Chapter Thirteen: Therapy

It was Michael who had been sent to pick Henry that evening as part of John's evil plan. Michael was to delay the Mayor for at least an hour in some sort of conversation while John dragged Graham if necessary out to get a drink. As the two had become better friends, Regina had been tightening her hold on the Sheriff in what seemed to be a knee-jerk reaction.

"She's not doing it because of us," John had assured Michael when he questioned his older brother is they should be worried. Graham had called to cancel dinner at their place for about the third time this month due to unexpected plans coming up. "She would be doing this under any situation that seemed to be pulling him away. He's the only person she has absolute control over. It's a comfort to have him around and she wants to keep it that way. She doesn't see us as a threat to him or to her."

But after a while, John said that Graham was getting nearly impossible in his confliction about the woman and needed a stiff drink. Michael was to make sure they didn't get interrupted. He had some art to show her, a new recipe to explain, and if absolutely needed he could complain about Mary Margaret Blanchard. That would set her right off for the whole night. He could do this, be a distraction. He was ready.

What he wasn't ready for was his son to open the door nearly in tears and whisper to him, "I'm so sorry, Uncle Michael. I messed up so bad." He then was tackled in a hug so tight it nearly knocked him over. "I'm so, so, so sorry."

"Mr. Darling," he heard a cold voice from the top of the steps. She was glaring down at the two of them; gripping the railing to the point her knuckles were white.

He gently moved Henry behind him, faking a confused smile in greeting. "Regina, we've been on a first name basis for years. What's the matter?" She didn't respond, but instead started making her way down the steps as a glacier pace, which only served to give Henry more anxiety behind him. "It's going to be okay," he assured his son in a frantic whisper. "Dad and Uncle Michael will fix this. Nothing bad is going to happen. I promise."

Regina finally came to a halt in front of them, and he swore the temperature of the room plummeted. "I was wondering if we could have a conversation about Henry's behavior today… Michael."

Again he did his best to appear good-natured. "Of course. I have all the time you need." He placed a hand on Henry's shoulder. "How about you go hang out upstairs, okay?" He was gone before the sentence was even finished, but not before sending an apologetic look over his shoulder at his parent. Regina led him to the living room where he took a seat on a couch in front of the fireplace.

"Anything to drink?"

"No. I've got to be driving us both home tonight, and we both know how strong your beverages are," he joked with a laugh. She gave the subtlest smile before hardening again, but that was a good sign. He had to bring her guard back down and remind her how close she was to their family. "So what did Henry do this time? It's been a while since he acted out or proposed you and John should get married." Tie her to their common past. Make her feel safe around them.

"He didn't do anything, per se. It's more… what he said to me. I'm afraid he called me a name today, and though he was instantly apologetic, I worry about what the name means- how he views the world." She was trying to appear as if she was being clinical, but he could see the hurt and anger bubbling under the surface.

"I hope we can get to the bottom of this together then," Michael agreed diplomatically. "I'm glad he had the good sense to apologize though. John and I raised him to be better than calling the baby-sitter who's known him since he was a baby… what exactly did he call you?"

"He called me the Evil Queen, Michael." Michael was glad he had refused that drink, because he was pretty sure he would have done a spit take at this moment. This wasn't good. This wasn't good at all. He was half-tempted to run out of the room and desperately call John, but he did his best to look concerned and in-control.

"I-I don't know where that could have come from. He loves you, Regina. You've been taking care of him as long as he can remember," Michael offered.

"Well, I think I have an idea. Henry has been spending close to all of the time he spends here in his fairy-tale book, and I worry it's giving him ridiculous notions." She sighed. "I just worry what it means. This clearly isn't healthy behavior."

"John and I are aware of the ridiculous fairy-tale obsession. He seems to be under the impression that we're the Darling brothers from Peter Pan weirdly enough," Michael offered, desperately trying to placate her. He needed a plan. He needed a way to get them out of this. He looks at the basket of apples on her coffee table and suddenly he knew what he needed to do. He needed to lie. He needed to lie and make his child seem crazy. There was too much at stake. He'd explain it all to Henry later. "We used to play along. He was young. It was fine to have an imagination. But now we fear we let it go on for too long- that he's using it to fill… holes in his life. We've done the best for him that we could, but as you're aware we aren't perfect. We had been discussing a solution if it got too far… as it obviously has with his comment to you."

There was a long beat before Regina scoffed. "I would like to hear this plan you two have formed," she voiced her annoyance. "Seeing as I am intimately part of this now."

"Therapy," Michael said without thinking. "He cannot continue carrying on in this crazy manner if it is negatively impacting how he views people and relationships. We were thinking of weekly meetings with Dr. Hopper to get to the real root of the problem. Knowing this, I plan to speak to him tomorrow." He leaned forward. "We are taking this seriously Regina. We both know he is a good kid and we need to keep him that way." He held his breath awaiting her response.

"I appreciate that, Michael," she said finally, losing her edge. "I'm sorry if I… overreacted. It's just that Henry and by extension the two of you are the closest thing to a family I currently have. After my adoption didn't work out… with what he said I worried I could lose that." This was good. She was getting sentimental… and less intimidating.

He rose and walked over to her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Regina, you are a member of your family. And family always sticks together. I promise that you are not going anywhere."

"And as Henry says a Darling always keeps their promise." She gave him a relieved smile, rising as well. "Thank you. I expect a full report on these sessions. Please talk to Dr. Hopper so that I have access to the files as well."

That would not do at all. Michael didn't have any plans to actually force the poor kid to be subject to session. "Oh… well…"

"Is there a problem?"

"Absolutely not! I just have to clear it with John first, but I see no issue. I'm going to collect Henry now." He started for the stairs. "Thank you for caring so much about him."

"Of course. At this point I almost consider him my son too." She was almost embarrassed to admit it, looking down. Michael smiled at this, forgetting for a minute just who she was and what she had done. She almost seemed sincere.

XXX

Okay, they had a plan. John needed to start breathing now because they had a plan in place. He was not going to have a panic attack. Michael had taken care of it much better than he probably could have. Plus, Henry was staring at him right now and couldn't afford to see his dad freak out. He had already been sobbing over how his one comment had nearly ruined everything.

It had been a bit of a roller coaster since John returned a little tipsy after drinks with Graham. The Sheriff knew how to hold his liquor that was for certain. But the two had a good time, talking about anything and everything but Regina. They had even played darts, Graham desperately trying to get John to at least hit the board and not cause nearby patrons to flee for their safety.

But then he came home to an upset Henry and a shell-shocked Michael. They looked to him as the head of the family, and were not awaiting his orders on how to proceed with this mess. "Okay. Clearly Henry is going to have to start therapy next week," he decided officially.

"But John we know he'd right. We're not going to make him go somewhere where he has to hear he's crazy week in and out."

John turned his attention to Henry, leaning over the kitchen counter so they were almost nose to nose. "Henry, first of all I'm not mad at you. Something was bound to happen eventually. You're just a kid and we're being unfair by asking you to keep so many secrets. So no more feeling bad, okay?" He wiped his son's tears as Henry nodded, putting on his brave face. "Now we need to fool Regina. We need her to think you're just being a silly kid."

"What do I have to do?"

John couldn't help but smile at his willingness. "Every week you are going to go to Dr. Hopper's office and talk to him. We'll figure out what you should say, make sure you're ready." Michael went to say something, but John held a hand up. "We know the curse is real. We know that you are telling the truth. But we need to convince Regina of the opposite. So do not doubt for a minute in that office that you are not crazy. We just have to play pretend that you are. Do you understand?"

Henry scrunched his face. "I-I think so. It's like a mission. I go in there and say what you tell me to so Regina keeps thinking I don't really know about the curse. I'm playing pretend."

"Exactly!" John snapped, proud of how smart their kid was. "It's like a secret mission that only we can know about. Mission Snake in the Grass we can call it."

"That's too long," Michael interjected. John looked to see his brother looked a lot more at ease about the entire situation. Hopefully he was starting to believe they could actually pull this off as well. "Just Operation Snake." They both looked at Henry, who nodded with a giggle- happy to be involved in a secret mission with his parents. "I will call Dr. Hopper in the morning… and do my best to sound very concerned about our son and his crazy fairy-tales."

"We mean it though, Henry," John cut in, eyes fixed on his son intensely. "They may say that you're wrong or you're crazy, but you should never believe them. We know the truth. We believe you. We love you."

Henry then launched himself into his dad's arms and John knew it was all going to be okay. Let Operation Snake begin.

XXX

Doctor Hopper watched Henry slowly take a seat on the couch in front of him, clearly uncomfortable despite his trying to be brave for his parent's moments ago. They had hugged him tight and whispered for a long minute in his ear before promising to come back in an hour. Dr. Hopper scribbled a quick note about how supportive his parents were before scratching it out.

It was hard to distance his self from this case and remain subjective. He had watched Henry grow up and seen him practically every day since Michael wheeled that stroller down Main Street. He knew his parent's very well- had meals at the diner, visited the station, and of course attended the famous Darling Christmas every year. But he had to push that all aside and approach Henry as if he had never met him before. He had to start from scratch so he could do what was best for the kid he cared so much about… and make sure Regina was happy with how things were moving around. She had stopped by this morning to discuss how she expected treatment to be conducted.

"Well, Henry, why don't we start with the basics? Why don't you tell me about you?"

Henry took a deep breath, steadying his nerves clearly. "My name is Henry Darling. I love with my parents in our big house. I've always thought it was too big. I've even tried to convince Dad he should adopt more kids so we can fill it up, but he insist he has his hands full enough with me and Uncle Michael." Henry laughed at this, and Dr. Hopper scribbled his first real note. The sessions had officially begun. He could help Henry. He owed it to the Darling family to help him.

XXX

Henry had spent the last half of the year engaged in Operation Snake basically playing pretend with Dr. Hopper- making things up and playing along so Regina would take her guard down around his family once again. He was now almost nine and a half in the midst of what was feared to be a "troubling time". And despite it taking up two hours a week that could be spent much more productively he didn't mind it so much. Though that may be due to the conversations in the kitchen with his dad and Uncle Michael the night before an appointment where they would all brainstorm what he was to say the next day. He liked being included and in on the plan with his parents and it only served to further solidify his trust with them in terms of how much they loved him. They were doing everything in their power to protect him like usual.

And it seemed to be working. He was much more vigilant in terms of how he acted around Regina, playing the part of a troubled boy being straightened out. In fact, he tried to move even closer to her so as to better strengthen the connection the two of them had. He wished he could say it was all tactical and he was well aware of how sour she truly was, but Henry was still aware this woman had saved him on the town line that day. Part of him still looked up to her and loved her despite everything- saw the possibility for good in her. She was the closest thing to a mother he had ever had in all honesty and that meant something to him still.

Mother. There was that word again. It had been on his mind a lot since his last session with Doctor Hopper. The man had asked Henry if he ever thought about his birth parents or regretted not having a mother figure as he was growing up. He had quickly dismissed it and moved on to what had been prepared for the day the previous evening.

But then he heard Dr. Hopper speaking in a quiet voice to his dad when he was picked up. "I really feel we have may have reached something. He was very quick to avoid the subject of his biological parents, especially his mom. He's not usually deflective, but in this situation he was very heavily guarded as to how he feels."

His parents had brought it up to him at dinner that evening, both of them clearly worried at possibly uncovering an actual issue of their adopted son's. But he managed to assure them it was simply they hadn't prepared anything on the topic and he didn't want to say anything wrong. He was fine. Always had been. He had two parents who loved him more than enough. He never even thought about having a mom or missing one. It still took a lot of convincing though for the three of them to move off the topic into discussing school. Even then he was sure they were going to mention it the next time he went to therapy. They were a little overprotective like that.

But then he had been unable to fall asleep that night, cuddling Alice as he always did. His mind just would not stop thinking that somewhere out in the world was a woman who was his mom- his biological mom. Did he look like her? What did she do for a living? Where did she live? Was it possible that by now he had brothers and sisters as well?

His spiraling thoughts finally landed him on the big question he had always tried to avoid: why did she give me up? Dad and Uncle Michael had always used the example of Prince Charming and Snow White in the book with Emma. She wanted to give him his best chance, and that happened to be with his parents. And part of him wanted to tell her that too. He wanted to tell her that if he ever crossed her mind she didn't have to worry in the slightest. He was somewhere loved. He was somewhere where he was protected above and beyond as this kid Peter Pan was after. He was unbelievably happy. But most of all he wanted to tell her that it was okay. He understood. Everything worked out the way it was meant to, clearly.

Who was she though? Maybe it he had a name he would be able to sleep. It was almost like some sort of compulsion had suddenly filled him. But they had all discussed the concept of a closed adoption. There was no way he could just ask and have the answer handed to him. But he was determined to get his answer somehow. He just needed to figure out a plan.

So the next morning at about three, Henry put things into motion. He made sure he was up before his dad and snuck the keys to the station from his jacket in the closet. Henry then proceeded to hike to the police station, but not before leaving a note with his location on the fridge. He was hoping to be back before either of them woke up, but on the off chance he got caught he didn't want them to be absolutely frantic about his whereabouts.

He was also glad Uncle Graham as he had been deemed just a few weeks ago officially wasn't there as he slipped into a chair and began typing on the computer. It was always hard to tell the man's exact hours as he always seemed to be working, hardly ever stopping by for dinner these days. The Darling's had no computer in their house, so Henry had to visit his dad's work station whenever he desperately needed an internet fix or had to type a paper. He really didn't mind though. It meant more time with his dad and Uncle Graham, who always managed to make him laugh with how they'd go back and forth. He almost forgot the Huntsman didn't have a heart with the way he smiled when his dad would attempt to impersonate his accent or use his psychic abilities to "predict crime". Or that it seemed to nearly bring tears to his eyes when Henry had asked Uncle Graham to pass the corn for the first time out of the blue.

He managed to make his way to a website who claimed they could locate his birth mother despite the closed adoption… for the right price. Luckily, he had grabbed something else from his dad's coat pocket this morning. He unfolded the wallet now in his own pocket and pulled out the credit card that was tucked behind the driver's license, staring at it a long moment. He felt like he was going to be sick, doing this to his parents- especially without their knowledge. But he had to know. He had to know her name. So he typed in the number and clicked submit with a flourish before letting out a groan, leaning back in the chair dramatically. "Well, there's no going back now."

After about an hour and a half, the site informed him a match had been found, a dancing baby urging him to click the link for his results. He took a deep breath and immediately clicked to be taken to a completely white page except for two lines of black print. There it was. His birth mom's name and birthdate. And then his jaw dropped as the two registered and suddenly all the pieces swiftly clicked perfectly into place.

He remained frozen as the station door was unlocked and Graham entered with a frantic John and Michael following behind him. "Look, right where he said he would be," the Sheriff tried to calm the two with a chuckle. He then seemed to sense something was off as Henry didn't budge from his spot to even register their presence. "Now, if you excuse me, I'm going back to bed. I spend enough time here as it is."

After his swift exit and upon assessing his son was physically alright, John folded his arms and put on his best Dad Voice. "Henry Darling, what in the world were you thinking sneaking down here? You had us worried sick! I know these past few days have been rough with therapy, but we raised you better than this." John closed the distance to the desk, snatching up his keys. "And you stole my keys on top of it."

Henry would have been ashamed, apologized, and begged even if he was in the right state of mind. But all he could do at this moment was gesture towards the two lines on the screen. "I-I looked up my birth mom. She's- her name is Emma. And-and she's coming up on her twenty-eighth birthday right after I turn ten."

His parents were both staring at him now in shock. The pieces were clicking together, but he had to drive it home. He had to make it as clear as possible. "Dad… Uncle Michael… my mom is THE Emma. My mom's the Savior." They were both frozen, staring at the name on the screen. "I'm the grandson of Snow White and Prince Charming," Henry added as the cherry on top, just realizing it for the first time himself. "I'm a Prince."