Chapter 2: The Wayward Prince

It had been two weeks since Rey began staying with Mayor Organa and working for Kylo Ren. Kylo barely spoke more than just his daily demands to her, which was fine by her. Putting up with a silent ass was better than a loud ass.

Maz daily had their lunch ready when she came by at noon. Maz would regard her with a smile and sometimes Rey got to talk with Finn.

"What do you do exactly for the Mayor?" Rey said, sitting at the bar one chilly midday while Maz was in the back grabbing her daily lunch order for her and Kylo.

"I've been organizing her finances," Finn said between fries. "We have to start her re-election campaign very soon."

"Oh? I wish you guys luck then. That sounds exciting."

"You should come by and meet the rest of the team, Rey."

Rey smiled at her friend as she grabbed the lunch bag. "Well, once I drop this off with His Highness I do have a few hours of free time."

Kylo had one of his meetings again. It was always on his calendar and never marked for what purpose it was, but Rey didn't care. He told her to go do whatever she wanted, so she did. Leia took her shopping for more work clothes and last week she had her hair trimmed, but still brushing her shoulders. Her hair was silk slipping between her fingers.

Finn grinned. "Well then, I'll show you around to the Mayor's main office."

"Sir," Captain Phasma strode over on horseback, her helmet obscuring her face and muffling her voice. Her blade was at the ready in her grip, the length of the blade towering over Finn's height.

Sweat beaded on Finn's temple under his own helm. The air was cool out tonight, a chill settling in his bones and piercing his armor. His heart sunk at seeing the group of Force-worshippers all huddled together in fear. Their leader had been slaughtered before them in the orange glow of flames, a red blade in the place of Lor San Tekka.

Ren looked up from the corpse, his sword crackling with unstable energy.

"The villagers?" Phasma spoke again, awaiting orders to act.

A chill shuddered down Finn's spine.

Ren sheathed his sword. "Kill them all."

Phasma glanced at Finn and his comrades. "You have your orders."

His comrades through thick and thin approached the group, Finn lagging behind, even though he was the top of his class in training, superior with melee combat and able to crush his opponent.

That was fighting. That was defensive. That was offensive against someone equal to his strength. This was nothing, nowhere near equal nor fair. These people were just innocents caught in the crossfire of Ren's supposed wrath.

As he passed by Ren, something caught his eye. Lor San Tekka was gone, not even a corpse left behind. Even more curious was a piece of paper left in his robes.

Ren had stalked off, climbing aboard his horse and already leaving the village behind, expecting Finn to do the dirty work.

He couldn't do it. He couldn't take his blade and cut any of them down. He… Couldn't.

So Finn, when Phasma had her head turned, grabbed the discarded robes of Lor San Tekka and stuck the piece of paper in his pocket.

As he marched his way back to the dark castle on the edge of a dark mountain, he made his way to the dungeons in the dark of night, the piece of paper in his pocket and to the cell of one of their newest prisoners: a cocky commander hailing from Alderaan's own army.

The man was still bruised, slumbering in thin pieces of hay with dried blood on his shirt.

Finn took out the keys from the guardsman and unlocked the cell door. Sliding a map of the castle's underground tunnel system through the bars, Finn took a deep breath and hoped the man could figure the system out. It was too dangerous to leave in pairs of two, not with Ren's powers and the He Who Is The Wise One watching.

He ran.

And ran.

With the rolled-up scroll of a map, the Knights of Ren were seeking out for one Luke Skywalker burning in his grip.

"Welcome to our little resistance corner," Finn announced as Rey followed him into an office covered in various

A man with a sharp jaw and five-o'clock shadow waved to her with a wide grin. "Hey! New girl, Rey right? I'm Poe, Poe Dameron."

Rey waved back. "Hi. Yes. I'm Rey."

A girl with blonde double braids stood up and stretched her arms. "Kaydel Connix. What brings you here to Stelland?"

"Oh um, I work as Kylo Ren's assistant."

An empty silence fell over the office. Kaydel and Poe and another guy with a rounded beard exchanged glances.

"What?" Dread pooled in Rey's stomach. Kylo Ren was an ass that was true, but was there something worse other than his royal asshattery?

"At First Order Investments?" the bearded guy asked. "I'm Snap by the way."

"Yes, First Order Investments."

Kaydel spoke up. "Leia may be the mayor of this town but we all know who really rules the place. First Order Investments has the financial future of everyone in their iron grip."

With that, Rey's heart sunk to the floor.

"You can thank Snoke for that. Ren working for that soulless greedy hardass makes him no better," Poe added. "I feel bad for you Rey, but hey, I heard they pay well."

She swallowed. "Thank you for the vote of confidence. It is true, a paycheck is a paycheck."

"You were very brave fleeing Snoke," Princess Leia of Alderaan said from atop her throne.

Finn rose from the kneeling position. "Thank you, Your Highness. But my friend Rey is—"

Leia nodded with understanding. "Han told me about the girl." There was a slight hesitation, as if she wasn't sure how much more she should say. "I'm so sorry."

"Forgive me, Your Highness, but I will not go down without a fight against the Knights of Ren. I've seen what they can do."

There was a glint in the princess' eye as if she knew something he didn't.

"I trust your judgment. What do you plan to do?"

"I'm going in to get her. It's the least I can do."

The very least he could do. The fear of what Ren could do to Rey drove Finn to leave the safety of Alderaan and running head straight into Knights of Ren territory once again.

"You okay man?" Poe asked Finn.

Rey had gone back to work, leaving Finn to sit down at his office desk and hash out more of the budget.

He couldn't deny that he had some fears about Rey working for the First Order, especially under Kylo Ren. But Rey was also just an assistant, she had no actual part in holding people's financial futures over their heads in terror. That was Snoke and his underlings, Armitage Hux and Kylo Ren.

Finn set down his pen and stretched. "I'm fine. A little concerned for Rey but I'm fine."

"It's been six months since you left though. I'm just checking in on you."

"The First Order was awful but I'm away from them now. Well, as far away as I can be."

He glanced at a photo on his desk, depicting his parents in faded folds. He kept that picture in his wallet for years before Poe gave him the frame for it. A representation of why he ultimately left working for Snoke; a broken empty promise.

Rey sprinted through the woods, her wrists still bounded by tight ropes. She tugged at them still, forming burns in her skin. Where was that stupid trick she pulled on the guard when she needed it to use her hands?

Nearly tripping over a tree root, she bumped into something—someone.

"Rey?"

Rey took a deep breath. It was Finn, her friend, her only friend in all this insanity.

"You okay?" Finn asked.

Her eyes glistened over. "I-I'm fine."

"Did Ren hurt you?" He looked her up and down for injuries before taking out a knife to cut her free from the ropes.

Rey rubbed her sore wrists. "No. Well, I cannot explain it. But no, I'm…"

What was she supposed to say? She wasn't harmed directly, but having her personal baggage pulled out of her mind would constitute harm.

Nothing about the past two days made any sense. "I'm alright," Rey answered. "Let's go before they catch us."

Finn nodded. "Good idea."

The sounds of gallops and shouts urged their pace back to the shining castle in the Alderaan kingdom borders.

"What do you do during my weekly meetings?" Kylo asked Rey.

She looked up from her phone, setting the next week's calendar in motion. Why was he asking that? Why was he asking her questions now? Personal ones at that.

"I go run errands," she said. Short. Curt. No details. It was none of his business.

"Ah, interesting," Kylo said, keeping his gaze on his laptop screen. "You need help putting the new desk together?"

Rey glanced at the heavy box delivered when she returned from Resistance Offices. The pieces of a new, shiny desk were waiting to be hammered together.

"Nope," she popped the 'p' syllable. "I will work on it first thing in the morning."

Part of her expected some mansplaining about how she couldn't possibly be capable of putting a desk together, but to her surprise, Kylo only said one thing:

"Alright."

Rey looked at the time. Six pm.

"I guess I should get going then," Rey said. "My ride's here."

Kylo looked up from his laptop at least, sliding it shut and unplugging the cable.

"I suppose I should leave too."

"You don't have to walk me out—"

He looked at her like she had no choice in the matter. "I'm not."

She rolled her eyes and practically stomped out to greet her ride for the day. Night had already fallen and a chill lingered in the air.

The silver Raddus Leia owned was parked upfront. Leia herself was standing outside, her thick grey winter coat.

"Hello dear," Leia greeted with a smile.

Rey held the door open for Kylo behind her. "Hi, Leia."

Kylo looked up and his eyes went comically wide, a deer caught in headlights about to meet his end via a big hunk of metal going at sixty miles-per-hour.

"Hi," Leia greeted him.

The visible bob of his Adam's Apple said it all.

"Hi, Mayor Organa," he answered before briskly walking off and getting into his fancy black Silencer and leaving at a speed far from safe in a parking lot.

Rey looked back at Leia who carried a conflicted expression, someone who was happy but also melancholy and trying not to laugh.

"I've never seen him like that before," Rey said, moving to get into the silver Raddus.

Leia sighed, getting into the driver's seat and pulling out onto the road. "I knew he would react like that but at least it wasn't… Worse."

"Worse?" Rey asked.

"He's my son. Last time we parted it was not on pleasant terms," Leia explained.

Rey's eyes widened almost as big as Kylo's when he laid eyes on his supposed mother.

"I had no idea."

Leia snorted. "My son keeps things close. You would have probably gone years working for him and he would never tell you."

"I'm sorry," Rey said. "That you two parted on bad terms."

Leia nodded. "I cannot change the past. I only wished I was there more when he was growing up. But oh, why am I rambling about an old woman's woes with her family to you. You've just gotten here."

Rey looked down at her palms. "You have a family at least, even if it's broken into pieces."

A silence befell the two. It wasn't until Rey noticed Leia went right by her home that Rey spoke again.

"Where are we going?"

Leia gave a sad smile. "I have one more errand I need to do and I thought you would like to see where I go at this time of night."

They pulled into the local hospital parking lot. Rey had hardly been in one; always getting by with her own first aid kits for scrapes and scratches or she would wait out the colds or excruciating monthly cycle pain with over the counter meds she looted from the foster homes she was in at the time.

The receptionist paid no mind to Leia. Neither did the security guard.

Leia led her to a room in the long-term care ward.

To Rey's surprise, Leia sat down on a stool next to an older man's bed, his hair greyed.

"Hey Han," Leia spoke to the sleeping man. "I brought Rey to say hi. She's the one who works for Ben."

Ben?

Ben?

Kylo Ren's real name was Ben?

Rey awkwardly waved her hand at the comatose man. "Hi, uh—"

"Han Solo."

Rey continued. "Han Solo. I'm Rey Niima. I uh, didn't know your son's name was Ben until now. He usually goes by Kylo. Or well, he asked me to call him Kylo for some odd reason. I'm his personal assist—"

Han's hand moved to grab Leia's, his eyelids twitching.

Leia's eyes widened.

Rey stepped back, panicking. "Is that normal?"

"No, it's not," Leia answered. "Go get the doctor please."

Rey scrambled out of the ward, trying to find someone who hopefully knows what they were doing.

"Finn! Where's Finn?" Commander Poe Dameron of Alderaan's armies practically scrambled through the hospital wing of the castle.

A tall, tall furry creature towered over a small woman with goggles the size of Poe's head next to two beds. One had Finn, the man who saved Poe's life, face-down, his back wound open and fresh. Blood mixed with bandages. The wound was only partially cauterized, a result of the odd nature of Kylo Ren's blade.

Maz looked up from her work. "Commander."

Poe stopped before her. "Is Finn going to be okay?"

Maz turned around to tend to the man behind her. Poe recognized his features as clear as day; everyone did. The Princess' husband, Han Solo.

"Finn will be fine. The wounds aren't too deep but it will take him quite some time to recover. Han however, has hours left."

Poe's eyes widened, inspecting the bloody wound near Han's heart. Somehow, the monster Kylo Ren didn't completely make his mark, but Han still was going to die from the wound, slow and painful.

"Is there nothing we can do?" Poe asked, knowing how much it would devastate the Princess—the one who taught him military strategy and how to gain the upper hand over one's enemy—if her husband passed.

Maz continued to comb over Finn's wounds. "There is a lake through the northern woods. It's said the lake has healing properties. Unfortunately, it is guarded by a monster. If we want that water, then we have to slay the beast."

"Then let's go. If it can help both Finn and Han then I'm willing," Poe declared. "I can slay a beast."

"It's a fool's errand," the voice of Lady Amilyn spoke from the doorway. Behind her was Princess Leia, frantic with worry lines on the edges of her eyes.

Leia wordlessly gilded forward with her usual grace and sat down next to Han, pressing her hand to his cheek. "We have limited time. It is up to everyone here what they want to sacrifice."

"I'm going. Chewie? Up for a little adventure?"

Chewie, covered from head to toe in fur, let out a growl of approval.

Maz pushed her sleeves up. "I'm going too. I can't trust you two to not do something stupid and reckless. Reminds me of a young boy who would pull some dumb stunts like his father…"

Kylo laid in his bed, staring at the ceiling. Sleep wasn't something that came easily. He was lucky to get a few hours before dragging himself to work, always five minutes late because his failed-bed head needed taming.

Something made his heart thump. He shot up in his bed, gasping and clutching at his chest. Why was he in so much pain? It wasn't that he was having a heart attack, no, this was something deeper. It's as if his own spirit was crying.

Tears dripped down his tears and all he could think of was his sins. His own guilt prevented him from seeing his own father. To never look his mother in the eyes. His deep-seated resentment of himself and his parents shaking him to the core.

Why was it hurting so much?

Wasn't this what Snoke taught him to do? To cut everything away? Leave them behind as they left him behind as a child?

Why was his heart thumping, wasn't it cold?

Ever since Rey came into his life, nothing made sense anymore.

He laid back down, sweat and tears falling down on the pillow.

Kylo closed his eyes, trying to center himself somehow so he could at least sleep for a couple of hours. Thinking about his parents didn't soothe the hurt.

As he drifted off, his mind could only think of Rey.

Didn't Rey mean light?

Maz brushed aside the foliage to get a clear view of the lake. Poe peered over her shoulder to see the open clearing and the silent waters.

"I don't see any mythical beast," Poe whispered.

Chewie gave a quiet response.

"Well yeah, but how could a giant ferocious monster hide in that small lake?"

Maz rolled her eyes. "That's how the beast killed countless others by underestimating its size and capabilities."

"Then let's go. I'm ready," Poe said, his battle-ax prepared.

"Wait," Maz stopped him from moving out of the bushes with her small arm.

The sound of footsteps came from across the clearing.

A hooded figure cloaked in black stumbled out of the woods and limped towards the waters, falling to his knees and pulling his hood away to gaze at his reflection. He was clutching his side and coughing.

Chewie let out a growl of anger that Poe couldn't even translate.

This was Han's soon-to-be killer.

A giant burn was torn right down his face, a mark well-earned for the pain he has caused.

"It's Kylo Ren," Poe whispered, harsh and sharp. "Wounded. We should kill him while he's down. We out-number him, three to one."

Maz breathed in and out but before she could respond, the waters of the lake rippled.

Ren's head snapped up and he fell backward as something—no, someone—rose from the waters. A woman with chestnut hair and…

It was Rey. The girl Poe had seen in passing right before all the chaos imploded at the castle.

"Hello, Kylo Ren," she said in a sultry voice. Her body was covered in a thin black sheer dress, sparkles consisted of diamonds and other rare jewels.

Ren swallowed, still clutching at his injured side. "You… You're the monster of this lake."

The woman posing as Rey pouted, her lower lip jutting out and her eyes widening. "How very mean of you, Kylo."

Ren stared at her as if she was an idiot. "Why do you look like that?"

"Like what? The girl you've heard so much about? The girl you want to whisk away to the dark side? The girl who," she stepped closer to him, leaning down and reaching out to touch his scar with her finger, "Gave you this?"

He grabbed her wrist before she could even make contact. "You're not her. You'll never be her."

"You're such a spoilsport. We both know that she would never want you, never want a monster who murders his own father. Why not take what you can get?"

He hung his head, looking away from her face. "Just go away."

"Pathetic. The great Kylo Ren, reduced to shambles, chasing after some girl who will understand you. But I understand you. You hate your parents for neglecting you, sending you away. Your power doesn't frighten me. On the contrary, I love men who carry the Force. So strong, so destined for many things."

Chewie had enough of listening to the exchange. He fired an arrow from his crossbow and hit its intended target square in the hip.

The siren's hip.

"What the hell are you doing?" Poe yelled.

Ren saw his opportunity and kicked the siren down, drawing his red glowing sword from its sheath and pointing it at the monster's throat.

Chewie stepped out of the bushes with his crossbow armed, Maz following.

"Come on, we don't have much time," Maz said.

"Why are we helping Kylo Ren of all people…" Poe muttered before joining the duo.

The siren was gasping in pain, her lips forming a smirk at Ren and Chewie.

"I don't have time for any more of your games. I know who Rey is, and you are not her," Ren said, his tone low and dangerous.

She laughed. "I am not her but I can certainly recognize when a man is besotted."

Before Poe could blink, the siren had jumped up and grabbed Ren by the wrist, and dragged him into the water.

"He's going to drown!" Maz said, reaching for the sword that Ren dropped.

"Whoa wait, why are we saving him?! Let's grab the water and go!" Poe yelled. Were they crazy? Kylo Ren was a murderer, the Jedi Killer. The Black Knight who reigned terror upon everyone. The very reason they were on this quest in the first place.

Chewie howled and threw the blade into the water, the red glow sizzling and leaving behind steam as it sunk into the depths.

"The Force doesn't seek vengeance. Merely, that the wounds inflicted upon itself and its users are healed," Maz stated, approaching the waters.

Poe wiped the sweat off his brow. "What? Are you a Jedi?"

"No, but I know the Force. It is life. It is in every living being. Kylo Ren's Force signature is a walking homing beacon. Always has been."

"That makes no sense—"

Chewie interrupted, seeing a drenched Kylo Ren burst from the depths, his hand outstretched and lifting up the siren from the water. He crawled to shore, Maz and Chewie reaching for him as he coughed and dropped his red sword in the mucky sand. Poe eyed the blade, the glow not betraying how it can cauterize but still cause bleeding for a few precious seconds.

Ren's hand was still outstretched, suspending the siren in mid-air. He placed her down on the bank, getting up and standing tall, no longer limping or clutching at his side-wound.

The siren stared right back at Ren.

"Go ahead, Your Highness," she said between gasps of air. "Kill me. Live up to your name. Jedi Killer."

His hand trembled as he reached for his sword. The blade shook as he pointed it right at the siren.

Poe expected no mercy. He expected it to be a brutal strike of the throat. It never came. Ren continued to stare at the creature, and stare, and stare. The lack of action said it all, Ren wasn't going to kill the siren.

Poe took his ax and plunged it into the gut of the siren. Her hair faded to silver and her appearance turned into that of a different beautiful woman, the usual appearance of a siren.

Before Poe knew it, he, Maz, and Chewie were flung on their backs. Poe looked up and saw Ren disappear into the woods.

"What happened exactly?" a doctor asked Rey as she practically dragged the poor man back to the long-term care ward.

"I started talking and introducing myself and suddenly he started moving and he looked like he was waking up," Rey explained.

When they came back to the room, she gaped.

Han was sitting up in his bed, rubbing at his eyes with one hand while Leia held the other.

He blinked, then noticed Leia and smiled. "Hey Princess."

Leia rolled her eyes. "Hi, Han."

His eyes glanced at Rey. "Nice to see my future daughter-in-law too."

Rey's cheeks were at least five shades of red. "What, oh no, I'm just a friend of Leia's."

Han furrowed his brow at that.

The doctor cleared his throat. "We should check on your vitals. You've been asleep for a long time."

Rey sat outside the ward to give Leia and Han their privacy. Her eyes stared at her phone, thumb hovering over Kylo's number. To call or not call? Kylo may be an ass but he deserved to know that his own father has woken up from his coma.

That was more than a phone call. She planned to do it in person.

"Hey hey!" Poe waved to her from down the hall.

"Oh! Poe, how are you, what are you doing here?" Rey stood right up.

Poe rubbed his neck. "Leia sent a text that you would need a ride home. Finn already went to bed so you're stuck with me."

Rey smiled. "Thank you. I guess I should get going. Leia will be here a while."

They began to walk out of the hospital until Rey stopped in the parking lot.

"Um actually," Rey spoke up. "Can we go somewhere first?"

Poe nodded. "Where to?"

"I was just um." She looked down at her phone. She had the address, having written it down while organizing the calendar. "I was hoping you could take me to Kylo Ren's place. I feel like he should know."

Poe's mouth fell into a frown. "Oh."

"I mean I… I don't think he should hear it over a phone call," Rey explained.

"Rey." Poe leaned against his car. "I don't think that's wise. Not because I think it's not kind of you, but…"

"But?"

Poe sighed. "Kylo himself is the reason Han was in a coma in the first place."

The words were a stab to the chest. Bile bubbled in Rey's throat.

"Just take me home then."

The water worked. Maz dipped the cloth into the canteen full of lake water and she let it drip onto the open wound in Han's chest.

Within minutes, Han was awake.

Leia let out a breath she was holding, squeezing his hand tightly.

"Han?" she spoke to him.

He smiled, the same old warm, charming smile. "Hey, Princess."

Maz moved over to tend to Finn's wounds, a scar left on his back but healed fully.

"Where…" Han coughed. "Where is our son?"

Leia looked away. "He's gone. I don't know where, but he is gone."

Poe crossed his arms. "And that Rey girl is missing too."

Maz set down her bowl. "We need to find the girl. Her powers are awakening and she is reckless." She turned away to mutter under her breath. "Seems to be a thing with the kids these days."

Leia nodded. "I think we'll find her. Very soon."

Poe agreed. "Better find her before Kylo Ren does. That siren from the lake looked like Rey for him."

To Poe's horror, Han and Leia both looked at each other and shared small smiles.

Where the hell was Han at?

That was his first question as he opened his eyes into a new strange ass world.

Leia was sitting by his side, wearing a new style of clothing that was so Leia but so nothing like he was used to. Elegant but a different kind of elegant.

He glanced at Rey, the girl who had captured his son's heart. The girl he announced after meeting her exactly one month he was going to marry her. The girl who brought him home.

She didn't recognize him though. She was a flustered mess when Han called her his future daughter-in-law. And she was also wearing weird clothes. She looked like Leia dressed her, which was a very Leia thing to do so he didn't doubt it.

Someone important was missing. Han knew his son, he would rarely if ever not be by Rey's side. He stuck to her like glue, a love-sick puppy.

Rey had left while the doctor checked over his vitals and Leia asked important questions. His name. His wife's name. His son's name.

"Speaking of Ben," Han said. "Where is he?"

Leia frowned. "He's… Well. He works for Snoke now."

Now?

What the hell did he miss?

Where did his son go again?

He sighed. "Pray for Rey I guess. That boy is going to need her."

Leia laughed. He missed hearing her laugh.

"I missed you," she said. "I was so terrified you weren't going to wake up."

Han reached for her cheek. "I've survived worse, Princess. You know this."

She rolled her eyes. "Like the time Chewie ran the Falcon over your hand?"

Panic raced through his veins. Wherever he was, he was definitely not in Alderaan anymore.

"Dad?"

The low light of the torches casted a shadow over a little scrawny boy with messy abyss locks and rings underneath his eyes.

Han set down his cards, his second loss of the night of Sabacc to Chewie. He pushed his chair out and looked at his son.

"What is it, kid?" Han asked, always happy to see Ben, even if he didn't know quite how to deal with him and whatever mystical nonsense he seemed to carry most of the time.

"I had a bad dream again," Ben said. "I can't sleep and Mom is asleep too."

No one could ever say that Ben wasn't sensitive and considerate.

Han gestured to the empty seat next to him. "Come here, kid."

Ben made his way over, dragging his velvet blanket with him and sitting down on the hardwood chair.

Chewie said hi to Ben, and Ben gave a toothy grin in return before saying hi back in Shyriiwook. It still needed work but Han was proud how his son picked it up so quickly.

"Do you wanna talk about your nightmare kid?" Han rubbed a hand on Ben's back, the way he figured it out when his son was even smaller and just a baby. Since when did he get so… Big? And he was only going to get bigger.

"It was scary. I saw this… Lady in a lake and she looked so pretty but she pulled me underwater and I thought I was drowning."

"Well, Ben. You're not drowning. And well, the only pretty lady I know of is your mother currently so you're gonna be fine. It'll be alright kid."

Ben grinned before yawning. "Thanks, Dad." He reached his uncoordinated hands for the cards on the table. "Can you teach me how to play with you and Uncle Chewie?"

The receptionist made her rounds in the ward, looking for anything new. Seeing the new girl in town mention something about how someone was moving and waking up, she knew.

Once the woman clocked out for the night, she pulled out her phone and made an important phone call to her employer.

"Bazine, what is it?" Snoke's gravelly voice spoke over the phone.

"Hello, sir. I believe you wanted me to tell right away if there are any new changes."

"Of course my dear."

"Well then, the boy's father is awake."

Silence over the line.

"Thank you for telling me Bazine. You'll be getting a pay raise for this."

"Of course, sir. Anything you need."

Ending the call, Bazine was satisfied with her inflated paycheck.

A/N: I'm blown away by the response to this fic. Thank you so much! Onto the reviews.

Guest: I'm so glad the transitions were easy to follow! It's easy to be lost when you're following two universes and a lot of flashbacks.

Carol: Thank you so much! I'm glad the flashbacks are a hit! (Probably comes from the fact I've written a lot of OUAT-style fics before lol)

benfan1: Ask and ye shall receive. ;)