For nearly three weeks Elizabeth kept her head down, and the number of people who saw her to a minimum. The boy named Henry had been overly obliging, and sympathetic towards her plight. But she knew something was off. The others who had come with her, others from the Land of Untold Stories, they were adjusting far better than she to this new realm. She felt as though she was stuck in the past.
"Have you finished the book already?"
Elizabeth jumped in her seat at the sound of Henry's voice. She hadn't noticed him enter the small cabin she occupied in the woods. It was a decent size, for her at least, and few people came through. "I have little else to do out here," she responded with a small smile. The truth was, much of what she read nearly gave her nightmares but she didn't dare put it down. He had gone through so much, done so much…
Henry sat down at the wooden table across from her and studied her face for a moment. "You still won't tell me how you know him?"
"As I said before, I don't know Captain Hook," Elizabeth answered shortly.
"But you know Killian Jones."
"Perhaps. In another lifetime, maybe."
He nodded, but didn't press further this time. She appreciated that, at least. "Are you sure you still want to go home? Back to the Enchanted Forest? You can make this your new home."
She had considered it. While most of the advancements intrigued her...although some frightened her, such as lights that turned on with a switch...Elizabeth knew she had no place here. And knowing everything now, his life, she was sure she did not want to be part of that.
"I'd like to try to get sorted before I return. If there is someone who knows what happened to me, they may be here."
"Did you have any friends from the Land of Untold Stories?"
She shook her head. "My cabin in the woods should be an indication of my social skills."
Henry let out a small laugh. "Maybe you like trees."
"Henry, how...how can one tell if their memories had been erased?"
He looked at her quizzically, obviously intrigued by her question. "What do you mean?"
"I mean…" she paused and leaned towards him. "I remember running away from rebels, in my city, the next thing I know I'm grabbed from behind, a bag put over my head."
"And then?"
"I heard muffled voices, some...glimmers of light, and then I woke up in a field outside a city in a land I'm now told is the Land of Untold Stories. I was there a mere two weeks before I woke up here. And I learn it's been two hundred years. How is that possible, Henry, if my memories weren't taken?"
Henry stood and walked to the door. "I can't tell, but maybe Regina can. It means going into town, though."
Elizabeth sighed and wrapped her cloak around her neck. She brought the hood up to cover her face, but frowned when Henry rolled his eyes. "What?"
"Because that's not conspicuous."
"Oh, just lead the way."
Elizabeth watched as the woman's hand waved slowly in front of her forehead, golden light emanating from...well, either the hand or her own forehead. She wasn't quite sure.
Regina frowned and let her hand fall to her side. "Well, you don't seem to have any holes, and nothing was re-written that I can tell. It's possible you were frozen somehow, by a spell. A sleeping curse, maybe?"
Elizabeth shook her head. "I think I'd remember true love's kiss. Even if he ran away as soon as he kissed me, which is highly inappropriate might I add, that doesn't explain how I left the Enchanted Forest."
Regina clasped her hands in front of her and rocked forward. "Then you'll need someone who was alive when you were. Rumpelstiltskin."
She stood quickly, overturning the chair behind her. "The Dark One? No. I will not owe that creature anything. I refuse."
"Oh relax," Regina waved her away. "He's harmless. Well, mostly. We're just asking him a question."
But she still refused to move. "No. Information, like magic, comes with a price. I'm not willing to pay that to simply have my suspicions confirmed."
Henry stepped forward, holding his book of stories out in front of him. "But if you're right, that someone took your memories, then don't you want to know why? Don't you want to know where you fit in here? Someone took you from your land. There has to be a reason."
"And you think the Dark One will simply hand over this information?"
"One step at a time. First, we need to know what happened to your memories. If there are no memories to find," Regina paused and shrugged, "then we need to deal with whatever spell you were under to keep you from aging."
"Neverland?" Henry asked, looking at Regina.
"Like I said," Regina started, heading for the door of her office, "one step at a time."
Elizabeth hesitated, but took a few quick steps in order to catch up with the other two. "I know there are more pressing matters you all need to attend to. We don't have to do this now."
Henry smiled at her, with that reassuring look of his. "No one's currently trying to kill any of us. It's a slow day."
"Right."
"Are you afraid of what you might find out?"
"What is this Neverland you speak of?" Elizabeth asked, changing the subject quite poorly. She didn't quite care, though.
Henry opened his book as they walked down the street. He held it out to her, open to an image of Peter Pan and Captain Hook. "I thought you read that part. No one gets old there? Guarded by my great grandfather who stole the shadows of children?"
"I can see why your father would want to live in a land without magic," Elizabeth muttered, slamming the book closed. She stopped as they arrived at an antique store. "Mr. Gold? Because he spins wool into gold. Clever."
Suddenly the door opened, a blonde woman bursting through the door. The woman stopped when she saw the three of them standing there, but her eyes softened when she saw Henry. "Hey, Kid. Regina." She turned her attention to Elizabeth, who suddenly felt uncomfortable meeting her gaze. "Who's your friend?"
"Mom, this is Elizabeth," Henry answered. "She came in with the new arrivals. We're hoping Gold knows something about her."
The woman raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "She can't tell us herself?"
"I would if I could remember," Elizabeth spoke, suddenly on the defensive.
Her tone seemed to take the woman aback. "Sorry. I'm Emma."
"The Saviour. Yes. Henry's told me all about you." She smiled when she realized how her words could come across. "He...he gave me his story book to read, to lift my spirits. Or jog memories."
Emma took a step towards them. "Do you recognize any of the people in the book?"
"She's not from our time," Regina offered, earning a quick look from Elizabeth which she missed. "Seems she's a bit older than she looks."
"Not always a bad thing," Emma laughed. "Unless you're a teenager in this realm trying to buy booze." She looked around at the wrong audience. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Elizabeth. Welcome to Storybrooke. If you need anything, let me know."
Regina led Elizabeth and Henry into the shop as Emma left them. Elizabeth couldn't help but hate herself more. She knew she had made the right choice, staying out in the woods. Seeing the Saviour for herself, she was sure staying away from Killian was the right choice. The sooner she could leave, the better.
