"M-My mother...?" Cherry repeated as she scooched back further against the tree before she looked at her shell and looked back at the woman. "...No way."
"Yes, if you don't believe me, ask the shell~" Ursula told Cherry, and pointed to the shell.
Cherry blinked at her and she soon took out the shell to check as she felt doubtful, but she wasn't really sure what to believe anymore, though she did what Ursula asked of her. The shell pulsed even warmer than before, as if agreeing, and the songs inside played a little sweeter.
"Oh... That sounds nice..." Cherry admitted from the sweeter sounding songs before she sighed. "It's just... I never thought of myself to be evil, but... Katie's the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming... And I'm the daughter of a Shadow Man and a Sea Witch... I've never really been evil before... Even Goldibear's told me how he used to be The Dark One... I just... I don't know what to do."
"Join us, and we'll rule this world together." Ursula grinned to Cherry.
"Us?" Cherry repeated as she slowly stood up while holding onto her shell.
"Your father and I~" Ursula grinned.
A bald-headed and bearded man soon stepped out and came to see the girl. "Hello, my little dark angel..." he said to her.
"Mom... Dad..." Cherry whispered emotionally. "No... This can't be right... I would never hurt anyone..."
"You don't know that," Facilier said with a small smirking smile. "Your memories were taken from you once upon a time ago... And now they're back... You should live up to your destiny."
Ursula held out a hand for Cherry.
"Go on... We won't hurt you..." Facilier grinned. "We're family after all."
Cherry winced as she briefly hesitated before she came a little closer and weakly held out her hand. Facilier nodded, urging her to keep going through with it.
"...Well, if this is what my life is meant to be..." Cherry said with a low sigh before she soon took her mother's hand.
Ursula pulled Cherry into a hug, smirking as she did so.
"That's a good evil little girl..." Facilier chuckled as he lightly patted Cherry on the head.
Cherry looked emotional and tearful in the hug before she closed her eyes as her tears leaked down her face, feeling very emotional right now as the shell glowed. Her shadow soon came back without her notice, though it didn't go unnoticed by Facilier who chuckled darkly once he saw it.
"Now we're all back together and we'll rule this world together~" Ursula grinned darkly. She gently wiped away the tears with her hand.
"Rule the world...?" Cherry repeated.
"It's what you deserve, darling," Facilier grinned. "It's your birthright."
Cherry paused before glancing back to the town of Storybrooke. "...What about my friends?" she then asked.
"If they can't accept you for who you are, then they need to change," Facilier advised. "Besides, if your friend wants to be a hero like her parents, then let her... You should be more like your own parents. There's nothing wrong with that... Is there?" he then asked her.
"...I suppose you're right." Cherry said softly.
Ursula smirked a little. "However, for just a little longer you'll need to return to them, but you can stay with us tonight~" she told Cherry.
"I-I guess so..." Cherry said softly.
"Come," Facilier said as he helped her over. "We'll take good care of you. We're your family."
"Family..." Cherry whispered emotionally as she followed them.
The next morning, Gold was awake and searching for Cherry. Belle decided to cook and clean for a little bit to get her mind off of things, though she was deeply concerned. Katie awoke and, leaving a note for her parents, went for a jog, deciding that would be the start of her training herself for defense. There was a bit of a commotion in town, especially around the mayor's mansion as Regina looked dismayed to see that her apple tree was wilted and all of the apples were spoiled and rotten somehow.
Katie looked curious and jogged over to Regina. "Is everything okay?" she asked in concern.
"My apple tree..." Regina frowned as she turned her head over to the younger woman. "It's ruined!"
Katie came over to have a look herself. "Oh, no." she frowned in concern for Regina and the tree as she saw it was indeed ruined.
"I've tried to restore it, but my magic's not working on it," Regina frowned back as she stood next to Katie. "Problem is... I'm not sure what caused it. Seems like there's some sort of new chaos forming and I just hope it's not from my sister."
"Your sister?" Katie asked with a curious frown. She then looked at the tree and bit her lip. She gently, slightly shaky as this move could ruin it more if it went wrong, placed her hand on the trunk of the tree. She concentrated, feeling the need to fix this and closed her eyes as her hand glowed white into the tree.
The tree seemed to be slowly restoring back into its original state, though the spoiled and rotten apples fell to the ground to be replaced with ripe and juicy red and green apples.
"Yes, I have a sister," Regina said without looking. "She's in the Land of Oz right now though. You might know her as The Wicked Witch of the-" she then turned around a bit. "...What the hell?"
Katie concentrated until she could feel no more sickness in the tree or ground surrounding it and smiled. "There." she said softly.
"Wow... Thanks..." Regina said softly before smiling back, though she sighed. "But yeah... Something dark is going on here. I promise you though, it's not me. I mended all my evil ways long before you and your friend showed up."
Katie came over and hugged Regina. "I know... I know it's not Cherry though either." she said about the mending of the ways and then defended Cherry before Regina could even say it. She didn't want her blaming Cherry again.
"Excuse me, dearies!" Gold called out.
Regina glanced at Katie before looking over to see the man. "Gold... What is it?" she then asked, knowing that he must have had wanted something.
Katie looked too.
"Have either of you seen Cherry?" Gold asked as he approached them.
Regina narrowed her eyes firmly at that. "No," she then said. "I figured she'd be following you around like a lost puppy."
"She wasn't in the house this morning and her bed was cold so it seems she hasn't been in it for a long while." Gold said.
Katie frowned in concern. "Well, I'm in the middle of a jog, I haven't seen her yet, but I'll keep an eye out." she told him.
"Right..." Regina said as she crossed her arms, getting a bit sarcastic and bitter all of a sudden. "My tree nearly died and Cherry is missing... How interesting. Any other good news before the bad news starts to come around?"
Gold glanced sharply at Regina.
"I-I'll leave you both to it for now, I'll keep an eye out for Cherry." Katie then said as she went to go carry on with her jog.
Regina winced from Gold's sharp look before nodding at Katie. "See you around, Katie." she then said to the younger woman.
Katie waved and jogged off to keep going while also now looking out for Cherry. Regina nodded and soon walked off as she decided to pick her fresher apples while she still had the chance. Katie wondered if she should check in the woods or not.
"Well, at least the mines were spared," Leroy said on his phone as he checked the mines, speaking with one of the fellow dwarves before looking over as he saw Katie. "Hey, Princess."
"Hi, Mr. Leroy," Katie greeted politely as she jogged over to him. "You can call me Katie, I'm still just me." she smiled a little.
"I get that," Leroy nodded. "Something weird's going on in town. Luckily for us though, the mines were untouched... Then we'd be royally screwed."
"Mind if I check?" Katie asked too. "I just want to make sure." she then added so he wouldn't think she didn't believe him, it was just sometimes new eyes noticed better.
"Well, sure, but I'd have to go in with you just to make sure you're safe." Leroy nodded as he brought out a flashlight.
Katie nodded and then entered the mine with him. She looked around carefully and soon came to the spot. "Well, the magic in there is fine, but it feels weaker out here." she said quietly.
"Well, that's good that the magic in here's fine, but it's weak on the outside..." Leroy said as he followed her around a bit with the flashlight so that they could see. "I'm not sure what coulda done this though."
Katie put her hand on the wall, just to feel, not to try to do anything. Leroy watched Katie closely as this was pretty serious.
"Yeah... The magic deeper in is still safe, but any that had built out here in the mine since already digging has gone," Katie said and shuddered a little. "Feels kinda dark... Shadowy almost." she said.
"Shadowy, huh?" Leroy asked. "I'm not sure I'm liking the sign or sound of this."
Katie shuddered again and lowered her hand. "Well, we can go back up now." she told him with a small smile.
"All right," Leroy nodded before he led her out. "Hopefully this is one of those 'come and go' situations... As soon as it comes back, I'm gonna go."
Katie gave a small nod with a smile. "I wouldn't blame you." she said softly.
"Every week, something goes wrong around here," Leroy chuckled with a smirk. "Then everybody's gotta stop it while the rest of us stay behind and make sure no outsiders come into town."
"Well, making sure the town is safe is important," Katie gave a small smile. "Oh, yes, you haven't seen Cherry around, have you?" she asked him.
"No, I don't think so," Leroy shook his head. "Kinda weird seeing you guys separated."
"Thanks for letting me check," Katie said, then sighed softly. "I wonder where she is?" she said softly.
Leroy nodded before he looked at her and lightly patted her on the back. "Why don't you go visit other friends for a little while?" he then suggested. "I'm sure she'll turn up. She can't leave town anyway."
Katie gave him a small smile. "You're right," she said softly. She reached and squeezed the hand that patted her back gently, then jogged off to carry on. "See you tomorrow." she told him on her way off.
"See ya, Princ-Uh... Katie." Leroy nodded as he let her get going.
Katie smiled and waved before carrying on her jog back towards home.
Cherry was lying asleep in a new bed as she looked a bit pale in the face before a shadow whooshed over top of her and she gasped with wide eyes as she sat up and regained her natural skin tone again as she looked around in the room which appeared to be a bit woodsy and cozy. "Well, that was a weird dream..." she said before she looked about. "...What the-?"
Facilier stood outside of the door of the room Cherry was in, after using some sort of magic, and soon went over to get some breakfast prepared. Ursula was making coffee for them.
"She's awakened." Facilier said as he came over to see Ursula from the lower floor.
"Oh, that's good," Ursula said. "How do you take your coffee?" she asked him then.
"Black, my dear," Facilier nodded. "Though with just a little bit of cream."
Ursula nodded and poured him the coffee just right.
Cherry soon left out the door as she began to explore before Facilier went away before she could see him as she began to wander around, looking for Gold or at least Belle. "...Hello?" she then asked softly. "H-Hello?" She then took out her phone and soon tried to see if she could get a call, but she seemed to be out of range, so she soon went to try to lift it up high and even went to the window as she looked a little frustrated and confused.
Ursula then heard Cherry moving around. "We're downstairs!" she called out.
"Yaugh!" Cherry yelped as she flinched, fumbling with her phone before hugging it. "What? No! Yes! Coming!" she then called back. "...It wasn't a dream," she then whispered. "...Okay, Cher Bear, just settle down and maybe everything will be okay."
Facilier smiled brightly before hearing the steps creaking as Cherry was making her way downstairs to go and see her "parents".
Ursula smirked. "What are you cooking?" she then asked Facilier.
"Hmm... Probably some eggs..." Facilier replied before looking over. "Oh, look who's up."
"Hi..." Cherry blinked as she came to see the two.
"Coffee?" Ursula smiled to Cherry.
"Uh... Probably something sweet and light..." Cherry shrugged. "I'm not much of a coffee drinker."
"Come, come, come, sit... We've missed you..." Facilier said as he brought out a chair for her. "Get comfortable."
Cherry forced a toothy grin to them before going back to a stoic face as she went to sit down.
"Juice?" Ursula suggested.
"Uh, juice works..." Cherry nodded.
"Thank goodness we have some," Facilier smiled as he began to cook some eggs. "How do you like your eggs?"
"Fried?" Cherry shrugged.
"Scrambled it is." Facilier nodded, making scrambled eggs anyway, though Cherry would put up with that, even if she mostly ate scrambled eggs more as a kid than an adult.
Ursula had to smirk a little to that. She then went and fetched Cherry a glass of juice, luckily Cherry's favorite kind.
"Oh, good... White grape..." Cherry said as she took a sip of the juice to wet her whistle a little. "Mm... So, uh, what's going on exactly?"
"You're home with us now," Facilier told Cherry. "You can go back to your friends later, but now you should spend time with your own kind."
Ursula glanced to Cherry. "We have missed you." she said quietly.
"Do you remember much about where you actually came from and your birthright?" Facilier asked Cherry.
"Somewhat," Cherry shrugged as she crossed her arms together until she was given her plate. "I mostly grew up with, uh, 'my father'... He taught me some of his own tricks. Tarot readings, charms, potions. Dreams made real," she then shuddered as she remembered running away when she was caught trying to steal from someone, though her memory was altered a bit. "I almost got in trouble."
Ursula listened.
"I don't remember much about meeting you though..." Cherry said as she faced Ursula. "I remember this one night though... I wasn't sure if it was a dream or not though."
"Well, go on..." Facilier said as he gave her her plate of eggs.
"All right," Cherry said. "I remember one night I woke up in the middle of the night... I was around six or seven-years-old... I got out of my bed and I took a walk and... The ocean was calling to me... And I tried to go in for a swim, but... I drowned. I woke up back in bed the next morning, but it felt so real."
"I saved a little girl and made sure she made it safely to shore and a shadow carried her home." Ursula told her then.
"...So that one wasn't a dream..." Cherry said softly in realization.
"Can't you see you'd be a lot happier here with us?" Facilier smiled warmly. "You should stay with us, we won't ever hurt you or let anyone hurt you... Out there, they wouldn't understand."
Cherry swallowed a big bite of her eggs as she thought that sounded nice, but she wasn't sure if she could leave Katie and the others like that. "...I-I don't know," she then said softly. "Can I think about it and maybe go back for a little while?"
Ursula didn't want her to do that, but nodded, not wanting to push Cherry away.
"...You want that?" Facilier asked softly.
"Please," Cherry nodded. "I-I'll come back later for dinner maybe."
"Well, all right," Facilier said with a small smile. "Finish up your breakfast, get dressed, and we'll see you later then."
Ursula handed Facilier his coffee.
"Oh, thank you, dear." Facilier smiled as he accepted it and drank it before making some more eggs.
Cherry tucked into her eggs and gave a small smile to them, not sure how to feel or what to think, even if they said they were her parents, though she was mostly curious about her new current situation. Ursula came over and petted Cherry's hair.
Eventually, after breakfast, getting dressed, and ready for the day, Cherry soon left the cabin she woke up inside of and soon left the forest and ended up back in town and soon took out her phone. "I wonder if anyone noticed that I was gone?" she said to herself.
"You have 101 unread voice messages." Her phone soon told her.
"...I am so dead..." Cherry then said weakly.
Katie was sitting on a bench, taking a moment to get her breath back, and rang Cherry again.
Cherry yelped as she fumbled for her phone then, but luckily caught it before it fell as she sighed in relief, then answered the phone. "Roadkill Barbecue... You kill 'em, we grill 'em." she then answered jokingly in a Bart Simpson fashion.
"Where are you?!" Katie asked, loud, but not too loud. "We've been trying to call you for ages!" she added.
"Yaugh!" Cherry yelped as that did startle her, but not too horrible before grinning bashfully. "I-I was out for a walk... That's all. I didn't wanna be a bother."
"Mr. Gold said you must have been out since sometime last night... That's awfully late to take a walk." Katie frowned, relieved, but concerned too.
"It was nothing, really," Cherry replied bashfully. "I just needed some fresh air. I guess I just fell asleep in the forest without realizing it."
"You better get home to Gold and Belle, Gold was really concerned, and I was too when I heard you'd gone missing." Katie told Cherry.
"Yeah... Probably..." Cherry nodded. "I'll see you a little later then, okay? I'm not hurt though, I promise."
Belle was pacing around in the living room as she looked worried sick and scared to death after she called everyone she knew and could about the situation, but there was still nothing.
"Okay, just make sure you call them and let them know you're on your way home." Katie told her.
"Um... Yeah... Sure..." Cherry nodded as she was on her way back to the mansion right now, memorizing where to go and hoped that her battery wouldn't die out prematurely. "I didn't think anyone would make such a huge fuss like this." she then muttered to herself.
"We care about you, Nee-bear," Katie told her. "Now I'll hang up and let you call Belle or Gold, okay?" she then checked.
"All right, Kat, luckily I have enough battery left to do that," Cherry nodded. "We'll talk later if you're up for it. I'll talk to you later, love you."
"Love you too, Nee-bear, see you later." Katie told her, then hung up so Cherry's battery wouldn't run out while talking to her.
"See you soon," Cherry nodded as she then ended the call and decided to get ready to call Gold or Belle, pondering on who would be the better choice... Gold would probably chew her head off and demand where she was like some sort of intense interrogation, though Belle would probably answer with worried cries like a hysterical mother who worried herself sick without her being around. "Eenie, Miney..." she then began to say before making the call to a random selection to leave it up to fate as she covered her eyes with her free hand.
"Cherry?!" came the loud cry of relief on the phone. It was Belle who she had called.
"Yah!" Cherry yelped as she fell on the ground from the loud cry from Belle as she muffled a bit. "...Not the way I intended for the call to go..." she said before sputtering and coughing briefly, patting her tongue. "Hey, Belle, what's up?" she then greeted softly.
"Where are you? Why did you leave?" Belle asked out in concern. "Did Rumple and I do something to upset you?" she asked.
"Belle, Belle, slow down..." Cherry said to the older woman. "I-I-I'm fine..." she then said as her voice cracked a bit. "I just wanted to go outside and get some fresh air before I'd go back to sleep... And, uh, heh... The door was locked... I stayed at Granny's overnight." she then covered up, though she was obviously lying.
"Granny hadn't seen you either." Belle told her.
Cherry looked wide-eyed. "...I-I was just out..." she said in a nearly squeaky voice as she got very, very nervous. "No harm done, really! Did I say Granny's? Erm... I just... Fell asleep outside?"
"Well, you better get home." Belle told her, firmly but not in a bad way.
"I'm already on the way, chill out, okay?" Cherry replied, a bit annoyed, though not fully.
Belle was a bit taken aback at that and was silent a moment. "A-Alright..." she said quietly.
"Oh... Belle... I'm sorry, I didn't mean-" Cherry frowned softly before her phone ran out and she groaned in frustration. "Great... Just what I need..." she said before she soon made it over to the pathway of the mansion and was on her way in. "Oh, well, I'm almost here now and that's all that matters."
"Cherry?" Belle asked, only to receive no reply. She hung up herself and then called Gold.
Gold was on his way back too. Cherry hummed to herself as she was close to the house and soon tried to relax herself as she thought more about what had happened last night, forgetting about the world around her for a little bit until she made it back home. Gold noticed Cherry as he was approaching and frowned just a little.
"Hi..." Cherry said to him softly. "...Lovely day, isn't it?"
"Get inside, dearie, we need to talk." Gold told her.
Cherry gulped a bit before going inside after him as she felt her stomach turn slightly. Gold hung up his coat and then pointed to the sofa. Cherry glanced over and soon went to sit down, looking a bit like a child who was in trouble with her father, staring at the floor once she was sitting down.
Gold finished sorting himself inside. "Where were you?" he asked.
"I-I-I was taking a walk..." Cherry said as she looked up to him, trying to meet his eyes without fumbling, though she grasped the arm on the couch next to her. "I needed some... Air..." she then suddenly said as her breathing got shallow and wheezy.
"All night?" Gold asked.
"Yeah... I kinda got stressed out..." Cherry said as she squirmed in her seat a little bit. "So I fell asleep in the forest..." she then looked over at him with big, sad eyes.
"And you didn't think to wake us to let us know or at least leave a note?" Gold asked.
"I didn't wanna bother you..." Cherry said confidently and calmly this time with her eyes closed as she turned around to him. "I was just stepping outside, I was gonna come back, but then the door was locked and I thought I'd stay out until morning in time for breakfast and I just lost track of time."
"You could have knocked and you are not a burden." Gold told her.
"I know..." Cherry said before she glanced at him and turned away before her knees came up on the couch seat and she hugged them. "So, uh... I'll just run off back to my room now and we don't have to worry about what just happened, right? I-I have to think about something right now."
"Not so fast, dearie, I know you wouldn't have done something, but did you notice anything happening while you were outside?" Gold asked.
"...W-W-Whatya mean?" Cherry asked, suddenly frantic as she clutched her phone for protection, even though it was dead now. "I didn't see anything other than that-" she then stopped herself before she could say anything else.
"Than what, dearie?" Gold asked her.
"...Forest with... Animals... Cute little bunnies... And duckies... And deer..." Cherry quickly covered up before she began to look a little sick to her stomach. "Abundant in such cute little woodland critters... I-I think I need to go now..." she then said, sounding like she was going to throw up.
Gold let her go, not wanting her to throw up.
Katie sighed in relief, texted both 'Second Boss-Leroy' and 'Gina' that Cherry had been found. She then sighed softly and stood up, ready to go back to the apartment. Leroy and Regina saw their texts and soon calmed down before going back to doing what they were doing. David cooked an eggy breakfast for him and Mary Margaret and made sure to leave plenty for Katie as well for when she would get back if she wanted some too. Katie stopped off at the grocery store just to pick up an energy drink.
"Is that all for you?" The cashier asked Katie with a small smile. He seemed oddly familiar.
"Yes, thank you," Katie smiled then tilted her head. "Do I know you?" she asked.
"No, I don't think so," The man chuckled warmly. "Unless you happen to know a Baron Samdi."
"You just seem familiar somehow," Katie said as she held out the money for the energy drink. "Wait, didn't you offer to help me in the supermarket?" she asked then.
"Maybe... But that would be telling, wouldn't it? I'm a humble cashier, my dear..." The man lightly chuckled as he accepted the money and rung her up. "I trust you won't need a bag for this?" he then asked, a bit jokingly since it was just one bottle.
Katie couldn't resist adding to the joke, humming a moment as if in thought. "You're right I don't." she chuckled.
"Pleasure doing business with you, my dear," Baron smiled as he gave her the bottle back. "Do you want your change?"
"Keep it," Katie shook her head with a small smile. "If you're not allowed to put it in the till, put it in a charity box or something." she told him.
"You're a very kind young woman," Baron nodded with a smile back. "You have a nice day now, dear."
"You too." Katie smiled as she then left the store.
Baron nodded to her with a charming smile back, though he smirked to himself once she was out of sight. Katie went along, taking sips of her energy drink as she did.
Killian sent a text over, luckily being able to this time. "Glad I memorized your number... Probably would've been messy if I invited someone else... Fancy some lunch with Felix l8r?"
'Look at you all text savvy, Of course I would like that xxx' Katie replied as she looked at her phone while walking.
'Great! What time works for you then? I'll pay~' Killian replied with some emojis of a fork, plate, and knife.
'I can be ready for midday, I need to get back home and shower first as I've been jogging. xxx' Katie replied with a heart emoji and a heart-kiss emoji.
'Sounds good to me,' Killian replied. 'I hope I used these... What do you call them? Picture faces as best as I could."
'Yes you did, My Captain, and they're called Emojis' Katie text back with a smile as she was engrossed with texting him.
'Good to know then,' Killian replied with hearts all around. 'I suppose now we just think about a menu.'
A car, not too far away from Katie was soon rolling on out of its parking space and it was soon coming down the road right around where she was.
'Do you want something fancy or just something out? xxx' Katie text him, not realizing she had walked into the path of the car as she was texting.
'Maybe something out... Like pizza... I've heard many kids loving pizza.' Killian replied with pizza emojis in return.
The car was coming closer and closer and someone was walking down the opposite street as he saw what was happening.
'Alright, we'll have pizza. xxx' Katie text back and laughed at all the emojis he was using.
There was then a loud horn honking heard from right behind Katie. Katie turned to that and her eyes widened as she noticed the car coming towards her, and while her brain knew she should get out of the way her body froze in fear. The car was dangerously close to hitting her right then and there only for someone to jump right in in the nick of time, scooping her up in their arms and tucked and rolled to the safer side of the street as the car whizzed by, narrowly missing Katie.
Katie gasped in shock at how close that had been. She then looked up at her rescuer. "Thank you." she gasped out as she moved her head to look at him.
"No problem, Miss Katie." Hyde smirked as he was shown to had been the rescuer.
Katie put a hand over her rapidly beating half-heart. "H-How did you learn to d-do that?" she asked quietly, trying to calm herself, though not moving as she was trembling from the shock of almost getting run over.
"Oh, I know a few things here and there," Hyde smirked a bit as he carried her carefully. "That could've been messy."
Katie gave a small nod. She blushed just a little as he was carrying her. "Th-Thank you for saving me... How can I repay you?" she asked quietly.
"You would repay me even after what I did?" Hyde asked then.
"W-Well you did just save my life," Katie pointed out. "A-And while I'm not happy s-someone made a deal with you for me... Th-That is worth something." she said softly.
"Well... If you're sure..." Hyde shrugged with a small smirk. "I suppose I could use you as a guide for this... Century, as it were... I'm afraid I don't fully understand most of it... You were going somewhere though? Maybe you could use an escort?"
"I-I'll teach you," Katie nodded she then gave a small smile. "I-I was going home," she said, pointing in the direction of the apartments. "Because I need to shower and get ready for my date with Killian and my beloved adoptive son." she said.
"Oh... I see... Care for some company just to make sure you don't get hurt again?" Hyde then asked.
"A-Alright," Katie nodded, then noticed he was still carrying her. "Y-You can put me down now." she said quietly.
"Oh... All right then..." Hyde smirked before he soon moved her back down to the ground carefully and securely. "You're very brave."
Katie took a moment to try and get her legs back steady. "I'm not that brave," she said softly before trying to take a shaky step even though her legs still felt like jelly. "First lesson... This is a cell phone that you can take almost anywhere, but you shouldn't text while walking or call while trying to cross a street." she told him quietly, showing him the cell phone.
"Hmm... Interesting..." Hyde slowly nodded as he took a look. "How do those buttons work?" he then asked as he examined the icons, thinking that they were buttons and switches.
"I'll find you an easier phone for you to understand," Katie told him. She took her phone back for now. "However, f-for now I have to get home." she said quietly.
"Oh... So I suppose I'll go back to that old widow and leave you be then?" Hyde guessed with a smirk.
"I thought you were walking me home, I-I don't think I can walk that far on my own with my legs this shaky." Katie said quietly as she put her phone away, blushing just a little as she was admitting a bit of weakness.
"Maybe I should carry you then." Hyde smirked.
"O-Oh, just your arm will be fine," Katie said quickly. "You'd probably toss me over your shoulder again if I agreed..." she said under her breath though, as she took one last sip of her energy drink, not expecting him to hear it.
"Hmm... All right..." Hyde smirked as he held out his arm to her. "Mi'lady."
Katie slid her arm through his for support leaning just a little more as they started to walk. Hyde soon held Katie close and protective to make sure she would be alright as they made their way back to the Blanchard/Nolan apartment. Soon, they arrived at the apartment and Katie got her key out to open it in case it was locked. Hyde stood close beside Katie, waiting for her a bit.
Cherry soon rushed off and ran into the bathroom, falling to her knees before she soon slammed the door shut and got ready, though her breathing got heavy and her heart pounded, though she didn't bring herself into throwing up that time. "Phew..." she then sighed as nothing happened, though her insides were betraying her for lying before she soon turned around and put her hand over her heart as it raced from the excitement.
Gold frowned a little, concerned.
Cherry soon crawled out of the bathroom, groaning a bit before she reached up to the couch and lay down on it with her head against his lap as she hugged her stomach. "I don't feel so good..." she said, sounding a bit weary.
Gold gave a small sigh and gently placed his hand on her forehead. Cherry shivered slightly from the touch, but slowly closed her eyes. However, as she seemed to doze off, her shadow came to life and went to sneak out of the house. Gold, however, noticed this and used his magic to bring it back. The shadow seemed to hiss at him as Cherry grunted a little and she turned over while being knocked out cold on the couch next to him like she was trying to fight something.
"Stop and return to your place or I'll have to bottle you." Gold told the shadow.
The shadow hissed right in his face, trying to scare him as Cherry grunted and groaned in her slumber. Gold seemed unfazed by the hissing and narrowed his eyes dangerously. The shadow soon looked a bit timid and terrified from his gaze and soon disappeared suddenly as Cherry's eyes widened and she shot up suddenly into a sitting position as she shivered and looked around with sweat rolling down her face.
"W-W-What happened?" Cherry gasped out as she clutched her chest, feeling the thumping of her heart from deep inside as she looked around, almost like she had been struck with the cold chills of immense fear.
"Your shadow decided to try and make an escape." Gold told her.
"What...?" Cherry asked wearily before she held out her hand and watched her shadow copy her every moment. "...I don't understand... Shadows seem to be apart of my life a lot more now..." she then muttered. "First Neverland... Then that guy who said he was my dad... What's next?"
"You met Facilier?" Gold asked.
Cherry bit her lip as her eyes darted around. "...Maybe?" she then said weakly before she slowly sat up and grasped her phone. "Uh... I think I should go and charge my phone now."
"Dearie, you have to stop running when things get more intense than you're used to, it'll just make it worse." Gold told her calmly.
Cherry chewed her lip, she knew that he was right, but she was just scared about her dark side coming out like this, not to mention some other secrets she was trying to keep safe which resulted in her lying to others just save her own skin. "You're right," she said to him before sighing. "Okay... Yes... I met Facilier."
"And he didn't try anything?" Gold asked, hoping the man hadn't done anything.
"H-He just wanted to talk..." Cherry explained, speaking the most truthful statements about last night so she wouldn't be cursed by the guilt that struck her insides from lying unfaithfully, though she flinched nervously of how he would react. "When I went for my walk, I was just thinking about other stuff... Then he came by and took me with him and he let me stay with him overnight."
Gold gave a slow nod. "Anything else, dearie?" he asked still calm.
Cherry sunk in her chair before she cupped her mouth and gulped deeply down before grimacing as she threw up in her mouth a little bit. "...I don't know if I can tell you." she then uttered out.
"I won't judge you, dearie, I just need the truth." Gold told her, though if somehow it was something magical stopping her then he wouldn't push it further.
Cherry sighed sharply. "Okay, fine," she said before looking him in the eyes. "I found my parents and went into that old cabin with them last night and spent the night. I saw Ursula and Facilier... I just wasn't sure if I was even meant to be good if I was a child of evil... So I went to see them with that shell that Katie found for me."
Gold tried to keep calm at the news they were in Storybrooke now. "We are what we make ourselves, dearie." he told her though.
"What does that mean?" Cherry asked, sounding a little childish. "I was born into evil... Therefore I should be evil... It's good to be bad and it's bad to be good... Right?"
"You don't have to be evil just because your parents are," Gold put it simply. "And just remember, villains don't get happy endings." he told her, as that was usually the moral.
Cherry squirmed in her seat then... He was right... As usual. "I-I guess..." she then said as she looked over at him softly.
Gold gently tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
"Am I in trouble?" Cherry asked nervously.
"For lying, yes, a little," Gold told her. "But you told the truth in the end." he added.
Cherry winced at the slight repercussion, but she nodded as she understood. "All right... What do I have to do?" she then asked. "No TV or internet for a week and I have to take out the garbage?" she then asked, sounding a bit more like a teenage daughter right now.
"Go and charge your phone for now, Belle and I will discuss." Gold told her.
"All right..." Cherry sighed as she hopped off of the couch and went to go to her room as she clutched her phone.
Gold went to Belle then.
Katie opened the door. "Anyone home?" she called out, hoping she hadn't missed her parents, but if she had then at least she wouldn't have to change in the bathroom.
"Oh, uh, Katie?" David's voice replied, though slightly strained from his and Mary Margaret's bedroom in the apartment.
"I-I'm just coming to get some clothes, I'll leave you to... Whatever you're doing..." Katie told him, scurried in to get some clothes, and then headed out. "I'll borrow a room at Granny's to shower in." she added then and then left the apartment again, blushing right from the top of her head to her neck.
"Sorry, we didn't know how long you'd be out," David smiled bashfully, poking his head out the door, making sure that only his head was visible. "Did you need something, Katie?" he asked her just before she left right out the door as Hyde waited for her on the other side.
"I was just going to shower, but I'll borrow a room at Granny's... Go back to... whatever you were doing..." Katie told him, not looking at him with a blush. She then headed out and met Hyde back outside after shutting the apartment door. "L-Looks like I'm escorting you to Granny's." she told him quietly.
"Well, all right then." Hyde nodded a bit.
Katie gave a small smile and started to walk back towards Granny's Inn with him. Hyde soon followed after as they went inside, looking around as he tried to get used to his new surroundings a little bit better. David shrugged a bit before closing the door and letting Katie get going as he went back to his and Mary Margaret's bed. Mary Margaret had a slightly embarrassed slightly amused look on her face.
"Guess she's too busy to come back home right now." David chuckled bashfully at his wife.
"Either that or she didn't want to disturb us~" Mary Margaret giggled to her husband.
"So, shall we get back to it then?" David asked as he chuckled eagerly.
Mary Margaret grinned, lifting the cover with one hand and holding out the other for her husband. David beamed as he took her hand and soon went to climb right back into bed with her. Mary Margaret giggled.
Katie went back to Granny's Inn with her new guest, pointing out important places he would need to know. "Guess I'll ask Granny about renting a room, to use the shower." she said quietly once they got there.
"Can I help you, dear?" A familiar older voice asked from right behind, sliding up behind the front desk with an open book on the top.
"Oh!" Katie jolted in surprise, almost falling into Hyde. "U-Um, yes... Mom and Dad are a little, busy, and so I was wondering if I could rent a room for a couple of hours to shower and get changed, please?" she told Granny as she tried to recover herself.
"Hmm... All right," Granny replied as she took out a pen. "...Katie Nolan, right? I've heard some people say 'Katie Blanchard' and some say 'Katie Nolan'... You've got more names than this town did during its first curse."
"Katie Nolan." Katie chuckled to that with a small smile.
"Right," Granny nodded as she wrote that down. "Just two days? With that, uh, friend of yours?"
Hyde glanced over, staring at Granny a bit darkly, though she seemed unafraid of him.
"One day, if I have to pay for a whole day." Katie chuckled softly.
"Oh, all right," Granny nodded as she filled out what she needed to in the book before she gave Katie a set of keys. "Here you are... Now do me a huge favor and try not to lose your key. I know it won't be long, but it would be best if you're going to stay here."
Katie nodded. "Thank you, Granny." she smiled softly.
"You're welcome," Granny smiled back. "You have a nice visit now, dear."
Katie nodded then gave a small smile to Hyde and made her way to the room Granny had assigned to her. Hyde nodded back and he soon decided to go to his own room.
Granny glanced at him before shaking her head as she went back to do some dusting. "At least I'm getting more visitors outside of town." she said to herself since visitors in Storybrooke were very rare.
Katie soon went to shower. She closed her eyes to try to relax in the shower after the experiences from earlier. Hyde soon went away into his own room and took out a special trinket and watched Katie in secret. Katie washed away the results of the jogging, then dried off and got changed for the day. Hyde lightly chuckled as he kept watching until he got tired or bored after a while.
Belle sat at the dining table and sipped a cup of tea with a small sigh before she looked over and saw her husband coming. "Would you like some tea?" she then asked. "I put some on."
"Yes, please, love." Gold told her softly.
Belle soon stood up from her seat and decided to go and get him a nice warm cup of tea. "It just seems like our whole world is coming apart," she said softly before she poured the warm, sweet liquid inside of its cup and soon went to sit next to him, holding the cup out to him after pouring. "I don't want to play the blame game though."
Gold gently took the tea. "Thank you," he told his wife and took a sip. "I gave Cherry some food for thought." he then told her as he reached a spare hand out to squeeze one of hers.
"You're welcome," Belle smiled a little bit before sighing softly. "Something is terribly going wrong in this town and we need to stop it, whatever it is or we'll be destroyed worse than when Regina was still acting like her Evil Queen self."
"I know, dearie." Gold told her.
"The whole thing scares me a little," Belle frowned. "And I'm powerless against any odds unless you help me."
Gold looked to her. "You research, my love, and you help that way." he told her.
"I do my best anyway," Belle blushed a little. "This Dr. Facilier... I don't know him well... Is he dangerous?" she then asked since she overheard some of his and Cherry's conversation.
"Yes, I need you to make sure you stay away from him." Gold told her.
"I'll try my best, Rumple," Belle smiled softly. "I just hope that things get better really soon."
Gold smiled back to her. "We will need to discuss the punishment for Cherry lying." he did say quietly.
"All right," Belle said. "I think she suffered enough from your haircut though."
"Are you saying I should do it again?" Gold smirked quietly to his wife.
"Love watching your little love bug squirm?" Belle smirked back, though a bit playful. "I suppose you could... I don't mind it actually."
"Well, she did tell the truth by the end, but she did lie to us first," Gold said, with a thoughtful look his lips gaining a smirk again as he thought of it. "Maybe a little longer this time?" he suggested.
"I suppose that's better than anything else heinous you could possibly do," Belle smiled bashfully. "Hopefully she'll be a little more mature about things in the future than lying like an irresponsible child with her parents wrapped around her little finger."
Gold nodded. "And would you like blonde again?" he asked her.
"I don't mind it." Belle smiled before glancing over a bit.
Cherry poked her head in before she quickly went back to her room.
"Just a light punishment, but we'll make it last longer than that little kiss she did at The Rabbit Hole." Belle then told him, shrugging it off as maybe that was just her imagination.
Gold nodded and then went to do just that. Belle nodded back before sipping from her cup of tea. Cherry was sitting at her desk that was beside her bedroom window as she began to do a little bit of doodling in her sketchbook while her phone was charging and her two lovers were talking in the other room until she could come back out.
Gold clicked his fingers and the hairstyles changed again. "I think until dinner." he told her.
"Very well then," Belle nodded. "And Cherry has to wear a fluffy pink dress." She then added, though playful.
Gold gave a playful smirk.
"What should we have to eat then?" Belle soon smiled.
"What would you prefer?" Gold asked her.
"Hmm..." Belle paused thoughtfully. "Something savory... Like something with pork?"
Gold hummed thoughtfully and nodded.
"Sounds great then." Belle smiled warmly as she sipped her tea.
Cherry continued to sketch as she glanced over at her shell and tried to ignore the temptations that it carried.
Gold nodded. "Granny's, Chinese, or home-cooked?" he asked.
"Did someone say Chinese?!" Cherry called out from her bedroom like that was a trigger word for her.
"I think that answers that." Belle smirked.
Gold smirked back.
"I'll place an order then." Belle decided.
Gold nodded. Belle soon walked off to the phone to place the order, knowing what they all would want, especially during Cherry's cravings. Cherry slowly opened her bedroom door, trying not to make a very loud creaking sound as she gritted her teeth together, trying to be quiet so she wouldn't get in trouble or anything as she began to tiptoe out, fearing she might get in trouble if she was seen out of her room right now. Gold chuckled just a little, though purposefully pulled a newspaper up so Cherry wouldn't not his hair right away.
"Uh... Just so you guys know, I'm not trying to sneak out..." Cherry called out as she came out of her room. "I-I just wanted to make sure if it was okay if I came out for a little bit."
"You were never confined to your room," Belle pointed out. "We just wanted you to wait in there."
"Oh..." Cherry blinked before laughing as she face-palmed herself, not seeing either of them yet. "Here I was, sitting in my room feeling like I was grounded or something... But okay, I guess I'll step out for a little bit."
Gold waited calmly.
Cherry soon sat down next to him. "So... I'll assume that a punishment has been agreed upon?" she asked before sighing before she looked over at him. "...Whatever it is, I'm ready, as long as it isn't painful."
"Yes, it has, dearie, and are you sure you're ready?" Gold asked.
"Just get it over with..." Cherry gulped a bit as she squirmed in her seat as she placed her sketchbook down on the table, swiping it around across the tabletop in front of her. "I just hope it's not embarrassing... Like wearing a pink dress in public and having a bunch of sheep or lambs following me around."
"Pink dress is a maybe, but the main part is this..." Gold said and lowered the paper.
Cherry winced nervously before she looked over and yelped, jumping up and clutching the wall right behind her like she had seen a ghost. "Y-Y-You promised not to do that to me anymore!" she then stuttered fearfully and scaredly. "I-I don't like it! Why do you do this to me?!"
"I said unless you did something bad, and this is a punishment... No one is hurt and you'll learn your lesson." Gold reminded firmly, not trying to be mean, but to motivate her into not to lie to him or Belle, no matter how horrible and scary the truth might had seemed.
"D'oh..." Cherry groaned as she flopped down. "I deserve this."
Belle soon came by with her blonde hair. "Food is on the way," she then told them before looking at Cherry. "What did we learn?"
"I'm never lying to either of you two ever again." Cherry replied.
Gold nodded.
"I hope you're hungry." Belle smiled.
"Uh, y-yeah, starving..." Cherry nodded bashfully. "I can hardly wait for some food... Though I probably shouldn't eat too much."
"It's sweet and sour chicken... Your favorite..." Belle said, curiously. "...Cherry, you didn't get into trouble, did you?"
"N-Not trouble..." Cherry shook her head honestly.
"Then why don't you want to eat much?" Gold asked her.
Belle gave a small, but firm look, urging for Cherry to tell the truth to them.
"I sorta promised a couple of people I'd be back to them in time for dinner." Cherry admitted.
"Ursula and Facilier?" Gold asked.
Belle looked a bit scared at the mention of Ursula.
"Yes." Cherry nodded.
Gold looked a little softly at Belle knowing why she was scared. "Well, we can't exactly stop you, dearie, but just remember they both have tempers." he told her.
"Don't talk to me like I don't know any better." Cherry firmly pouted.
"Please don't take that tone." Belle warned, trying to sound assertive, quickly making Cherry wince as she didn't mean to sound mean when she said that.
"I-I-I'm sorry!" Cherry quickly said.
"I was just warning you, dearie." Gold told Cherry.
"Okay..." Cherry said softly as she sank in her chair. "...There's no way I could turn evil anyway..." she then said bashfully. "Sure, I might be a little sneaky once in a while and sarcastic, but I'd never hurt anybody."
"Let's hope that it stays that way then," Belle smiled. "We're firm because we love and we care about you."
"You sound like a mom right now." Cherry teased.
Gold gave a small smirk to that.
"So... Am I allowed to go out for dinner tonight?" Cherry asked.
Belle looked over at Gold, deciding it should be up to him.
"As long as you come home afterwards, and I'll make you something so you can contact me if you're in trouble." Gold told her.
"Fair enough..." Cherry said with a low sigh. "I'm sorry I left, but I thought that if you knew where I was going or where I'd been, you'd get mad at me and lock me inside a dungeon or something... But you wouldn't do that, would you?"
"...Well." Belle paused briefly and sheepishly.
"Not anymore, dearie." Gold said.
"Yes, not anymore." Belle quickly added.
"Well, that doesn't sound like Stockholm Syndrome at all," Cherry snarked before sighing. "All right... Now that that's over... I think we can relax until something else comes up. Any objections?" she then said to them, sitting in the middle.
"No objections." Gold agreed.
"Good by me," Cherry replied with a small nod. "Okay... I think I'm gonna go in my room for a little while."
"Just remember, we love you and we're not mad." Belle said softly.
"Yes, Mom-BELLE!" Cherry sighed before her eyes widened on the way out of the table.
"Alright, dearie." Gold nodded.
Belle smiled softly. Cherry then came back into her room to do a little bit more thinking, having a lot on her mind before she soon drifted off to sleep as her shadow seemed to come to life again. Gold frowned a little as he felt the shadow shifting about again. Cherry's shadow began to sneak out of her bedroom window as she was asleep, not seeming to be aware of what was happening.