Once Upon A Time Was Wednesday
By EnigmaSphinx
Chapter Three
A/N: I'm writing this story for myself and sharing it for anyone who might also be interested. Reviews are nice, they always fan the flames of creativity, but unnecessary. This story is just something that wouldn't let me go. Spoilers for everything aired which is all of season one, but I will take some liberties with things. Don't flame me for anything that doesn't live up to your fantasies, this one is mine and lives up to my illusions.
Disclaimer: I own nothing of OUAT. The show and its characters belong to their respective owners. I make no money off this enterprise and I respectfully pay homage to the original creators with my little scribblings.
Back in Jefferson's opulent house, Shayde turned to the Hatter with glee. "Oh, you are brilliant!" she exclaimed. She laughed aloud. "Did you see his face when you said you were possessive of my time and attention? He doesn't know me, but the draw is there!" She sobered a little, laying her hands on his chest and looking up into his eyes, "I believe he is the one, my friend. Have you thought of the favor you want of me?"
"You aren't certain yet," he answered gravely. "Once you are certain, then I will ask a favor of you."
Shayde frowned. "Are you certain you wish to wait?" she asked. "Grace grows no younger and you are still cut off from her. I can make it so that she is yours again."
"How would you do that?" Jefferson frowned down at her.
"There is magic enough in me to take her from the people she lives with, to erase her memories of them and bring her to your side. You can take her and leave then. As you alone possess the hat that travels between the worlds, your enemy cannot follow you, can she?" Shayde shrugged. "As for your enemy, perhaps I could change her into something less dangerous?"
"No," Jefferson protested. "Until Regina is vanquished, the danger is greater than ever for Grace. She's safer as Paige, living the life she has now than with me, Regina wouldn't have activated the forget spell if she wasn't trying to salvage her power. I am still useful to her and she wouldn't hesitate to harm Grace to make me help her."
Shayde considered that and her natural sympathy made her respect Jefferson's concerns. "As you will then," she told him. "But I have promised you whatever you ask within my power to grant and I will honor my bargain."
"There are still many things you need to know," Jefferson said. "And I will teach you so that you can move among the people of Storybrooke without concern. The only people you need be concerned with are Regina and Emma Swan, the sheriff. She can tell a truth from a lie and she is destined to free us all." He smiled at Shayde wistfully. "Perhaps when we are all free, my daughter and I can escape to your world."
"If you like," Shayde agreed.
"Until then, consider this your home, Shayde. You have been alone a long time and so have I. At least we get along well and I prefer your cooking to my own." Jefferson grinned, "I am glad to have company after so many years."
Shayde was grateful for the company as well. Jefferson was not a difficult man to live with. He still labored on his hats, unable to give up on crafting them after so many years of trying to make his hat work. Even though he possessed the original, he was still compelled to make more. Shayde recognized that feeling all too well. She missed her garden at home and the routine that she had followed for centuries. In the meantime, she could mind Jefferson's house for him and make the land outside prettier for her time spent with him.
Days passed as she learned more about this strange world. She grew comfortable with the clothing Jefferson bought her and his house began to change under her ministrations. It grew less sterile and homier as she altered rooms to make them warmer than before.
Outside the garden changed as well as flowers crept into the beds and trees reached taller than before. The land was rich enough to support Shayde's efforts and she liked being outside in the sun, her hair tucked up under a hat made for her by Jefferson and her skin taking on a warm sun-kissed glow. It was during one afternoon, while she was digging in the flower bed, that she met the Sheriff.
A shadow fell over her as she maneuvered the last of a series of rosebushes into place. Shayde looked up in surprise, squinting against the sun to see who stood there. Her hands were covered in rich black dirt and a streak of it was smeared across her cheeks, making her green eyes brighter in contrast. The shadow moved aside until the light fell across the woman's face. Shayde smiled up at her.
"Good afternoon," she said to the stranger. "Can I help you?"
"I'm not sure," the stranger said. "Looks to me like you have your hands full."
Shayde eased the bush into the waiting hole and pushed dirt around it to hold it in. "Sorry," she said politely. Rising to her feet, she eyed the woman cautiously. "Have we met?"
"Not yet," the woman answered tersely. "I'm Sheriff Swan. I was just coming to check on Jefferson."
"I'm afraid he's busy at the moment," Shayde said thoughtfully. "Can I offer you something refreshing, Sheriff Swan?" She hesitated. "Oh, you're Emma!" she exclaimed. "Won't you come inside? I am certain that Jefferson won't mind taking a break to say hello." She brushed her hands off on her jeans carelessly.
"I'm fine, thanks." The sheriff eyed the house warily. "I'd heard that Jefferson had a guest and I just wanted to make sure that everything was okay."
"Everything is going quite well," Shayde assured her. She gestured around the yard. "Do you think this will turn out as an improvement? Jefferson doesn't seem to worry much about his landscaping."
"It looks promising," Emma said slowly, taking in the new plants and the neatly trimmed hedges. "You certainly have a knack for gardening."
"I've had lots of experience." She smiled at Emma. "I'm called Shayde," she said cheerfully. "I'm sorry that I didn't introduce myself. Please forgive my lapse of manners. I would shake your hand but…" She presented her grubby hands. "I wasn't expecting guests."
"You have a last name, Shayde?" Emma asked.
"I do."
There was a lengthy silence until Emma cleared her throat awkwardly. "Ah, and what is it?" she asked at last. Shayde looked at her in surprise.
"My last name?" she asked. Emma nodded. "Oh, it's Moil," she said with a laugh. "Shayde Moil."
"That's an odd one," Emma said. "I've never heard of it before."
"And none too attractive either," Shayde agreed. "Which is why I hardly ever use it." Emma eyed her curiously. Shayde smiled at her, wondering if Jefferson's warning had been correct. The sheriff might have a sense of untruth from Shayde's words but there wouldn't be enough for her to be suspicious of. At least Shayde didn't think there would be.
"Well, if everything is alright," Emma said at last. "Then I have other visits to make." She hesitated however and Shayde kept her expression friendly and blank while the woman was watching her.
"Don't let me keep you," she said to the officer. "I am certain that you have many responsibilities."
"Yeah." Emma glanced at the house and back to Shayde. "If you ever need anything," she said quietly, holding out a card. "Feel free to give me a call. I will be happy to help." Shayde took the card and glanced at it before tucking it into her pocket.
"Thank you, Sheriff. How very kind of you."
She watched the woman walk back to her patrol car and drive away. She turned her attention back to the flowers she'd planted and watered them from the long green hose while she considered the conversation.
She was still deep in thought when the sound of an automobile pulling up in the drive pulled her attention away from her work. A woman got out of the car, not Emma but a stylishly dressed woman with dark hair and a petulant expression. Shayde watched her as she started for the door.
"Excuse me," Shayde called out to her. "Can I help you?"
The woman hesitated, frowning at Shayde for a moment then dismissing her. "No," she said sharply. "I'm here to see Jefferson." She started back for the door. Shayde recognized her from Jefferson's lessons. This was the Mayor, Regina, the Evil Queen. That she had come to see Jefferson meant something was afoot and likely something bad. Shayde aimed the hose across the steps, cutting off the Mayor's progress with a jet of water. The woman screeched, springing back to avoid getting wet. "Watch what you're doing!" she yowled.
"Oh, I am," Shayde said calmly. "Jefferson is quite busy," she continued, "He asked not to be disturbed. I am sorry, but you'll have to come back another time."
"I need to see him now," the Mayor snapped. Shayde shrugged.
"I am so sorry," she said in a polite voice. "You'll need to set up an appointment, ma'am. I fear he cannot be disturbed at this time."
The brunette stared at her in open mouthed surprise. "Do you have any idea who I am?" she demanded.
"Mayor Mills, isn't it?" Shayde asked. She smiled sweetly. "So?"
"Who the hell are you?"
"The person holding the hose," Shayde replied. She flicked the end of the hose so that water splashed closer to the Mayor. "Consider me Mr. Milliner's secretary and chatelaine. Come back another time, preferably tomorrow or some other day." Or never, she thought.
"Well." The mayor huffed. "I never…!"
"Perhaps you should," Shayde suggested lightly. "Might improve your mood." She smiled wider as the Mayor blustered for a moment then turned and retreated to her car. Shayde waited until the auto pulled away and disappeared down the road before rinsing her hands under the water and turning off the hose. She put her gardening things away and went into the house to prepare dinner.
Jefferson was waiting in the living room, grinning. "My, we are popular today," he observed lightly.
"I should say so," Shayde agreed as she went into the kitchen to wash her hands properly. "Two guests in one day. We haven't entertained anyone in the whole time I have been with you. Jefferson." She recounted her conversation with both women as she dried her hands and gathered things together for dinner. Jefferson laughed aloud at the incident with the Mayor.
"So you've met both Emma and the Mayor," he mused. "What did you think of them?"
"I liked the Sheriff but I can't say the same for the Mayor." Shayde shook her head. "I don't remember her or anyone like her in my world, Jefferson. Do you mind that I kept her out?"
"Not at all." He paused thoughtfully. "I don't want her to bother Grace so I will have to see her sometime."
Shayde said nothing but her thoughts wandered over how to insure Jefferson's peace of mind. He had so little of it that she wondered if she couldn't make it better. She could certainly make it difficult for the mayor to get to Jefferson but his daughter was a different matter. She would have to be cautious if she wanted to protect the little girl from the older woman's malice. It wouldn't do to make too many enemies until she learned what side her master was on.
After dinner, she washed up the dishes and went to her room, leaving Jefferson to look through his telescope at Grace's house. She ran a hot bath and stripped off her clothes before gratefully sinking into the tub. She thought about her master as she soaked in the heat, considering the idea that she would have to confront him eventually. He had not sought her out and time was passing. She needed to see him, to find out if he was indeed the person she hoped he was.
Floating under the water weightlessly, only her face above the water, she thought about the dagger. So easy to picture it in her mind's eye, to remember the curved and elegant blade, the name blazoned on its length. She knew every inch of the knife by heart. It called to her as it called to him, just as loudly here as ever before. In her world, the dagger was broken, shattered by the kiss of a stupid mortal girl. Here however, here it was whole and it was nearby.
She saw Mr. Gold's face as he'd been on the street. He looked like a man but the dagger was still in his possession. She'd seen his aura flare black with the power of the Dark One. He was as cursed as ever he'd been even though he hadn't recognized her. She wondered if his name was the same. The name appeared in her memory and as she savored it, Gold's face sharpened in her mind's eye, his expression turning dangerous. She felt a building pressure as he sought her mentally. Rumplestiltskin, she thought loudly, and she felt his shock through the tenuous link.
Oh, yes, it was definitely the same name.