wrote songs. How long have you been working on that one?"
"A while now. Years, I think," Mal shrugged, changing the subject, knowing how much her saying that would mean something to Henry. She wanted to get away from emotional stuff. "I play guitar too," she said idly, twirling the purple ends of her hair. "Evie's always saying I should... go out and perform, but..."
"You should," Henry said, looking at her finally. "I think you'd be really good. Can you sing?"
"Mm," Mal nodded, and Henry smiled, looking away. He kicked his legs once or twice before leaning against her, as they'd always done.
"...we good?" Mal asked.
"Maybe if you perform it... but..." he frowned seriously. "Mal... you're gonna have to make a decision soon. You know that. My mom's back, and she's gonna save everyone..." He stopped suddenly, freezing and looking into the distance.
It was the birth mother. "Shit," Mal said, detaching herself from the kid. She stood up. "I'm sure you'll wanna talk to her. I'll see you later. Okay?" Henry nodded, and Mal felt a smile come to her lips as she darted away, running back to school. It wouldn't do for her to be late to pick-up... maybe she could just get away with running off... Oh, of course she wouldn't. Bobby had eyes everywhere. With any luck though, he wouldn't be too mad.
Snow stumbled through the hallways. She knew she shouldn't be up, but she had to see if Emma was okay… if David was okay. She entered Geppetto's Workshop and stopped to a halt. "No. No. No!" She whimpered, running forward. David's body was lying motionless on the ground. She gently rested his head in her lap. "Please," she begged. "Please come back to me." She kissed him, desperately. Nothing… She kissed him again, in vain desperation… He couldn't be… he couldn't be gone…
"Oh, don't worry, dear," the Evil Queen's voice cut in behind her, triumphantly. "In a few moments you won't remember you knew him, let alone loved him."
"Why did you do this?" Snow sobbed desperately, blinded by her grief and exhaustion.
Queen Regina leaned in close. "Because this is my happy ending," she hissed. She looked up as two of her soldiers entered the room. "The child?" She questioned them sharply.
"Gone," one of the guards responded. "It was in the wardrobe; and then it was gone. It's nowhere to be found."
"Where is she?" Regina snarled at Snow White.
A strong surge of relief suddenly mingled in with the grief and exhaustion. "She got away," she whispered breathlessly. Rejuvenated, she smiled triumphantly at the Queen. "You're going to lose. I know that now. Good will always win."
Regina sneered. "We'll see about that." The Curse began to swirl around them, cracking the ceiling, and Regina began to laugh. There was nothing to be seen but darkness.
"Where are we going?" Snow asked desperately.
"Somewhere horrible," Regina chuckled as a window shattered, buffeted by the Curse. "Absolutely horrible. A place where the only happy ending will be mine." Everything froze, and then the world went black.
Bob was understanding at the least, although not entirely happy with her. He was glad the whole Henry thing was over.
Thankfully though, he was gone now. And she could practice.
Mal grabbed her guitar and began to strum, humming softly to the tune she'd made before closing her eyes and finally beginning to sing.
"A million thoughts in my head
Should I let my heart keep listening?
Cause up 'til now I've walked the line
Nothing lost but something missing
"I can't decide what's wrong, what's right
Which way should I go?
"If only I knew what my heart was telling me
Don't know what I'm feeling, is this just a dream?
Ah-oh, yeah
If only I could read the signs in front of me
I could find the way to who I'm meant to be
Ah-oh, if only
If only
If only
"Every step, every word
With every house I am falling in
To something new, something brave
To someone I, I have never been
"I can't decide what's wrong, what's right
Which way should I go?
"If only I knew what my heart was telling me
Don't know what I'm feeling, is this just a dream?
Ah-oh, yeah
If only I could read the signs in front of me
I could find the way to who I'm meant to be
Ah-oh, if only
Yeah
"Am I crazy?
Maybe we could happen, yeah
Will you still be with me when the magic's all run out?
"If only I knew what my heart was telling me
Don't know what I'm feeling, is this just a dream?
Ah-oh
If only I could read the signs in front of me
I could find the way to who I'm meant to be
Ah-oh
"If only, yeah
If only, yeah
If only, yeah
If only, if only
If only"
Mal sighed and put her guitar down, surprised to find tears dripping down her face.
Furiously, she wiped them away. What would Mother think if she saw her crying? But nevertheless, she buried her face in her knees, curling up on her bed.
She had no idea what to do. She couldn't just leave her mother. But she couldn't leave Henry, either.
She didn't have to think about it now... for now, they had a common goal. To break the Curse. They were united against Regina.
The only question was how...
Mal shrugged, attempting to compose herself. She heaved a breath and stood up, looking into her mirror for any sign of tears left behind.
Good. They were gone.
She was going to head to Granny's. Henry and Evie were right.
She was ready to perform.
...besides, it would be a nice gesture to the kid in spite of everything.
Mal grabbed her guitar, slinging it over her shoulder. She didn't think Granny would make her audition, but it couldn't hurt to bring it.
She closed the door to her room behind her, practically running out of the house.
She'd like to get there before it closed.
"Of course you can perform here, Mal," a voice drifted in from the stairs. Emma looked up as three figures began to descend.
"Yeah, you'd be great," a younger-sounding voice remarked, and soon three women entered, stopping and staring as they caught sight of Emma.
Emma shifted uncomfortably. "'Scuse me? I'd, like a room?"
"Really?" The oldest of the women, who Emma assumed must be Granny, looked stunned as Emma nodded. Then she snapped out of whatever reverie Emma's arrival had put her in and dashed down excitedly, grabbing a dusty old guest book and slamming it on the table. "Normally there's an upgrade fee for the square, but as the rent is due, I'll wave it."
"Square is fine," Emma responded, eyes sliding down to the same purple-tipped girl she'd been seeing so much. The girl was staring at her curiously, a guitar slung over her back. She seemed to be sizing her up, Emma thought with amusement. She recognized that look after years of subjecting others to it herself.
"Now. What's the name?" Granny asked.
"Swan," Emma said, eyes sliding back to her. "Emma Swan."
"Emma... What a lovely name," a middle-aged man with a cane had suddenly appeared behind her, looking over her with wonder.
"Bobby, don't be a creep," Mal rolled her eyes, crossing her arms and making her way over to him. His eyes lingered on Emma for a moment longer before locking on the girl.
Granny interrupted the odd exchange by holding out a roll of cash. "It's all here."
"Yes, yes, of course it is, dear. Thank you," he took the cash, eyes sliding back over to Emma. "You enjoy your stay, Emma." He turned and gestured at the girl. "Come along, Mal," he tossed the words over his shoulder, barely looking at her. Mal looked affronted, but followed, throwing one last glance at Emma before she left.
"Who's that?" Emma questioned.
"Mr. Gold," the young, brunette woman remarked, watching through the curtains as the man limped off to his car, Mal trailing behind him sulkily. "He owns this place."
"The inn?"
"No. The town," Granny grimaced, before attempting to put on a cheery face. "So! How long will you be with us?"
"A week," Emma insisted. "Just a week."
"Great," Granny beamed, handing Emma a key. "Welcome to Storybrooke."
Mal glanced up as Bob drove by Henry's house, hoping to catch a glimpse of him in the window. She waved at him as he stared out, and he waved back, then suddenly gasped and pointed. Mal looked to the other side of town where he was staring and gaped. The clock... it ticked for the first time since... ever. The Curse was weakening. It had to be. Mal stifled a smile. Mother would be free soon.