Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Wolf or Once Upon a Time.


Chapter 6: Best Served Cold

"Revenge is a dish best served cold." = Old saying from the Mafiosi in Sicily.


In the Enchanted Forest…

Prince James galloped through the forest on his horse, his sides burning with exertion. He gasped for air, breathing hard as the horse galloped along the road. The cries of his pursuers echoed through the forest.

A crossbow bolt shot past his head. They were getting closer.

James glanced back, seeing the soldiers close behind him. There were at least half a dozen of them, all heavily armed. If he couldn't get away, they were going to catch him.

Abruptly, a voice yelled, "Duck!" Bizarrely, the voice had come from in front of him.

James didn't question it; he ducked low in the saddle, just as a bolt of blue light shot over him, hitting one of the soldiers and blasting him backwards off his horse. Another bolt followed, felling a second soldier.

James's eyes widened in amazement, but he didn't pause to question the incident; instead, he spurred his horse on, vaulting over a fallen tree that was blocking the road. Rather than keep running, as the soldiers would have expected, he circled his horse around on a narrow trail, concealing himself within a cluster of trees. Hopping off the horse's back, he looked through a gap between two bushes, watching as the soldiers came to a halt at the fallen tree and circled back, scattering.

He turned around… just in time to see two men in maroon uniforms walking towards him. Before he could react, they whipped a sack over his head, and everything went dark.


Storybrooke, Maine

Jackson woke up early. He grinned, stretching luxuriantly, as he thought back on the previous night. He and Ruby had stayed up talking late into the evening at the diner, and he had really enjoyed learning more about her. Interestingly, despite her confident attitude, Ruby was actually very sheltered; in fact, she had never left Storybrooke. Jackson had regaled her with stories of his childhood in Beacon Hills – although, of course, he had left out the supernatural elements – and his recent journey to London.

Dressing quickly, Jackson hurried to the diner, taking a seat at the bar. He nodded to Granny, flashing a smile as Ruby came out of the kitchen. She returned his smile and strolled up to him, carrying her usual clipboard.

"What can I get you?" she asked with a flirtatious smirk.

"Ham and cheese omelet, with hash browns and an apple juice," Jackson replied, mirroring her smirk with his own.

"Coming right up." Ruby grinned, turning and sauntering back into the kitchen as she wrote down his order.

Jackson sighed, leaning forward and resting his hands on the bar. He was growing quite accustomed to Storybrooke by now; he had spent several nights running through the woods outside the town as a werewolf, getting a feel for the area. To be perfectly honest, he was no longer sure that he wanted to leave; this town seemed to be an excellent place to stay for a while.

"Hi."

Distracted by the high-pitched voice, Jackson turned, glancing down to see the same kid who had been talking to him a few days earlier.

"Oh, hey." He nodded. "Henry, right?"

"Yeah." The kid – Henry – was looking at Jackson oddly, almost as if he was examining him. "And you're Jackson, right?"

Jackson grinned, amused. "Yeah, that's me."

"So… why are you here?" Henry inquired. "In Storybrooke, I mean."

That question threw Jackson off guard; he raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Just passing through, I guess. I'd heard I had some relatives up in this part of the country, so I was driving through the area, and I stumbled across this place."

Henry frowned. "But… that doesn't make sense. No one comes to Storybrooke."

"Well, I did." Jackson was actually intrigued by that last statement, despite himself. "What do you mean, no one comes here?"

Shrugging, Henry clambered up onto the stool next to Jackson. "They don't," he said simply. "The only people who've ever come here from anywhere else are Emma, me, that other guy who's staying at the motel, and you. No one else has ever come here. Ever."

Now, this was interesting. "Why do you think that is?" Jackson asked, leaning on the bar.

Henry appeared to be considering whether he should tell him something, but in the end he nodded, leaning closer to Jackson and lowering his voice. "I know why," he said softly. "It's because of the curse."

Jackson almost burst out laughing, but he managed to contain it. "'The curse'?" he repeated. "What curse?"

"Well," Henry explained, "you probably won't believe me – most people don't – but there's a curse on this town. The people who live here don't belong here." His eyes were alight with enthusiasm. "And, by 'here', I don't mean Storybrooke. I mean this world."

Jackson raised an eyebrow. "This world? Then… where are they from?"

"Another world," Henry replied seriously. "A world where every fairy-tale character is real. Snow White, Prince Charming, Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella… they're all real. And they live here now, in Storybrooke. The curse brought them all here, to this world, and made them forget who they are."

Jackson had been listening to this story with a combination of skepticism and interest. Normally, he would've dismissed this story immediately, but something about the way Henry described it made him listen more closely. Also, the fact that Jackson was a werewolf had made him considerably more open-minded than most people. But, all the same, what this kid was telling him sounded ridiculous. Fairy-tale characters? Curses? Magic? Seriously?

"All right," Jackson said after a moment of consideration. "Suppose I believe you." He glanced around the room. "That would mean everyone in here is a fairy-tale character, right?"

"Yep," Henry answered promptly, nodding.

"Okay, then. Which ones are they?"

"Hmm…" Henry looked around, his brow furrowing. "Well, I don't actually know for most people; I haven't figured out who they all are yet. I do know that Archie – that guy in the corner over there – is Jiminy Cricket." He pointed to where a guy wearing a tweed jacket and glasses was seated at a corner table, then glanced over and pointed to Ruby as she exited the kitchen. "Ruby's Little Red Riding Hood, and Granny is her grandmother, the Widow Lucas."

"She's Little Red Riding Hood, huh?" Jackson said, smirking. I suppose that makes me the Big Bad Wolf, he thought, amused by the irony of that idea.

"Hey there, Henry," Ruby said with a smile as she approached them, setting down Jackson's breakfast on the counter. "Have you been telling Jackson here stories?"

"He's telling me about the curse," Jackson answered with a grin.

"Ah, got it," Ruby replied, chuckling. "So you told him I'm Little Red Riding Hood, right, Henry?"

"Yep!" Henry said cheerfully.

"Just out of curiosity," Jackson put in, turning back to face Henry, "do you think I'm a character from one of those fairy tales?"

Henry considered that for a moment, gazing contemplatively at Jackson in thought, and then shook his head. "No; if you were, you would have already been living in Storybrooke." His eyes narrowed. "Although, you do look familiar, now that I'm thinking about it… although, unfortunately, I lost my book, so I can't check to see…"

"Henry?" a woman's voice called from the doorway.

Jackson glanced up, just as a woman wearing a dark business suit walked into the diner. She was shorter than he was, with tan skin, shoulder-length black hair and brown eyes. An aura of authority, mixed with menace, seemed to pervade the air around her like a chill.

"Hi, Mom," Henry said with a smile as he turned, waving to her in greeting.

Jackson nodded slowly. So this was Henry's mother, the "Madame Mayor" that Ruby had told him about.

"Where did you run off to?" she said with a smile, walking up to them.

"I just wanted to say hi to Ruby before school," Henry explained.

Jackson and Ruby exchanged grins.

"And who is this?" Henry's mother – Regina, Jackson remembered – asked, noticing someone she didn't recognize sitting behind Henry. As Henry hopped down from his stool, giving her a clear view of Jackson, her eyes widened in shock for a split second, before returning to her previous calm appearance.

Deciding to speak up, Jackson stood to greet her. "I'm Jackson," he said with a smile, extending his hand politely. "Jackson Whittemore."

"Well, it's… nice to meet you, Jackson," Regina said, smiling thinly as she shook his hand, releasing it almost immediately. Although no one else noticed, Jackson heard her heart rate speed up. She was lying; she was definitely not pleased to meet him.

"You must be Regina," he said with an easy smile. "I've heard quite a lot about you." He gave her a quick once-over, her posture confirming what he'd already suspected; this woman was not interested in being friendly.

Regina's eyes narrowed. "How… nice to hear that." She paused for a moment, scrutinizing him. "I'm sorry, Mr.… Whittemore, was it? But I don't recall seeing you around Storybrooke before."

"That would be because I'm not from around here," Jackson responded casually. "I've only been living here for a couple of weeks; I got here right before that big storm hit."

"I see." Regina appeared to consider that for a moment, and then turned to Henry. "Henry, why don't you go wait for the bus, all right?"

Henry nodded. "Sure, Mom." He glanced over his shoulder to Jackson. "It was nice talking to you, Jackson." Smiling, he turned and exited the diner.

As soon as he was gone, Regina's polite smile vanished. Her eyes locked on Jackson with a stern glare, and she folded her arms over her chest. "So, Mr. Whittemore," she added coolly, "would you mind telling me why exactly you were talking to my son?"

Most people would have been intimidated by an attitude like that. Jackson, however, wasn't most people. Something about knowing that he could snap Regina's neck with his bare hands if he wanted to made her a lot less intimidating. Therefore, instead of hastily saying something, he casually replied, "Well, if you must know, he came up to me. He wanted to know how I got here, and then he started telling me all these stories about fairy-tale creatures and that sort of thing." His lips curved in an amused smile. "I was actually intrigued; that kid definitely knows how to tell a story."

Regina considered that for a moment, then nodded fractionally. "I see. In that case, I should probably be going. I would like to know, though; why are you in Storybrooke?"

Jackson shrugged. "Just passing through."

After a second of staring at him, Regina nodded. "Very well." She stood to leave, then paused, looking back at him. "If I may give you a word of advice, Mr. Whittemore?" She glared coldly at him. "You should stay away from my son." Turning on her heel, she strode briskly out of the diner.

Jackson whistled, turning back to face Ruby. "You weren't kidding," he commented. "She is a bitch."


In the Enchanted Forest…

James made his way slowly through the trees, carrying a canteen filled with water. He had just completed a mission on behalf of Princess Abigail; retrieving enchanted water from the legendary Lake Nostos, in order to revive her true love, Frederick. After killing the deadly Siren that inhabited the lake, he had taken some of the water before returning to Abigail.

"Water from Lake Nostos," he said casually, handing her the canteen. "As requested."

Abigail laughed, delighted. "Remarkable!" she exclaimed. "But… how did you manage to slay the beast?"

"Well, the fate of your true love was at stake," James explained, smiling. "And it was a battle I couldn't afford to lose."

Smiling, Abigail turned to the golden statue of Frederick, still clad in full battle armor. Reaching up, she opened the canteen and gingerly poured the water onto the top of his head, watching as it ran down over the statue.

And then it happened. The gold began to change, melting back into normal silver metal. Within a few seconds, the golden statue had been transformed into an armored knight. He remained motionless for a long moment, and then staggered, losing his balance and nearly falling. Abigail hurried forward and caught the man, supporting him. She unfastened his helmet and pulled it off, revealing a young man with tousled dark hair.

"Abigail," he gasped. "What happened to me?"

"You were trapped," Abigail replied, "but now you're free." She smiled, indicating James. "This is James. He's the one who freed you."

Frederick turned to James and shook his hand. "I am forever indebted to you."

"Well, pay me back by walking down the aisle with someone you truly belong with," James said with a smile, glancing from Frederick to Abigail. "And, perhaps, giving me a horse and supplies for a journey as well?"

Frederick nodded without hesitation. "Done."

"Thank you," Abigail added, tears in her eyes. "So much." She looked at Frederick, then back to James. "Where will you go?"

James paused for a moment, and smiled faintly. "To find Snow White."

"You're going after her," Abigail guessed.

James nodded. "True love isn't easy, but it must be fought for. Because, once you find it, it can never be replaced."

After a moment, Abigail frowned, puzzled. "How will you know where to find her?"

"Well, a bird helped me track her down once," James said. "Hopefully, it can again."

Abigail chuckled. "I think we can do a little better than a bird. After what you've done for me, the least I can do is give you a guide."

James raised an eyebrow in surprise. "A guide?"

"Indeed," a voice called out. James turned, to see a young man walking up to them. He wore a brown jacket, a light blue shirt, loose-fitting brown pants and black boots, and he carried an ornate wooden staff. His bright blue eyes, pale skin and spiked-up, pure-white hair combined to lend him an attractive appearance.

"Jack," Abigail said with a smile. "James, this is Jack Frost. He's a friend of mine; I asked him to help me find you and get you to safety, and he performed admirably in that regard."

"Oh, nothing to it," the young man replied, waving his hand carelessly. "I shot a couple of soldiers off their horses; anyone could do that."

James's eyes widened as he remembered the strange bolts of blue light that had knocked two of the soldiers off of their horses. "That was you?"

"Why, yes," the young man answered. He shook James's hand, a friendly smile on his face. "Pleasure to meet you, Prince James."

James nodded. "You as well… Jack Frost." He turned back to Abigail, momentarily confused. "He is my guide?"

"Yes," Abigail responded. "Jack knows these forests better than anyone else. If anyone is going to be able to lead you to Snow White while evading King George, it's him."

"Not to mention," Jack cut in with a smirk, "that I happen to be a personal friend of Snow White. And, as a matter of fact, I happen to know exactly where she's taken up residence, meaning that I can lead you straight to her front door."

Impressed, James smiled. "Then thank you, Jack Frost." He turned back to Abigail and Frederick. "My best wishes to you both."

"I wish you the same," Abigail replied. "And, James, please make haste. When King George discovers that the union of the kingdoms has been ruined, he will come after you." A shadow crossed her face. "Some people will stop at nothing to destroy the happiness of others."

James nodded grimly, his face set. One of Abigail's guards brought his horse forward, and the prince took the reins, climbing swiftly into the saddle. Jack swung easily onto the horse's back behind him.

"Right, then, Prince James," Jack said with a grin. "Let's get you back to your true love!"

A swift kick from James set the horse in motion, racing down the path and into the forest. Jack laughed as they rode off into the night.


After riding for almost a day, James and Jack finally reached the place where Jack had informed James that Snow was living. A small wooden cabin stood on one side of a field, partially concealed by trees.

As the pair rode up and came to a stop, James hopped off of the horse and walked towards the cabin. "Snow?" he called. "Snow White! Snow! Are you there?"

"She should be here," Jack murmured, walking up behind him. "She was here the last time I visited, and that was only a week ago."

That was when a voice called, "She's gone."

James and Jack turned, taken off guard, as a young woman with long dark hair walked out of the trees. She wore a bright red cloak and hood, and carried a wicker basket in one hand.

Jack's eyes widened in surprise and relief when he saw her. "Red!" he exclaimed, dashing forward.

The young woman smiled, her eyes lighting up in joy, and ran forward to meet him, dropping her basket as Jack tossed aside his staff. They embraced and kissed passionately; Jack lifted her feet off the ground and spun her around in a circle, before setting her down again.

"I missed you," the young woman said with a smile.

"And I you," Jack replied, grinning.

James had been watching this, bemused. "You know each other?" he asked.

"We certainly do," Jack answered, throwing an arm around the girl's shoulders and extending his other hand towards his fallen staff. His palm glowed blue for a moment, and the staff flew off the ground and landed back in his hand. "Red and I have known each other for a very long time."

"What did you say about Snow?" James asked Red, his serious demeanor returning.

Red sighed. "She never came back after she went to find you."

James's eyes narrowed. "Then I'll find her," he decided. "I will always find her. And I will convince her that we belong together." His voice rang with conviction. "I will always fight for her, no matter what comes between us."

Red's lips curled in a smile. "It won't be much of a fight."

"I'll say," Jack added, chuckling.

James frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Snow wants to be with you more than anything," Red said earnestly.

James's head snapped around, glaring at her. "Don't mock me," he snapped. "Snow told me that we can't be together because she doesn't love me."

"She left here to break up your wedding, because she's in love with you," Red countered.

"She's not wrong," Jack seconded. "You're all Snow ever wants to hear news of; well, you and the Queen, of course, but mostly you."

Red frowned, suspicion entering her eyes. "Unless something changed her mind along the way…"

James's eyes suddenly widened in realization, then in fury. "Not something," he growled. "Someone."

A moment later, the sounds of horses neighing and men shouting echoed through the treed, just before a band of soldiers on horseback burst into the open on the other side of the field.

"Jack, James, who are they?" Red asked nervously.

"I'm going to guess that that would be the 'someone' he was talking about," Jack replied coolly.

"King George," James confirmed, glaring at the oncoming horses.

"Bring me his head!" King George ordered from his place on one of the horses, waving his hand to urge his soldiers forward.

"Come on!" James called urgently, beckoning to Jack and Red as he turned and ran towards his horse. The couple ran after him, Jack tugging on Red's hand to speed her up.

Vaulting onto the back of his horse, James looked back, reached down and extended his hand to Red. She nodded in thanks, grasping his hand, and he lifted her into the saddle behind him.

"Jack, let's go!" James ordered.

"Hang on," Jack replied, raising his staff and pointing it at the charging soldiers. "Let me see if I can slow them up a bit." His eyes gleamed mischievously, and he fired a bolt of blue light from the tip of his staff. The bolt struck one of the soldiers squarely in the chest, blasting him backwards off the back of his horse. A second bolt followed, striking down another, ice quickly spreading over the soldier's body as he tumbled to the ground.

"Too many for that," Jack decided abruptly. He paused, then snapped his fingers and smirked in amusement. "Now there's an idea… I haven't used this one in a while." He fired another bolt from his staff, then another, and then another. These three, however, were aimed at the ground a few yards in front of them.

"What was–" James began, but he was halted by a rumbling sound, as three large mounds of ice and snow began to rise from the ground in the places where the three bolts of light had struck the ground.

Then the mounds began to shift and change, forming into three massive shapes. Protrusions of snow formed into massive limbs, two arms and two legs. Sharp, blade-like pieces of ice sprouted from the figures' hands, knees and backs, with the ones on the hands forming into finger-like talons. More pieces of ice grew from the "heads" of the figures, forming dagger-like teeth set into huge mouths. Finally, glowing blue eyes, made entirely from ice, formed on the figures' heads.

Within seconds, the three mounds of snow had been transformed into three massive, golem-like creatures, made entirely of snow and ice. The creatures roared, the sound echoing across the field.

Jack grinned, pointing at the charging soldiers, who were, understandably, stunned by the newly formed giants. "Stop them!" he yelled.

The golems glanced at him, and then turned, roaring in rage, and charged directly towards the soldiers. Within seconds, they were upon the man, smashing them aside with massive, snowy fists, kicking over horses, and letting out deafening bellows. The soldiers were fighting back, but, for the moment, they were too disorganized to mount any kind of counterattack, and their weapons were mostly ineffective against the golems.

"Okay, now we can go," Jack said, jumping effortlessly onto the saddle and landing lightly behind Red.

James didn't bother questioning what had just happened; he spurred the horse into motion, and they galloped away, leaving the raging battle behind them.

"What the hell was that?" James exclaimed in shock as they raced through the trees.

"A trick I learned from an old friend," Jack shouted back. "I'm not as good at it as she was; those things will only last a few hours before the magic I used to create them runs out and they'll evaporate. But they'll buy us the time we need to get away from here, and that's what's important." He frowned. "There'll be more soldiers, though; next time we may not be so fortunate."

"I don't care," James replied, urging the horse to go faster. "I don't care how many enemies I must face; I won't stop until I find Snow."

"Brave heart, Charming," Jack said, chuckling. "I must say, I'm glad to be traveling alongside someone like you. We'll need that courage of yours before this is over."

The horse galloped on, carrying its three passengers into the forest and out of sight.


A/N: And here we are again. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!

Sorry, I said last chapter that I was going to go back to Frost and Snow in this chapter, but I liked this idea better, so I used it instead. Don't worry, we'll get back to the other storyline next chapter.

Timeline-wise, all of the scenes in this episode take place during "What Happened to Frederick".

Shoutouts to RHatch89, tablekorner, BlazeVein, Tala White 14, BestUsernameEver54321, blodrose, and Guest for reviewing! You guys are awesome!

Next chapter, Frost and Snow continue their journey and Frost begins testing his newfound powers, while Jackson comes up with a plan to surprise Ruby at the annual Miners' Festival… stay tuned!

See you all next time!

Review Q&A:

Q: I feel as if I should have realized that he was Jack Frost, I mean from the stick, to coming out of the lack, to freezing, pale white hair! It was so obvious! Well it's definitely intrigued me even more, can't wait to see where you take this development. Loved the Jackson/Ruby bits this chapter, wondering what's going to go on between these two later, especially when it's reveal that she's a werewolf, and then he's revealed as well. Really looking forward to Jackson, and Regina next chapter, that can go many different ways, and definitely looking forward to reading that scene! Keep up the amazing story, looking forward to the next update!

A: Yeah, I'm basing this version of Jack Frost on the version portrayed in "Rise of the Guardians", so his first appearance in this story is very similar to that movie. I'm planning on altering his character, obviously, and he'll have a very different story than in the movie, but his appearance and powers will be based on the movie version.

Q: Oh, right. He grow up in Beacon Hills … then he is the lost baby of Jack Frost? XD (or implanted memories) Nop, you have to put a good explanation for that ;P

A: I most certainly will provide a good explanation. It won't be for a while, though.

Q: So cool! I love this story. It's really exciting. I wonder what the demon is that Jack was hunting… I love the idea of Ruby and Jackson together. Please update soon!

A: Well, as we find out in this chapter, it isn't just Ruby and Jackson who are on their way to getting together, but we've found out that Jack and Red had a bit of a thing going on. interesting, isn't it? As for the demon that Jack was hunting; yes, it will definitely be important to the story later on, but I can't tell you what it is yet. Spoilers! :)