A/N: I plan to make some changes to the storyline later on, and include an arc for my own character.
Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon a Time, only my OC.
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.
The Enchanted Forest
"When we reach the cell, stay out of the light," the guard warned the three hooded figures as they descended the winding staircase. "And whatever you do, do not let him know your name. If he knows your name, he will have power over you."
Beneath the shadow of his hood, Alator refrained from scoffing, it wasn't as though the Dark One was some second-hand sorcerer. Keeping him in the cage did nothing to dampen his powers, one of them being the power of foresight. Most likely, he'd known of this meeting for days. Still, he remained silent as the guard lead them on through the tunnel.
They finally came into a dimly lit room. A cell dominated the other end of the room, though the interior was too dark to see inside. The guard gestured for them to stay put and advanced towards the cell, "Rumplestiltskin. Rumplestiltskin! I have a question for you!"
"No, you don't." A figure replied as he climbed down from the cell bars like a simian, "They do." Despite the cloaks they wore to hide their faces, he knew his visitors at once, "Snow White... and Prince Charming."
When the Dark One's amber gaze fell upon him, Alator pulled down his hood, revealing the clean-shaven, sharp-featured face of a young man in his prime with a head of short-cut dark brown hair and piercing blue eyes. He wore dark blue robes, beneath his robes was a sword strapped to his side. In his hand, he held a long ebon staff topped with a blue crystal.
"And dear Alator is here, as well!" He cackled in delight. "This is a quite a party, isn't it? You insult me. Step into the light and take off those ridiculous robes."
Snow White glanced at Alator, observing his calm expression, after a moment's pause, the heavily pregnant woman pulled the hood from her head, reluctantly followed by her husband.
"Ah, ha-ha ha..." Rumplestiltskin cooed at the sight of their faces. Clearly, Regina's threat had taken its toll on them, "That's much better."
Charming stood in front of Snow protectively, while Rumpelstiltskin stared at him patronizingly, "We've come to ask you about the—"
"Yes, yes, I know why you're here!" the Dark One interrupted, he pressed his face against the bars, "You want to know about the Queen's threat."
Snow stepped out from behind her husband, and looked the Dark One in the eye. "Tell us what you know." she demanded, her hand falling to the swell of her stomach.
"Ooh, tense, aren't we?" He mocked lightly.
As he met Alator's eye, he gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head, "Please do try not to antagonize her, Rumple."
"I wouldn't dream of it, Alator," he said, returning his attention to the royal couple, "Fear not! For I can ease your mind. But, it's gonna cost you something in return."
"No, this is a waste of time." objected Charming, who was ignored by his wife.
"What do you want?" asked Snow.
"Oh, the name of your unborn child."
"Absolutely not!" Charming snapped the same moment his wife agreed with a sharp, "Deal!"
She met Rumplestiltskin's gaze again, "What do you know?"
"Ah," Rumple murmured faintly, "The Queen has created a powerful curse, and it's coming. Soon, you'll all be in prison, just like me, only worse."
His expression and tone darkened, "For your prison, all of our prisons, will be time. For 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, the Queen celebrates," Rumplestiltskin waved a hand, voice high with hysteria, "Victorious, at last! …No more happy endings."
"What can we do?" Snow White asked.
"We can't do anything."
She moved closer, "Who can?"
"That little thing growing inside your belly."
Rumplestiltskin reached a hand out of the cell bars towards the princess' protruding belly. Before Charming unsheathed his sword, he brought the pommel down on the Dark One's hand.
"Next time, I cut it off." Charming threatened.
The Dark One snatched his hand back through the bars. Tsking faintly, he glared at the prince. "The infant is our only hope. You must get the child to safety," he returned his attention to Snow White. "Get the child to safety and on its…" he closed his eyes in concentration, "twenty-eighth birthday, the child will return. The child will find you, and the final battle will begin!" he began cackling madly.
Charming wrapped an arm around Snow's shoulders. Alator watched as their minds raced over the implications of what the Dark One had revealed.
"We've heard enough. We're leaving," Charming announced, gently steering his wife away from the cage, "Alator, come on."
With one last, lingering look at the Dark One, Alator turned and followed them. As they left the cavern, Rumple's deranged amusement turned to indignant rage, " Hey! No! We made a deal! I want her name! We had a deal! I want her name! We had a deal, I need her name! I want her name!"
"Her?" Charming repeated, turning towards the Dark One, "It's a boy."
"Missy," Rumple cooed, ignoring Charming, "Missy, you know I'm right. Tell me. What's her name?"
Sensing Snow's hesitation, Alator turned towards the princess and nodded reassuringly, "Emma. Her name is Emma."
Storybrooke, Maine: 28 Years Later
"Pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Gold." said Mr. Indigo, his voice was soft, elegant, and distinctly English in its accent.
"Likewise." said Mr. Gold, shaking Mr. Indigo's hand, as the two men concluded their business.
"Would you like to come by later for a game of chess?" Mr. Indigo offered casually.
He and Gold—aside from Mayor Mills, of course—were the most powerful men in Storybrooke, with this came a certain amount of rivalry, not helped by the fact that both their businesses dealt in rare and unique objects, despite this, they both shared a mutual respect for one another.
"I'll think about it." said Gold.
With his curio shop, the Arcana Cabana, closed for the day and his business with Gold concluded, Mr. Indigo left the pawnshop and made his way home for the evening.
He wore black oxford shoes, a dark blue three-piece suit and tie, and held an ebon cane topped with a gleaming blue gem in one hand.
He was a tall young man, lean and broad-shouldered, with a sharp-featured, clean-shaven face with short-cut dark brown hair, and keen blue eyes which twinkled behind a pair of spectacles. Outwardly, he possessed a refined and dignified appearance, which masked a quiet underlying sense of power.
As he walked, he thought back on the day's events; the Mayor's son, Henry, had caused quite a stir when he had run off to parts unknown. The Sheriff, Graham, was doing his best, but despite his efforts, it was obvious that Henry was no longer in Storybrooke. He wasn't at any of the usual places he ran to when he wanted to be alone—and no one had seen him since early this afternoon.
He suspected that Henry's disappearance was in some way connected to his recent fascination with a book of fairytales. He was convinced that everyone in town was a character from the stories, he had heard about it from his schoolteacher Mary Margaret, who had given him the book in the first place.
He was about halfway home when he encountered Dr. Archie Hopper and Pongo out for their nightly walk a short distance away.
At that moment, something strange happened, a yellow bug with Massachusetts license plates pulled to an abrupt stop. No one ever came to Storybrooke, it just never happened... For some reason.
Mr. Indigo and Archie glanced at each other in confusion.
As soon as the car stopped, a woman with blonde hair, blue eyes, wearing a red leather jacket, out of the passenger's seat came Henry, holding his backpack.
"What? What's going on?" Archie asked. Mr. Indigo shrugged and began walking quickly towards the stopped bug.
"Henry!" Archie called out as they approached, "What are you doing here? Is everything all right?" he asked in concern.
"I'm fine, Archie," Henry answered, moving to pet Pongo.
"And who is this?" Mr. Indigo asked, looking at the blonde woman beside the yellow bug.
"Just someone trying to give him a ride home," the woman answered, looking between him and Archie.
"She's my mom, guys." Henry answered with a smile.
Archie and Mr. Indigo glanced at each other, "Oh...I see," said Archie, unsure of what else to say. Mr. Indigo almost felt sorry for the woman, Regina could be vindictive at times, and her being Henry's biological mother would only add fuel to the fire.
"You know where he lives?" the blonde woman asked.
"Oh. Yeah, sure, just uh, right up on Mifflin Street." Archie answered.
"The Mayor's house is the biggest one on the block, you can't miss it." Mr. Indigo added. At this, the woman turned to Henry looking slightly annoyed.
"You're the mayor's kid?" she asked. Henry looked down, avoiding the woman's gaze.
"Uh. Maybe," he answered hesitantly.
"Hey. Where were you today, Henry, because you missed our session?" Archie asked.
Oh, I forgot to tell you. I went on a field trip," Henry answered quickly.
Mr. Indigo frowned slightly and gave the boy a piercing look, "I hardly think running all the way to Boston without telling anyone could be considered a field trip, dear boy." Henry looked down, caught.
Archie frowned and crouched down to look at him, eye to eye, "Henry, what'd I tell you about lying? Giving in to one's dark side never accomplishes anything."
Mr. Indigo's brow furrowed at the doctor's odd choice of phrase, but he was still right. Henry nodded his agreement.
"O-kay!" the woman piped up, " Well, I really should be getting him home."
"Yeah. Sure," Archie said, shuffling his things in his hands as he pulled on Pongo's leash. "Well, listen—have a good night, and uh, you be good, Henry." he walked away.
"I suppose I'd best be on my way as well." said Mr. Indigo, getting ready to leave, "Stay out of trouble, Henry."
He turned to look at the woman beside the car, "A word of advice, take care, the mayor can be a bit… difficult, at times."
The woman nodded, "Thanks," she said with a polite smile, turning and opening her door and climbing in.
"See ya, Mr. Indigo!" called Henry as he hurried to the passenger door.
He shook his head fondly at the boy before continuing on his way home.
It had certainly been an interesting day, it seemed things were changing in Storybrooke.
The Enchanted Forest
"I say we fight!" Charming declared slamming his fist upon the table.
Jiminy Cricket hopped up to a large megaphone attached to the table that amplified his voice, "Fighting is a bad idea. Giving in to one's dark side never accomplishes anything."
"And how many wars has a clear conscience won?" He asked sardonically, "We need to take the Queen out, before she can inflict her curse."
"Can we even trust Rumplestiltskin?" Doc asked.
"What would he gain by lying?" Alator asked rhetorically, "It serves no purpose—he is not demanding to be freed for this information. He gains nothing by even telling us."
Not entirely true. But, of course, they didn't need to know that…
Charming looked at his wife, her decision to visit the Dark One had been a source of contention between them for days. However, he chose not to announce what his wife had done, unwilling to further upset her.
"I've sent my men into the forest, the animals are abuzz with the Queen's plan." He announced, "This is going to happen unless we do something."
"There's no point. The future is written." Snow whispered softly, staring down at the wooden table before her. Her hands lowered protectively to the swell of her stomach.
Charming's face softened, "No, I refuse to believe that." He lowered his hand to join her own, "Evil cannot just win."
"Maybe it can." She glared at her husband.
"No, not as long as we have each other." He swore valiantly, as if such a promise could hold up against dark magic. "If you believe him about the curse, then you believe him about our child. She will be the Savior."
"What do you think, Alator?" Snow demanded, shaking off her husband's attempts at placating her. The immortal sorcerer turned to acknowledge the princess. "You know Rumplestiltskin's powers better than anyone."
"Prophecy can be a tricky business, my lady, nothing is certain with such things." Alator answered honestly, "He does not see everything, only small parts, like the pieces of a puzzle. It is up to him to put them together, to make sense of it all, and even then, the picture is an incomplete one. But if he says it is to happen, it will happen."
Suddenly the doors to the council room flew open. The Blue Fairy flew in, followed by several guards carrying in a large tree trunk.
"What the hell is this?"
"Our only hope of saving that child." Blue explained, gesturing towards the tree.
Grumpy sneered in derision, "A tree? Our fate rests on a tree?" He turned back to Charming, ""Let's get back to the fighting thing."
"The tree is enchanted." Blue hovered to address the expectant parents. "If fashioned into a vessel, it can ward off any curse." She turned towards Geppetto, the carpenter, "Geppetto, can you build such a thing?"
Gepetto nodded, he looked at his son playing with carved, wooden figurines at his feet and ruffled his hair, "Me and my boy. We can do it."
The fairy inclined her head in thanks, and turned back towards the royal couple, "This will work," she promised, and for the first time in days, Snow White began to look hopeful, "We all must have faith."
"And what's the catch, Reul Ghorm?" Alator inquired quietly, eyeing the fairy warily.
Blue looked down and nervously fluttered closer towards the couple, "The Blue Sorcerer is correct," she acquiesced, "There is a catch. The enchantment is indeed powerful, but all power has its limits. And this tree can only protect one."
Storybrooke
Mr. Indigo sat in a chair at the Sheriff's Office. Marco, the local handyman, was repairing a cabinet, Leroy the town drunk was languishing in a cell, and the blonde woman was laying passed out on a cot in a neighboring cell.
The town's rumor mill had been working overtime. Apparently, she had crashed into the town sign while attempting to leave Storybrooke, and was presently being detained at the Sheriff's Station.
Mr. Indigo looked at the woman, studying her intently. He'd had a hard time falling asleep last night, there had been a nagging feeling at the back of his mind, telling him that she was important in some way… he just couldn't explain it.
Eventually, she came to and saw where she was and noticed Mr. Indigo sitting in front of her cell, "Good morning, my dear. Welcome back to the land of the living."
The woman winced, probably more from the pain in her head than surprise, "Thanks."
"It appears that you have survived Regina's wrath, although, in hindsight, perhaps I should have warned you about her cider too." said Mr. Indigo jokingly.
"That's what the Sheriff said too, but I wasn't drunk, it was a wolf." said the woman.
"Hmm, I don't recall ever seeing any wolves in Storybrooke," Mr. Indigo said thoughtfully, "but anything's possible, I suppose."
"By the way, I don't believe I caught your name, last night." said Mr. Indigo, "What should I call you, Miss..."
"Swan. Emma Swan." she said introducing herself.
Suddenly Mr. Indigo felt as if he had a small headache as he was suddenly overcome by a barrage of memories that were not his own.
'Emma... Emma Swan... the Savior,'
'It actually worked,' thought Alator incredulously as he remembered, Rumplestiltskin hadn't been wrong, and their failsafe had worked—after 28 years, the Savior had finally arrived in Storybrooke, and apparently she was Henry's birth mother.
"Well, in spite of the circumstances, it's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Swan." said Alator politely, quickly regaining his composure.
"Swan, that's a strange name sister." Leroy interjected.
"Hey, Leroy—manners! We have a guest! So you are eh, Henry's mother. How lovely for him to have you back in his life." said Marco, joining the conversation.
"Actually, I was just dropping him off." Emma corrected.
"Tkh. Don't blame ya. They're all brats; who needs 'em." said Leroy gruffly.
"Well, I'd give anything for one. My wife and I, we tried for many years, but, uh... it was not meant to be." said Marco sadly.
"Well cry me a river." grumbled Leroy.
Just then, Graham entered, holding the keys to the cells, Leroy! I'm going to let you out; you need to behave. Put on a smile, and stay out of trouble."
The town drunk gave a forced smile and left in a huff.
"Seriously?" asked Emma incredulously.
"Regina's drinks; a little stronger than we thought." remarked Graham.
" I wasn't drunk; there was a wolf, standing in the middle of the road." Emma said defensively.
"A wolf. Right." said the Sheriff, skeptically.
Regina suddenly entered, looking frantic, "Graham? Henry's run away again, we have to—?" she trailed when she noticed the other woman's presence in a cell.
"What is she doing here? Do you know where he is?" Regina demanded sharply.
"Lady, I haven't seen him since I dropped him at your house," drawled Emma, rolling her eyes. She looked irritated, most likely tired and stiff from sleeping in the cell.
"And, I have a pretty good alibi," She gestured towards the cell bars, smirking slightly at the thunderous look on the mayor's face.
"Yeah, well, he wasn't in his room this morning." Regina retorted acidly.
"Did you try his friends?" Emma asked.
"He doesn't really have any. He's kind of a loner." Regina answered after a moment of hesitation.
"Every kid has friends," Emma deadpanned, "Did you check his computer? If he was close to someone he'd be emailing them."
"And you know this how?" Regina demanded, arching a brow.
"Finding people is what I do," Emma shared with a smug expression, "He's an idea: how about you guys let me out, and I'll help you find him."
Graham looked at Regina, who nodded, before he unlocked the cell door, allowing Emma to go free.
"Well, good luck on the trail, Nancy Drew. I have work to do." said Alator, taking his leave.
He had to keep up appearances, and go about his business as usual, so as not to draw any suspicion from Regina.
But while he was at it, he would also conduct his own search for the boy. Henry was a secretive child, but Alator knew of a particular spot the boy liked to visit when he wanted to be alone…
The Enchanted Forest
Alator stood on his castle balcony, leaning upon his staff, looking out over the valley that he had called home for centuries.
In the distance, an ominous dark cloud could be seen, swiftly approaching.
This was it. The culmination of all their planning, all of their careful maneuvering. All of it had come down to this moment.
Of course, it hadn't come without a few sacrifices along the way.
His face became melancholic, as he recalled all the sacrifices he had made over the course of his centuries-long lifespan. He never enjoyed playing chess with the lives of others but he reluctantly acknowledged its necessity. It was the only way, and his only chance to ensure he could make things right. He just had to wait a while longer, and he hoped that it would all be worth it in the end.
As the cloud drew closer, he closed his eyes and waited solemnly, and as the smoke from the curse enveloped him, he knew no more.
Storybrooke
Alator pulled his car to a stop, he had arrived at Henry's castle, an abandoned playground that had fallen into disrepair, the most likely place he had run off to.
But judging by the yellow bug parked nearby, it appeared he wasn't the only one who had discovered the boy's hiding place, Miss Swan had gotten there first, they appeared to be deep in conversation with each other.
"You know, with all these recent disappearing acts, my boy, you could become the next Houdini." he remarked as he approached the pair.
"Mr. Indigo, what are you doing here?" asked Henry.
"Looking for you, my boy, though it would appear that Miss Swan has beaten me to you." he replied.
"Never mind, it's good that you're here, I think I might know who you are." said Henry.
Alator's blue eyes twinkled with mischief behind his glasses, "Well yes. I would you'd know by now," he laughed slightly, "You've been around me long enough, haven't you, dear boy?"
"No, I mean I know who you are, in the Enchanted Forest." he said lifting up his book of fairy tales.
"Enchanted Forest?" said Alator, feigning confusion then nodding in understanding, "Ah yes, your little fairytale theory."
Henry nodded, "Exactly," beside him, Emma rolled her eyes in exasperation.
'Hmm, clever boy.' he thought, as he shook his head fondly and sighed, "Alright, my boy, I'll bite. Who do you think I am?" he asked.
Henry flipped to a page and handed the book to Alator, "You're the Blue Sorcerer, you were one of the oldest and most powerful sorcerers in the Enchanted Forest, but you're a bit of an enigma."
'An enigma. Certainly the word I'd use, and not a bad likeness I must say,' he mused, as he looked at the picture in the book.
It showed Alator in his Enchanted Forest garb, sitting on his throne as a raven perched upon it, holding his staff, his face wore a melancholy and pensive expression.
"Well, there is a passing resemblance, I suppose." conceded Alator, keeping up his façade of ignorance as he returned the book to Henry.
"Okay, kid," Emma cleared her throat awkwardly. "Let's get you home before Mayor Mills tries to get me arrested for kidnapping you."
Her painfully delivered joke fell flat, with both Alator and Henry eyeing her as if she'd lost her mind. Shrugging, she gestured towards her car, which Henry hurried towards, "Bye, Mr. Indigo!"
Alator sat at his home later that evening, he was fixing himself a pot of tea to cope with the headache brought on by the clash between his real and curse memories, he'd considered cognac or brandy, but in the end, decided that he wanted to alleviate his headache, not add to it with a hangover.
He'd just finished pouring himself a cup, when he heard a knock on the door, 'Who could it be at this hour?' Alator thought as he answered it.
It was Gold, who had a knowing look in his eyes. His expression and posture showed traces of his former self.
'Rumplestiltskin, is he—?'
"Good evening, dearie. I don't suppose the offer of a chess game is still open, by any chance?" said Gold.
'He is.'
"Of course," said Alator politely, "Please, come in. Would you like some tea, or perhaps something stronger?" he offered.
Gold grimaced slightly before entering the house, "Tea would be lovely, thank you." he said, taking a seat at the table.
After pouring Gold a cup of tea, Alator began to set up the chess board, "So you've met the Savior too, I take it?"
"Indeed I have, she was in the process of renting a room at the Bed and Breakfast." said Gold.
"Hmm, so she's staying, that's good news for us," mused Alator, "So how do we want to play it with her?"
Gold sipped his tea pensively, "I think we should simply observe how she progresses and offer assistance, when she needs it."
Alator nodded, "I had the same thoughts," he replied as he finished placing the pieces.
He then sat across from Gold, on the opposite side of the table, "Black or white?"
Gold smirked, "I would've thought that answer was obvious." he said wryly.
"Black, of course." said Alator sliding the black pieces toward Gold, and the white pieces toward himself.
"Most appropriate, don't you think?" remarked Gold.
In the distance, though the still evening air, the two men heard the clock tower chime, for the first time since anyone could remember.
"Well, it's your move, Rumple." said Alator, sliding one of his pawns forward.
A/N: I think this chapter is much better, compared to my first draft, I hope to improve more in the future.