Hey, everyone! So...yeah, Reliant...still not done. But this got stuck in my head so here we are. This is...barely planned. Like, I have this and the next chapter and that's it. So, do not expect regular updates (sorry, it pains me to admit I'm not quite together enough to have it all written out or a steady writing schedule). But here we have me, yet again, playing with that whole sibling thing.
This is getting to be a theme with me.
Either way- read, review, please, tell me your thoughts.
Well, everyone have a nice week if I don't talk to you before it's over!
11/29/22 Edit: Hello! It has been literal years. Life has been crazy in good and bad ways, but I am finally finding myself with not just the time but also the motivation to get writing again. So sorry for leaving you all hanging for so long! As you'll probably have guessed by now, I'm giving this a cleanup. For new readers, welcome. Hope you enjoy the ride.
A quick summary of what you can expect from my story:
I'm going to tag it as anti-Regina, even though it's really just, to my mind, giving up on the shitty redemption arcs that the writers did not execute well and letting characters face consequences of their actions. Which I guess means it's also anti-Rumpelstiltskin, and anti-Hook in some places. It's gonna be straight-up anti-Nealfire cuz...I cannot.
This is going to get very AU, mostly because I stopped watching the show in Season 4 (in disgust and outrage, because it really felt to me like the writers were trying to make it so there was no free will and between that and about fifty other things I. Was. Done.), and while I've heard and read some spoilers, most of them I didn't like anyways, so expect things to go very off the rails (and honestly that will happen as soon as Season 1 & 2, because even then I had started frowning at the tv screen).
I'm adding in more fairytale stories/characters. I feel like the show lost some opportunities to add in cool stories that I liked (12 Dancing Princesses, anyone?), and I'm honestly kind of iffy about adding Mulan and Robin Hood now because there is evidence they might have been real actual people, but I do love the characters a lot, so we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. We will not be adding mythology. And probably not Camelot. Again, bridge, come to it.
There are other plans I have, but those three are big ones that I think will determine if people want to read or not, so fair warning.
And I'm going to be trying very hard to come up with actual RULES for this universe that things like magic will have to be consistent with. Also, going to try to do better than the show writers (how arrogant does that sound? But seriously folks) with keeping characters consistent to their initial characterization and only changing them through actual character development through plot. And there it is, my rough outline of my intentions with this story. To old readers, hope you love the updates, to new readers, hope you enjoy.
New York City, July 2003
Emma Swan was just on the subway after finishing a meeting with a potential employer (not many people willing to take a gamble on a former jail bird with no real previous job experience, but she thought this diner would hire her. It was just waitressing, but she'll take what she can get at this point.) when some asshole decided to grab her ass. She was tired, completely worn, and honestly quite used to the average sexual harassment on any form of public transportation, so she wasn't going to say anything but simply move out of reach, when a voice sounded out behind her.
"Hey, watch it slime-ball. Shockingly, no girl wishes to meet her Prince Charming by having him grope her on the subway."
Having someone else speak up for her is an unusual enough, so Emma turned in shock as a woman, short, red curly hair, and dark brown eyes, shoved her way towards Emma and subtly elbows the slime-ball away from the twenty year old.
"Hi, I'm Ada Ward. You wanna get off at the next station and find a bar and complain about assholes?"
Emma wasn't quite sure how it happened, but somehow the tiny girl (seriously- she must be barely five foot, and she was in heels) managed to get her into some dive bar hidden in a back alley of New York, drinking shots and commiserating on being female in a world of men.
"Oh, no- lemme tell you this one," Ada practically snorted into the beer she was using as a chaser (how the girl hadn't collapsed from all the booze they'd drunk, Emma would never know), and begins another story. Emma was now laughing into her liquor, wondering where the hell this girl came from, cuz it sure wasn't any world Emma was familiar with.
"Hey," Emma murmured, suddenly serious, "Why'd you yell at that guy today? Not that I'm not grateful, but I doubt you do that every time you see a guy grab someone's ass."
"Why would you doubt that?" Ada asked with a wink.
"Because by simple math, there is not enough time in the day."
Ada gave a little shrug, "I don't know, I saw you and I got some major prickings."
"Prickings?" Emma repeated with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah, I've always gotten them, long as I can remember. Whenever something good or bad or big is about to happen, or I meet someone important, I get this feeling. Sometimes it's big, sometimes small, sometimes it turns out to be nothing," she shrugged again, "then in English class we read Macbeth and the witches said "pricking" and that was the only word I could think of to describe it. Except tingles, which could be vastly misunderstood if I told someone I got the tingles."
Emma smirked a little, "Yeah, I can see why you'd want to avoid that."
"Anyways, I saw you and it was like I swallowed a jar full of ants or something, and I try to never ignore the prickings, so I walked up to you and here we are. I think it was a damn good thing I followed my instincts."
"Ladies, I'm afraid we're closing up," the bartender interrupted, shrugging, "Do you need me to call you a cab?"
"Nah- neither of us drove here- we'll stick together and take the bus or something. Thanks though," with a wave and a tipsy bounce, Ada was dragging Emma out of the bar. "Now, I'm just a few stops away from home, you?"
"Same, actually, I'm in this apartment complex called Nevada Street,"
"Wow- small world- I live there too!"
"Oh god, are you the person on the seventh floor who stomps all the time?"
Ada gave a woozy laugh, "Nah- can't take credit for that. Come on, I'll walk you home."
Emma woke up the next day to a massive hangover and a note slipped under her door.
"Last night was totally fun- we should do it again sometime. I'm apartment 815
Love, Ada G. Ward
PS: Warning: hot water, so not working today."
Emma crumpled up the note, having no intention of following up with Ada. She seemed nice enough, but Emma didn't really do well with friends.
October, 2003
"Oh, god, why did you not stop me?" Emma groaned as she walked into Ada's apartment early one morning.
"What? He seemed cute and disease-free. I figured you knew what you were doing."
"Not so loud, please."
"Coffee?" Ada obligingly lowered her voice to a whisper.
"God, yes," Emma blindly reached out for the mug.
"What would you do without me?" Ada smirked as she began to gather ingredients for pancakes.
Emma winced as a pan banged onto the stove, "Wallow in my own misery in peace."
"Well thank god you found me."
"I think it was your stupid prickings that found me," Emma grumbled even as she gulped down the coffee. It also probably had to do with Ada's strange reluctance to let Emma ignore that Ada's prickings apparently meant the girls had to be friends.
"Hey- no knocking the prickings. They've gotten us out of more than a few jams."
"And into even more," Emma added for the sake of fairness.
Ada just gave her a sly smile. "That's the best part." The only response Emma was willing to give to that was a roll of the eyes.
The apartment was silent for a few minutes as Emma sipped coffee and Ada made pancakes. When the batter was all cooked into shapes that vaguely resembled circles and the syrup was heating up in the microwave, Ada put a plate before her friend and eyed the blonde across her table.
"I figured it was about time you got over him."
Emma immediately tensed, "I don't know who you're talking about."
For a panicked second, Emma was worried Ada was going to push it. Emma knew her flight response would kick in, and it'd been a long time since she'd had a friend. And Ada was a really good friend. She had entered Emma's life in slow drips, bumping into her in the lobby of their apartment building, somehow able to know when Emma would feel just lonely enough to agree to a drink out somewhere, then getting Emma into her own apartment to show her limited cooking skills to an even-more limited Emma, eventually getting Emma to invite Ada into her own apartment and life. Emma didn't want to lose this but she really did not want this conversation either.
"Ok."
Emma's shocked eyes flew up to watch Ada get the syrup out of the microwave and plunk it down between the two of them on the table. As they began consuming their breakfast, Ada added just one more tidbit.
"For the record, I hate him on principle. Just so you know."
She was not lying. And Emma felt this warm feeling spreading through her, because she could not remember ever having anyone hate someone they'd never met and knew nothing about just because she'd been hurt by them. Ada didn't know a thing (or maybe she did, because Emma had no clue how she figured out that Emma was trying to get over...him...and the massive betrayal and disappointment he had been, so clearly she must be psychic or the prickings are way more specific than Ada ever let on) but she was willing to mindlessly hate someone for Emma.
Yeah, Ada was a very good friend.
Too bad with Emma's track record it was guaranteed to never last.
New Year's, 2004
"Ok, ok, um…my New Year's resolution is…" Emma rolled her eyes as Ada trailed off again, very obviously having no clue what to resolve. They were crashed on Emma's couch having just watched the ball drop after consuming several bottles of wine and way too much Chinese takeout.
Ada let out a groan. "I've got no clue, you pick it for me."
"Ok- I think your resolution should be to grow a few inches."
"Hey!" Ada exclaimed, giving Emma a lazy kick in the thigh for the short joke, "We both know that's never happening, so be serious."
"Ok- you need to stop picking up strays."
"Why?" Ada's voice was practically a whine, and she sounded almost as insulted as she was by the short joke.
"Ok- seriously, in the time I've known you, you've rescued two dogs, four kittens, three pigeons, two of whom constantly pecked at you, and a sparrow. Which was the dirtiest bird ever. You need to stop. We're not allowed animals in the apartment, you're going to get caught, not to mention the money you spend nursing them back to health." Emma didn't say it, but she counted herself as one of the strays Ada had picked up.
"But the dogs and kittens all found good homes and the birds were healthy when released and able to fly away. Though the one pigeon still visits me," Ada added with a small smile.
"I know. It's damn pecking at the window woke me up two nights ago."
"Well you shouldn't have had your one night stand at your place, then you wouldn't have felt the need to come here and crash on my couch, while I went and kicked him out for you."
"But you're such a good friend," Emma pouted, or tries to, but there had been a lot of wine.
"Damn right I am. Now that's my resolution. Be a better friend."
"That's dumb, you're already the best friend I have."
"Emma, I'm your only friend."
"Admittedly there isn't much competition, but I can't imagine a better friend than you."
"Good god, how much wine have you had, girl?"
"Wayyyy too much. Now, I came up with your resolution, you come up with mine."
"I think you should do a ceremonial burning to get over him."
Emma normally would've stiffened here and shut down the topic immediately, but Ada was her best friend, she'd had way too much wine, and it was a holiday- which always brought to her mind all the past holidays she had spent alone and gave her a serious case of the holiday blues, not that she'd ever admit it.
She still stiffened, but she also sighed and reached up to play with the chain around her neck. It was a reminder- no one, no man, no best friend, no one, is going to choose her. Not really. She's not worth it to anyone and they'll leave. If they promise to stay, it's an empty lie that they may mean at the time, but eventually- everyone leaves.
It was a reminder- trust no one.
But it was New Years, Ada was curled up next to her on the couch, she'd had too much wine, and she couldn't help but remember of all of Ada's strays- they always left Ada when they were whole, complete, and Ada always made sure they went home in the end. Whether that was a family with kids who wanted a dog to take to the park every day, a lovely old man who melted at the sight of a tiny little kitten curled up in his wheelchair-bound lap, or a free breeze to fly around the city on, those strays went home.
Maybe Ada would get her home too.
It was New Year's.
Ah, screw it. She couldn't talk about…him. But she could talk about something else. Just to appease Ada for a little while- not because she wanted to get something off her chest or anything like that.
"I grew up in the foster system."
"So did I."
"I was found on the side of the road, my parents just…left me there. All I've got from them is a baby blanket with my name stitched on it. It's so weird- it's such a nice blanket, you'd think it belong to someone who desperately wanted a baby. I guess I wasn't the baby they were hoping for."
"My parents died in a car accident. I only have this scar on my thigh from it, but there was no one to take me in, so I got sent to the foster system. I was six, so I was too old for most people to want to adopt me, and I was so against it at first- I didn't want new parents, I wanted my old ones- so it just never happened."
"I was adopted, but they sent me back when I was three. The wife, she got pregnant, so…you know."
"You weren't the baby they were hoping for?"
"Again."
Both women sighed and curled up a little closer to each other on the couch.
"You wanna watch chick flicks and make fun of the stupid characters?" Ada asked after a long silence.
"Yeah."
"I'll get the popcorn, you get another bottle of wine."
April, 2004
"I think we should be roommates, we practically live with each other anyways and it'd be so much cheaper," Ada casually said out of nowhere as they finished jeering at the Notebook.
"What brought this on?" Emma asked as she chucked one final handful of popcorn kernels at the tv screen. It was going to be a bitch to clean them all up, but it felt surprisingly satisfying.
"I've got an itch."
"Not a pricking?"
"No, dumbo, an itch. I've lived here awhile, I wanna move. I think you should move with me."
"Where do you wanna go?"
Ada shrugged and gave a small pout as she thought on that, "I hear they have great food in Charleston."
"You wanna go all the way to Charleston?"
"Why not?"
Silence for a moment. Two.
"Ok, why the hell not."
August, 2005
"His name was Neal. I met him when I was seventeen and I stole a car he had already stolen."
November, 2005
"I was pregnant, but I had to give him up. I didn't deserve him, and he deserved so much more than me. So I looked away and told the doctor I couldn't be a mother. I'm just not…enough…to be a mother."
Ada stared at Emma for a long time over the bottle of wine they'd just finished.
"You're enough to be my best friend," she finally concluded in a whisper. "More than that. You're more than my best friend, you're my sister. And I promise," here she made sure to make direct contact with Emma's eyes, letting her use her superpower, "And I am fully aware I'm making this promise to a human lie detector, I, Ada Gloria Ward, promise you, Emma Swan- you will be my sister forever. Even death can come, and I will still be your sister. There is nothing in this universe that would change that."
She wasn't lying.
Boston, Massachusetts, October 23, 2011
Emma Swan unlocked her apartment door and immediately kicked off the heels she was wearing. They were killer in every sense of the word- looked great, hurt even more. But that's what she got for borrowing shoes from Ada.
"You catch the bad guy?" her roommate yelled from another room.
"Of course I did," Emma returned almost pompously, "Have I ever not found my guy?"
"Well, aside from your Prince Charming, no," Ada returned with a wink as she entered the kitchen. "And now, ladies and appliances, the moment you've all been waiting for: duh duh duh duh! The birthday cupcakes!"
"A- you didn't have to-" but Ada cut Emma off.
"Shut up, it's not every day your sister turns twenty eight. Now I've got the prickings-"
"Oh, god," groaned Emma.
"And that means this- this is going to be a spectacular year for you. So we have to start it right- and that means cupcakes with…" and Ada plopped a plate in front of Emma on the counter, it was Emma's favorite kind of cupcake with a single blue star candle stuck into, already lit and flickering in a way that seemed almost like the flame was dancing. Adding a second cupcake on a plate in front of herself, Ada gave a small smile to Emma, who was still, after two years of friendship and six of sisterhood, unused to someone wanting to celebrate her existence.
"A birthday wish candle." Ada finally finished her sentence, giving a quick hug to Emma. They weren't normally huggers, but the exception happened once in a while.
"Make a wish," the short redhead added after a moment, nudging her friend. Emma gave a sheepish smile then leaned down so she was eye level with the little blue candle.
Her eyes closed briefly, and then she blew the candle out.
A knock sounded on the door.