AN: See chapter 1 for story notes and summaries.

Ships: Snowing, Rumbelle, Swan Believer, eventual Swanfire, and a delightful Golden Mad Charming BroT3. :)

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For one face claim reveal, I will tell that I chose Gal Gadot as the face claim for Persephone...cause she's perfect as Persephone!

Please consider leaving a review if you're reading. It is very much appreciated!

Thanks for awesome the reviews. Here are individual responses:

Sara K M: Yeah, I just thought Henry showing up would be totally something he would do. He does have a huge hero complex and they really do need to have a talk with him about it. Yep, Hades' entrance was very anti-climatic, which I did on purpose. It was exactly what they weren't expecting. Up until now, I've portrayed him as this vengeful, evil man. But now that he's here, I get to explore him a little deeper. He's definitely a villain, but this chapter might reveal to you that he's definitely bad, but maybe not so evil to the extent we know Deimos is. Yes, Snow is kind of grasping at straws with Regina right now. There are a couple conversations coming up in the next couple chapters that discuss this a bit. Glad you loved the Snowing comfort tacos. I really liked that scene too. Thanks, I enjoyed the part where Emma was struggling with trying to apply her parents to a real world scenario.

Grace5231973: I hope Hades is telling the truth too. We shall see, eventually. You might be right about Tamara being a more imminent threat. I will say there is definitely a bit more to Hades than I've revealed so far. This chapter, we finally start looking at him a bit deeper. Yeah, super awkward brunch. Definitely Team Swanfire. Awkward brunch is followed by awkward talk between Neal and Tamara.

Saberius Prime: Yep, very interesting. Hades didn't exactly behave the way they thought he would. But that just makes it more fun and mysterious, lol :)

MerlockVonBaron: **shrugs** Mulan and Phillip just don't really fit into the storyline I'm doing here. If they happen to later on, then I'll bring them in. If they don't, I won't. I tend to rework most elements of canon and sometimes, in some cases, I omit them altogether. That's what's great about fanfiction.

Theinferno1536: Will Snow's bio-dad return? Yeah...I have to pull an A&E and tell you "can't say". Let's just say, things are complicated when it comes to him and Hades both. Things aren't always what they seem and I begin to hint at that in this chapter. As for how Hades affects things in a day to day aspect? Right now, he actually won't have too much impact...yet. He's working behind the scenes and right now Tamara and Greg will be a more imminent threat.

Naomi Blue: Yeah, he probably didn't change his mind and is still up to something. That being said...we're about to explore Hades a bit more. Up until now, he's been a pretty black and white villain and that's about to change as we go much further in depth with him.

Guest: Oh yes, Hades is playing the long game.

Number Ten: Zelena actually appears in this chapter and Hades kind of becomes more of an enigma. Will he run interference with Greg and Tamara? Good question...I can't tell you, lol. But yeah, Tamara is probably a bigger threat right now. Glad you liked the references to One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. :)

izzypirelli: lol, yeah...I really didn't have to rip his shirt open. It had no effect on the plot. I just did it, because I wanted to, lol. I LOVE the scene where he rips his scrubs off. And any scene he is wearing a sleeveless shirt. I thought mentioning that it was unseasonably cold that morning would really set the mood. I love how Persephone's mood can effect the climate. It's a really interesting plot point. Ha, yeah they probably shouldn't be surprised that he knows Hades. Hades is definitely reaching when he compares himself to David. I agree, Ginny and Gal are gorgeous. Does Hades regret his actions? That's a bit of a loaded question, as you'll find out in this chapter. I don't think he regrets it in the way he should and you'll know what I mean by that when you read this chapter. I threw in another twist. I probably also created more questions too, but that's my job as a writer, lol. I loved the Snowing tacos scene too. Yep...Emma might be a bit jealous, even if she's in major denial. Speaking of Operation Swanfire, hang onto that. Here in a few chapters, Snow and Rumple might be boarding that ship with Henry and dragging their "we agree with you, but really shouldn't meddle" significant others with them. As for the Home Office, in the show it seemed like she only knew certain things. Knowing Hook actually made sense if the Home Office really is the Lost Boys. They would know him, but probably not anyone else, save for Neal obviously. But is the Home Office actually the Lost Boys here? Maybe...or maybe there's a bit more to it than that. Wow, I'm really good at the no answers answers today, lol. For now though, she is going to be playing the total skeptic, but we know that's for deception on her part. :)

Dreaming Out Loud

Chapter 61: Welcome to Storybrooke, Pt 2

After leaving the lake the night before, Hades surveyed for the richest neighborhood in Storybrooke, which naturally brought him to Mifflin Street. Since Deimos had been imprisoned, his mansion was vacant, so the God of the Underworld decided to take up residence. He had already magically redecorated to his liking and had spoken little to Hermes since the confrontation with Persephone and her family just hours ago. Or non-confrontation rather. Hermes was still extremely puzzled by Hades attitude and actions. And the God of the Underworld didn't seem to feel the need to share his reasons. Which annoyed and frustrated Hermes, obviously.

He had taken big risks in going down this path. Zeus likely knew of his betrayal by now and he was certain that if he stepped foot anywhere near Olympus right now, he'd be struck with one of the superior God's infamous thunderbolts.

"I suppose you are wondering about my actions at the lake," Hades finally said, interrupting his internal thought process.

"Now that you mention it...why did you let them live? I thought the whole point of making Persephone pay was to kill that which she loves most," Hermes answered. He smirked.

"I could have chosen to strike last night and together, we might have even overpowered Persephone and killed that precious little Charming family. But where is the fun in that?" Hades questioned.

"Then you do plan to make them pay?" Hermes questioned with a smirk.

"Depends on your definition of pay," Hades retorted vaguely, as he gazed out the window of the home. It was so good to be in the world of the living again.

"Did you really revive Persephone's mortal Prince?" Hermes asked. He smirked.

"I did," he answered.

"Why?" Hermes questioned.

"For the fun of it," Hades answered.

"I...I don't understand," Hermes replied.

"Therein lies the beauty of it. You see, Persephone doesn't understand either and she will labor over why I did it or if I even did it. And when she eventually comes face to face with him again, she may be surprised at what she finds," Hades said cryptically.

"Still lost," Hermes said, as the King of the Underworld chuckled.

"Let's just say that her precious Elijah has been in the river a very long time and that has an effect on a person, even just the soul of a person. We'll leave it at that for now," Hades stated. Hermes mulled that over, as Hades continued to gaze out the window at the little gem known as Storybrooke.

Regina gazed out Henry's bedroom window, as the town went about it's normal routine that morning. She hadn't slept at all since the confrontation at the lake with Hades. It hadn't been much of a confrontation at all though and certainly had not ended as she had envisioned. In her mind, it was supposed to end with her enemies swept away and her bringing Henry home to sleep in his own bed. But none of that had transpired and worse, Henry had arrived to witness her part in Hades arrival in town. She would never forget the look in his eyes when she was forced to tell him she was involved in Snow's kidnapping. She clutched one of his pillows to her chest and inhaled his scent from it.

If only he could understand why she had done all of it. But he was just too young to understand that she just wanted him to be happy and she was doing all this for him, even if he couldn't see it. Her own mother had once done the same for her and she hadn't been able to see it either at the time. But Cora had been right about power. It was the only way she could have everything. But without Hades making her enemies pay, she had no idea how to get that power back, short of outright killing her enemies. Even with a sneak attack, she'd likely never successfully pull anything like that off. She sighed and decided to get dressed, before going to her vault. All of her mother's things were there and it was time to face the painful task of going through them.

"What was the call about?" David asked, once they were outside the diner.

"Someone said they spotted Hook down at the Harbor," Emma replied.

"So he made it back here from New York...without his ship?" David asked. She nodded.

"Yeah...and I'd like to know how. He doesn't strike me as the type that navigates land as well as he does sea," Emma replied. He looked at her.

"Do you think he had help?" he asked. She shrugged.

"Possibly and I have some other questions for him," she replied.

"Yeah, he has a pair of handcuffs with his name on them," he agreed, as Snow exited the diner and caught up to them.

"Hey...are you okay?" he asked, as she put her arms around him.

"I am...I was just wondering if maybe you'd be okay with the Mayor coming along on this call?" she questioned. He smiled and kissed her hair.

"You did say you didn't want to let me out of your sight," she added, as she bit her bottom lip. He grinned.

"I did say that. It's definitely okay with me. What about you, Sheriff?" he asked. Emma smiled.

"Of course," she replied, but then turned to them.

"But can you guys like promise not to make out and stuff?" she asked. He chuckled.

"We'll try," he said, as he gazed at Snow fondly. Emma rolled her eyes playfully at them, before she continued on, with them following, hand in hand.

Over at the Inn, they entered the common room and Tamara took a look around.

"Wow...it looks like this place hasn't been redecorated since 1980," she commented, taking in the dated wallpaper and furniture.

"Yeah...you're closer than you think," Neal quipped. She turned and looked at him.

"Okay Neal...what's going on? And what was all that at breakfast?" she questioned, as Henry watched his father shift nervously. He thought about telling her himself, but he figured she'd just laugh and think it was cute. He had gotten a lot of that from people before the curse was broken.

"Okay yeah...there's something I need to tell you. Here's the thing. I'm not from here. I'm from a place called the Enchanted Forest," he said. He decide maybe just ripping off the band-aid would be the way to go and expected her laugh when it came.

"I'm being serious," he said, silencing her, as he grabbed the book from Henry's bag.

"Here...go ahead," he said, as they sat down. She gave him a disbelieving look and then opened the book with an annoyed expression.

"These are fairy tales," she replied.

"And they're real, all right? They're more than real...they're history. They're my history...basically the history of everyone in this town," he said, as he flipped through the pages.

"See this little boy?" he asked, as he pointed to the book.

"That's me," he added.

"What the hell are you doing?" Tamara questioned with an angry edge in her tone.

"I'm trying to be honest with you," he replied. She closed the book and stood up.

"If you wanted to be honest, you would just tell me what this is really about," she shot back.

"What the hell does that mean?" he asked, as he stood up.

"Oh I don't know, cute blondes? Mother of your child?" she replied.

"Emma?" he asked in disbelief.

"I'm not a fool, Neal. I saw the way you two look at each other, even if you try to hide it. That other couple was looking at each other like that all through breakfast, except that it was to a level that was purely nauseating," she complained.

"Grams and Gramps are just like that though. They're true love," Henry chimed in.

"Grams and Gramps…" she snorted, as she took Neal by the arm and pulled him out of earshot.

"Those people can't be his grandparents!" she hissed.

"I know it looks impossible…" Neal started to say, but she cut him off.

"No Neal...it is impossible! But your kid believes it and obviously his Mom encourages it!" she said.

"Hold on...Emma is a good Mom. And I know all of this is a mess, but if you let me explain, I can," he pleaded. But she shook her head.

"You just defended her! That's what this is about!" she accused.

"It's not like that," he refuted.

"Really? Because I think it is. If you want to be with her, Neal, you could've just told me instead of making up crap to force me away," she hissed.

"I don't want to force you away! That's why I'm telling you all this! I'm trying to be one hundred percent honest with you about my past," he argued. But she shook her head.

"No...you still have feelings for Emma and you are even indulging your son's fantasies about that couple being his fairy tale grandparents. Hell, Emma introduced them as her parents, which makes her delusional," Tamara spat.

"Hey...it's not like that," Neal defended and she shook her head.

"I'm sure...but here's the thing. When you're ready to be honest with me about yourself, your feelings, then come find me," Tamara said, glancing at Henry.

"And when you're ready to get your son out of this obviously unhealthy situation, I'll be ready to help you find a good family attorney," she added, as she stormed out. Neal blew out a breath and rubbed the back of his head with his hand.

"That didn't go very well," Henry commented. He sighed.

"No...it didn't. I think the only way she's gonna believe in all this is if she sees it with her own eyes," he replied.

"That's it! We can show her magic and then she has to believe!" Henry exclaimed.

"Whoa...not yet. There is no way she's ready for that. I need to talk to her again first, but right now, I think it's best if we let her cool off for a while," he said. Henry shrugged and they went back over to the diner side.

Emma arrived at the Harbor with Snow and David behind her. But they didn't see the Jolly Roger docked anywhere.

"Did he leave?" David wondered, but Snow looked up into the sky and saw seagulls circling peculiarly above them.

"No...I don't think so," she said, as she grabbed some sand from a bucket on the dock and tossed it seemingly into the water. Except it didn't hit the water first and rather something solid they couldn't see before them.

"Captain Hook has a cloaking device for his ship?" Emma asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Probably something Cora gave him, but I bet you could remove it," David replied.

"Me? I'm not even sure how to begin to do something like that," she said. Snow and David exchanged a glance and then looked back at their daughter.

"You just need to feel it...like you did when we fought Cora. You put up that protection spell and you can break through this cloak," David stated.

"He's right...we believe in you, Emma. Now believe in yourself," Snow added. Emma took a deep breath and stretched her hands out, as she concentrated her magic. A burst of white light erupted from her hands and hit the shield in front of them. It rippled and burst, suddenly revealing the Jolly Roger before them. Hook looked startled, as the three of them boarded the ship.

"Hello Hook…" Emma greeted. He smirked.

"Swan," he leered, as he let his eyes roam appreciatively over her.

"Oh this guy is going to get under my skin really fast, isn't he?" David murmured to his wife and she winced.

"Probably," she agreed, as they followed their daughter. As per usual, Snow had her hand hooked on his elbow and his hand rested on her hip opposite him. It was not unusual for them, but after what they had been through lately, the need to be touching always was almost as necessary as breathing for them now.

"To what do I owe this...pleasure?" he asked, as his eyes raked over her.

"How'd you get back?" Emma asked bluntly.

"I'm a pirate...I find my way around," he replied.

"Yeah...at sea, but there's no boats that are unaccounted for, which means you got here on land. You can't drive and no buses come here. It's not exactly easy to find," she said. She was still miffed about that. Neal would have had to give Tamara pretty good directions for her to find her way on the winding back roads of Maine or so she assumed. Come to think of it, even if Greg Mendell's claims that he veered off course, because he was drunk, didn't really add up all that well either. And she hated when things didn't add up. There was more going on here, but she had little proof. If she could just find that one loose thread though, she knew that one pull, and everything would unravel. But that loose thread wasn't obvious at the time, so she was bound and determined to find it.

"Buses?" Hook asked in bewilderment. Emma rolled her eyes.

"See, you don't even know what a bus is and I know you can't drive. So start talking now," she ordered.

"Or what?" he goaded.

"Or you can go to jail," Emma replied.

"And what crime have I committed?" Hook questioned. She looked at him incredulously.

"Well, stabbing Gold with your poisoned Hook comes to mind," David interjected. The pirate smirked.

"Oh, I rather believe I was doing all the realms a great service by ridding us of the Crocodile. Pity it didn't stick," Hook retorted.

"The bigger question is why would Prince Charming befriend such a being? Doesn't he operate askew to your strong moral compass?" the pirate goaded.

"Perhaps Prince Charming is farcical title, after all. Maybe you are no better than him...or me," he leered. Emma was about to retort, but shouldn't have been surprised when her mother beat her to it.

"Oh, I can assure you, Captain, that my husband is so much better than you. The fact that you even have the gall to suggest that he's on your lowly level is laughable," Snow interjected.

"And trust me...there is nothing farcical about his title. If Prince Charming really is a concept, as this world suggests, then he is the embodiment of that title," she continued defensively. Hook smirked, letting his eyes rake over the raven haired beauty this time.

"I see where your daughter gets her...gumption," he leered, as his tongue poked out on his lower lip. David clenched his fist, wanting nothing more than to deck this smarmy pirate.

"Okay...that's enough, Hook. You're under arrest and you'll thank me for it, because the other option is to just let Dad tear you apart," Emma replied.

"Worried Charming? I've had many a man's wife, you know," Hook boasted, as Emma cuffed him. He chuckled.

"I knew it...you just can't wait to tie me up, can you love?" he leered.

"How about it...shall we go below deck and have some fun?" Hook leered and then hissed in pain, as Emma made sure the handcuffs pinched him. He chuckled.

"Our daughter isn't going anywhere with you," Snow said and he looked at her.

"I knew it...you'd rather have me all to yourself, right love?" he leered. But he wasn't expecting Snow to laugh at him.

"Are you so deluded by your own ego that you think I could be swayed away from my husband by the likes of you?" she shot back.

"Many a married woman has, love," he leered.

"I am not your love. I'm his love," she snapped back.

"I take my marriage vows very seriously, Captain and the true love I share with my husband is obviously something far beyond your comprehension. There is no man, least of all you, that could lure me from his arms and your attempts are disgusting," she continued. The look on David's face was as smug as any Emma had ever seen and she smirked at the pirate.

"Congratulations, you pissed off my Mom. Probably the sweetest, kindest, most forgiving woman I know. That's quite a feat," Emma goaded, as she marched him off the ship.

"Ugh...it's beyond me how any woman would fall for any of those lines or that smarmy smirk," Snow complained, as they followed their daughter. But he stopped her when they stepped back onto the dock.

"So...level with me. You don't find him even a little aesthetically pleasing?" David asked. She smirked and smoothed her hands inside his open leather jacket, along his chest.

"Why would I when all this is mine?" she asked, as her eyes looked him up and down. He grinned.

"Are you flirting with me, Mrs. Nolan?" he purred. She grinned back and tugged him closer by his collar.

"What do you think, handsome?" she purred back, as their lips met passionately.

"Guys...you promised not to make out," Emma whined. Their lips parted and they chuckled together.

"I think we promised that we'd try," Snow corrected. Emma huffed and rolled her eyes, before prodding Hook into the back seat of the patrol car.

"Twenty-eight and she still rolls her eyes at us like she did when she was a teenager," he joked. She smiled and kissed him quickly again. She then frowned at the prospect of sitting in back with Hook. He sighed.

"Take the front with Em. I'll sit in back with his smarminess," David relented. She smirked and kissed his cheek.

"I'll make it up to later," she promised with a sultry look. He smirked.

"Can't wait for that," he said, as they got in the car and Emma drove off for the station.

"Well, Mr. Mendell, I'd say your recovery is nothing short of miraculous, considering the internal bleeding you came in with," Whale stated, as he scribbled on the patient's chart.

"So I can go?" he asked.

"I don't see any reason you can't be discharged later today. Physically you check out fine, though I need you to take it easy. But if your blood tests come back okay, then you can be on your way," Whale replied encouragingly.

"Thank you Doctor," Greg replied, as the doctor hung his chart back up and left. Greg waited to make sure he was gone and then dialed "her".

"Hey...it's me. Are you here yet?" he asked.

"I just got here this morning. When are you going to be released?" Tamara asked.

"Later today...so I'll be getting a room at the Inn. Then I can finally search this town properly for my father," he whispered into the phone.

"Good...I met the boy and his family. The stories that we were told are apparently true," Tamara responded.

"Yes...I've been getting the same thing and more than just fairy tales that are supposedly real," Greg mentioned.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"I'll explain more later, but there is definitely strange things going on in this town and I'm going to find proof," he replied.

"We both are. I went off on Neal and acted like his entire story was bogus. Now I'm sure he'll make the mistake of showing me what I want to see and then we'll have the proof that this town is diseased with magic," she said.

"When are you going to break it off with him? Now that we're here, we don't need him anymore," Greg hissed.

"Yes, we do. I promise it will be soon though," she refuted. He sighed.

"Fine...can I at least see you tonight?" Greg asked.

"Neal will probably be spending time with the kid. Come to my room around dinner time. I'll tell Neal that I need some time to think and opt out of dinner with him and the Nolans," she said.

"Great, see you then and we can go over the next step...among other things," he leered, as their call ended.

Zelena was a few weeks into her stint as Kelly West, a nobody citizen of Storybrooke and she had bided her time, watching and waiting in the shadows. She was getting a bit impatient, but for all she knew, Snow White was already with child and just in the early days. Soon enough, she was certain the Princess would be sporting a baby bump that would be her key to getting everything she wanted.

"Is this seat taken?" a voice asked and she looked up from her place on the park bench. Her mouth was slightly ajar, as she was surprised to see none other than Hades himself standing there. But then she smirked.

"So...you found a way here," she stated.

"No thanks to you," he replied, as he sat down next to her.

"Well, you were going to stand in my way of getting what I want and I'm not going let anyone do that, even the God of the Underworld," she spat in return.

"So it seems. Because of your betrayal, I had to rely on my minion to use the blood of my step-daughter to get me here," he replied.

"And yet she still lives. I thought you'd try to murder the poor thing the moment you had the chance," Zelena stated. He chuckled.

"Why Zelena...don't tell me you care about the well being of Snow White?" he questioned. She scoffed.

"Of course not...I just need her alive, until she spawns another brat, that is," she refuted.

"Then you haven't given up your foolhardy plan to travel back in time?" he questioned.

"It's not foolhardy! It's the only way I can have everything!" Zelena refuted.

"Really? You'd actually want to be raised by the likes of your mother Cora and King Leopold. To me, it sounds like you dodged a bullet there," Hades quipped.

"If it means that my sister won't exist and mother will give me everything, then yes! At least I will be appreciative of her efforts, unlike Regina," Zelena spat.

"And yet...you don't seem overly sad about your mother's passing," he said. She scoffed.

"Helping Regina got her that fate. It will be different for her with me," Zelena responded.

"Zelena...I encourage you to give up this conquest and think of a new one. One where we can rule together and sweep away all our enemies," he tempted. She smirked.

"Sorry...I have no interest in being your Queen. Besides, I thought that title was still taken?" she questioned.

"Persephone can barely stand the sight of me and she's far too absorbed with her Charming little family to be my proper Queen," he replied.

"Well...that's your problem. No one is standing my way and it will not be long until Snow White is with child, considering that she and the Prince can't keep their hands off each other," she said. He smirked.

"Yes...giving her that potion to nullify her birth control was a nice touch. But I still must warn against this path, my dear Zelena," he said.

"And why is that?" she asked.

"Quite simply, it is one offense that my brother will not stand for or let go unpunished," he warned. She gave him a skeptical look.

"Zeus may have broken most of his own rules and sleeps with anything that moves, but this is one aspect of magic even he hasn't tampered with. It's expressly forbidden in the most severe sense," Hades warned.

"Is that supposed to scare me?" she questioned.

"It should," he snapped.

"What if I could promise you a better life?" she questioned.

"Not even time travel can change my banishment to the Underworld," he refuted.

"Perhaps not...but it would give you a chance to do things differently. As much as you express your love for me, I know that you will always hold a torch for Persephone. What if you could go back and with a kinder hand...you might earn her love in return," she tempted. He looked at her, but shook his head.

"I'm not sure that's possible," he refused.

"Oh, I don't know...think about it. What if you had spared her mortal Prince that day and forgave her indiscretion? What if you promised to help her raise her lover's child and even let her be with her mortal lover half the year?" Zelena asked.

"And why would I do that?" he asked. She smirked.

"Think about it...what do you Eva and the northern Kingdom would think if they had to deal with the scandal of their Prince having Persephone as his consort?" she asked. He smirked.

"They would cast him out...unless he agreed to marry for the good of his Kingdom," Hades realized.

"Which would most certainly sour any love between them. And what do you think would be their opinion of dear little Snow White?" Zelena questioned.

"She'd be labeled a bastard child in the royal court...she'd be lucky if she was allowed to be a servant in her father's Kingdom. And since she's a girl...she'd be more of a slave than anything," Hades said. She smirked.

"And then you could provide salvation for her beloved child. She would adore you for it...and eventually love you. You might even be able to eventually convince her that all the strife in her life is Zeus' fault. Persephone would easily sway the other Gods to her cause and then...you would rule Olympus with her by your side," Zelena replied. He chuckled.

"Oh Zelena...I almost forgot how devious your mind is," he said. She smirked.

"Then you'll help me?" she asked. He smirked.

"Time Travel...Zeus will hate that," he mused and then looked at her.

"You have yourself a partner in crime, my dear," he agreed. She smirked.

"Good...I'll even play the villain so you can pretend to disapprove of my plans and side with the heroes. That will win points with Persephone too. All we need now is...for Snow White and Prince Charming to conceive another product of true love," she stated.

"Well, like you said, I doubt it will be long with the way those two look at each other, if it hasn't already happened," he replied, as they shared a devious smiled. So far, his visit to Storybrooke had yielded unexpected, but very interesting results. If they could pull it off...then perhaps time travel was the answer to him getting everything he truly wanted as well…