AN: I'm pretty proud of the flashbacks in this chapter; I really got into it while I was writing them. I hope you enjoy this chapter! :)
AN2: I started writing this before I saw the latest couple episodes of Season 4. Once I saw the episode with more of Maleficent's backstory, I tried to add a few things to keep my story closer to cannon, but it's still going to be slightly different (obviously).
Chapter 4: Baby Mine (Don't You Cry)
"Oh my darling Nancy, he is absolutely perfect."
Nancy smiled tiredly at her exuberant husband, her raven hair damp with sweat. "He is," she said. "We did good, Eddie. Do we have a name for him yet?"
Edward, King of Andalasia, smiled down at the tiny purple wrapped bundle in his arms. The baby boy had his mother's raven locks and his father's strong chin; the proud papa secretly hoped he would have his mother's warm, brown eyes as well. "I know we discussed naming him after my father," he said, "but I think he deserves a name that is all his own."
"What do you suggest?" asked Edward's queen.
Edward stroked the baby's soft cheek. "Chance," he said. "I know it is unusual, but he is our brand new chance for our family and our kingdom to become something far greater than we ever have been before."
Nancy smiled brilliantly. "I love it," she said. "Prince Chance of Andalasia."
"May he be as rich in love as we are," said Edward.
"With us as his parents?" said Nancy. "How could he be anything else?"
XXXX
"Are you alright?" It had come out far more gentle than she'd intended, but there was just something about the pregnant blonde maid that triggered Dawn's protective instincts.
The teary eyed teen sniffed and wiped her nose on the back of her arm. "I'm sorry," she said wetly, "I've just been having a rough day."
Dawn set her basket of laundry on the floor by the washer (why the laundry room was attached to the diner rather than the inn was a mystery she was determined to solve…at a later date) and pulled the younger blonde into a half hug. "Hey," she said quietly, "it's okay. Everyone's allowed to cry over a crap day every now and again." She began to rub soothing circles on the girl's back, just like she'd seen her mother do with every single one of her pregnant sisters, in-laws included.
It worked like a charm. The blonde's breathing began to even out and she finally stopped shaking. "Thank you," she said, her voice grateful and a little embarrassed.
"You're welcome," said Dawn, giving her shoulder a squeeze as she pulled away. "I'm Dawn by the way."
"Ashley," replied the girl, a small smile on her tired face. "I'm sorry for freaking out on you."
"No big," said Dawn with a shrug. "Not the first time it's happened, probably not the last either." She grabbed the edges of the counter and pulled her skinny butt up onto it. "You wanna talk about it?" she asked. "I know I'm a total stranger, but I've been told I'm a great listener and since I don't know you, I promise not to judge."
Ashley gave a little hiccupping cough. "I think that's all people do when they see me," she said.
"What do you mean by that?" asked Dawn.
"Everyone says I'm a failure and they're right," she said sadly. "I can barely take care of myself, never mind a baby."
"Sounds like people only see what they want, not what you are," said Dawn. "Do you think you're a failure?"
"Would I have gotten into this mess if I wasn't?" sobbed Ashley.
"Yes," said Dawn firmly. "Now, I'm no councilor—I tend to leave the touchy-feely psychobabble stuff to my brother and sister who are—but I do know that getting pregnant at your age—what, eighteen, nineteen?—isn't the end of the world. It doesn't mean you're a failure either. It's all in how you deal with the shit life hands you, not so much how you get there. 'Sides, it takes two to tango. Where's the proud papa in all this?"
"He-he's not around," admitted Ashley. "His father won't let him."
Dawn furrowed her brow quizzically. "Why does his father get a say in this?" she asked. "He's not underage, is he?"
"No, he's a year older than me," said Ashley. "Sean's father is the one who set up my deal with Mr. Gold."
"I think you need to back up a step or three," said Dawn. "What deal are you talking about?"
"The deal Mr. Herman made with Mr. Gold; he gets my baby when she's born in exchange for a sum of money he arranged for me, and Sean's name gets kept out of it."
Dawn frowned. "That hardly seems fair—or legal. How did he even get that legitimized?"
Ashley shrugged. "It's Mr. Gold. He owns the town, so he pretty much gets whatever he wants and no one's really brave enough to question him."
"Hmm," said Dawn thoughtfully, "I'll have to see what I can do about that then…"
XXXX
Dawn stuck a do-not-disturb sign on her door at the inn, locked the door, and closed all the curtains tight. After making sure that no one could peer in or out of the windows, she stuffed towels into the crack under the door, blocking out all natural light. Nodding once in satisfaction, she took a deep breath of preparation. "Okay Dawn," she said to herself, "you can do this. You've practiced this with Willow and Giles more times than you can count; there's absolutely no reason for this not to work." She stood tall in the emptiest part of the room and pricked her finger with a small dagger. Once the blood had welled up on the cut, she flicked it into the air. "Charles and Winifred Philip," she said clearly. The blood shimmered green in the air and began to glow and swirl until it formed a roughly Dawn-sized portal. Dawn braced herself and stepped through.
She was greeted on the other side by a cacophony of noise better suited to a zoo than a home. That was probably why no one had noticed her yet, mused Dawn. She'd landed in the living room of her brother's LA apartment. The man in question (a tall, bald man with cocoa colored skin) was holding the Wii remotes hostage from his identical twin sons, who were bickering up a storm and wrestling in front of the TV. His frazzled wife (a tall, bird-like brunette) was attempting to moderate the fight between their eldest daughter and son while balancing a crying baby girl on her hip. Dawn smiled and nibbled absently at the cut on her finger to keep the portal open. There was something incredibly endearing about the chaos of her brother Charles' family.
"Hey Charlie-Gunn, what's a girl gotta do to get some attention 'round here?" she said, smirking at the comical wide-eyed expression on her older brother's face.
"Auntie Dawn!" shrieked the elder four children, abandoning their arguments to nearly bowl her over with their enthusiastic hugs.
"Hey kiddos," she said, bending down to hug the four small children. "How's it hangin'?"
Immediately she was bombarded with stories from all sides, shrill little voices fighting each other for dominance. "That's enough, y'all," said Dawn's sister-in-law, handing the baby over to her husband and embracing Dawn. "It's great to see you, Dawn," she said, her Texan drawl thick as ever.
"You too, Fred," she replied, smiling at the twig thin brunette fondly.
"Not that it's not great to see you, Dawnster, but what brings you by via portal?" asked Charles (who had gone by his middle/former last name Gunn since childhood), the baby firmly settled on his hip.
"I was actually hoping for a favor, Gunn," she said.
"What kind of favor?" asked Gunn warily. "You ain't in trouble with the law, are you?"
Dawn snorted. "Nothing so dramatic, Charlie-Gunn. And no, I'm not pregnant either," she added when Gunn opened his mouth.
"Is it Emma?" asked Fred, shooing the older children off to their rooms.
"No, Emma's fine," said Dawn, taking baby Amy from her brother and running her long fingers through the girl's course, black curls. "Did you guys get my postcards yet?"
"The 'Greetings from Storybrooke' ones?" asked Gunn, raising an eyebrow. "Yeah, the kids loved 'em."
"What're you and Emma doing in Maine, anyway?" asked Fred. "I thought y'all were livin' in Boston."
"We were," said Dawn, "but then Henry came along and everything changed."
"Henry?" said Gunn. "Who's Henry?"
"Emma's son."
XXXX
While the wedding of Prince Edward of Andalasia and his mysterious princess had been abrupt and secretive, the coronation of the young couple was planned down to the last little detail. Invitations were sent to every kingdom across the lands and the responses were overwhelmingly positive. Some offered simple, heartfelt congratulations; others promised continued trade and friendship; others still presented offers of new alliances.
When the day finally arrived, the newly crowned Queen Nancy was pleased to find that most everyone who had responded had come, from the stately Dowager Empress of the vast Romanov Empire to the newlywed Prince and Princess of faraway Maldonia. King Edward and Queen Nancy sat on the Andalasian thrones and received all their guests with grace and dignity.
That dignity nearly slipped when the royal family of the combined kingdoms of Fairway and Aquitaine was introduced. The Andalasian steward, Joran (a distant cousin of Nathaniel) announced the visiting royals with his usual pomp: "Presenting their Royal Majesties, Queen Leah of Fairway and King Stefan of Aquitaine, and their Royal Highnesses, Prince Thomas of Aquitaine and Princess Aurora of Fairway."
The Queen of Fairway was a tall, fair beauty with curls the color of blood and eyes the color of the noonday sky. The King of Aquitaine too was tall; he was obviously a warrior bred, by his build and stance. His cropped hair was a sandy blonde color akin to wheat and his eyes were the blue of a winter storm. The teenage prince looked much like his father, only shorter and leaner. It was the young princess, however, a maiden just into her teen years, who gave Nancy and Edward pause. Everything about the princess, from her rose gold curls to the sky blue eyes she shared with her mother screamed of familiarity. It wasn't just her features, either, that bred such familiarity to the Andalasian monarchs; there was something in the way that she held herself, the tilt of her chin, her shy smile…
"I'm terribly sorry," said Edward, "but your fair Princess Aurora is strangely familiar to me. Do you perhaps know of an equally fair maiden called Giselle?"
Queen Leah gasped, her delicate hands flying to cover her red painted lips. "You know our Giselle?" asked King Stefan, placing a large, comforting hand around his wife's shoulders.
"Yes, I have known a beautiful maiden by that name," said Edward. "One who greatly resembles your lovely daughter, the Princess Aurora."
Queen Leah let out a strangled sob. "Please," she said, her voice light and bright as a bell, "what news have you of our eldest daughter?"
XXXX
Dawn tried to act surprised (really, she did) when Gunn and Fred walked into Granny's Diner with their five kids the morning after her impromptu portal traveling. Emma, sitting across the booth from her, clearly wasn't buying her act. "You called him, didn't you?" she accused, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.
Dawn made her eyes go as wide and innocent as she could. "Whatever are you talking about, sister dear?" she said, fighting to keep her face smirk-free.
Emma rolled her eyes. "Please, I haven't bought your 'innocent eyes' act since you were twelve," the blonde said dryly.
"If it ain't Em'n'Em and the Dawnster," Gunn said brightly, sliding into the booth beside Dawn. "I was hopin' we'd catch you before we got settled in."
Emma fixed her brother with a cold glare. "Why are you here, Charles?" she snapped.
Gunn winced. "Damn, girl, first name an' everything. Can't a brother just stop by to visit his sisters?"
"No," said Emma shortly.
Gunn huffed and smiled winningly at his most difficult sister. "Fine," he admitted, "you caught me. Dawn asked me to come. Said she needed my professional help with a pregnant girl who changed her mind about givin' up her baby."
Emma gave Dawn an exasperated look. "Do I even want to know how you got your information, Dawn?" she asked.
Dawn frowned into her morning hot chocolate (spiced with red-hots). "Why do you always assume the worst of people?" she snapped back. "Maybe I just made a new friend."
Emma gave her sister a disbelieving look before glancing over at the counter, where the scantily-clad Ruby had just arrived for her shift. "We'll continue this later," she promised, standing up and walking toward the waitress without so much as a goodbye to her siblings.
"Who spit in her cocoa?" asked Gunn.
"She's been like that since Henry dragged us to Storybrooke," said Dawn, sipping on her cooling drink. "I think she's still trying to deny that she's got an actual, real-live kid of her own."
Gunn nodded thoughtfully. "It was easier for her to pretend she didn't have a kid when he was just someone she'd given birth to and then sent away. Now that he's in her life…"
"Shit got real?" suggested Dawn with a quirk of her petal pink lips.
"Shit got real," agreed Gunn, matching her smile with one of his own. "And we all know how much Emma likes her view of reality gettin' turned on its head."
Dawn cocked her head to the side thoughtfully. "You know," she said, "sometimes I forget how smart and insightful you can be."
Gunn grinned and swatted his baby sister's arm playfully. "Girl, you're makin' me blush. Ain't nobody got time for dat."
"And then you go and prove you're actually a six-year-old boy," said Dawn dryly.
XXXX
The day after their coronation ball, Nancy and Edward met with the monarchs of Fairway and Aquitaine in the private of Edward's late father's study. Barely had the royals taken their seats when Queen Leah spoke. "What can you tell us of our daughter?" she asked.
"Giselle is a maiden of great beauty and kindness, with the voice of an angel," said Edward. "She is headstrong, brave, and wise. I had thought I was her One True Love once, before I met my Nancy, but it was not to be."
"His name is Robert," added Nancy. "I was to marry him, once, but when Giselle came into his life, everything changed. She brought out a side to him I had never seen; he was carefree and relaxed around her in ways that he never was with me. He has a young daughter as well and she simply adores Giselle, just as Giselle adores her."
"Where is our daughter now, King Edward?" asked King Stefan.
"She resides in another realm now, I'm sorry to say," he said. "Nancy chose to come to Andalasia with me when the time came, but Giselle chose to stay in the land of New York with her love."
"She's happy there," Nancy assured the saddened parents. "It is a place very different from this land, but she is not alone there."
"She is loved?" asked Queen Leah softly. "She is happy?"
"Very much so," said Edward. "Robert woke her from the sleeping curse my step-mother had placed her under when my kisses had failed. He is indeed her One True Love."
Queen Leah put her hand on Edward's arm. "Thank you," she said, "for telling us of our daughter's fate."
"Yes, we are glad to hear she has found her happiness, even if it is in a realm far from us," added King Stefan.
"Who knows?" said Nancy gently. "Maybe someday you will see her again."
XXXX
Five minutes after Emma left, Dawn spotted Ashley sneaking out of the alley that ran along the side of the diner and heading toward Ruby's car. She nudged Gunn and nodded her head in the pregnant blonde's general direction. "Got it," her brother said. He slid smoothly out of the booth and headed out to meet the girl.
Dawn, seeing Ruby about to interfere, jumped up and gently tugged the red-streaked brunette's arm. "Let him go, Ruby," she said. "Charles is my brother. I called him in to help Ashley. He's a social worker and a dad, so I figure he's pretty qualified."
"Is he gonna tell her to give up her baby like everyone else?" asked Ruby, sounding a bit bitter.
"Hell no," said Dawn, snorting. "He'll tell her what her options are and maybe share some parenting horror stories, but he rarely tells a mom she should just give up her baby. 'Sides, he works with kids way more troubled than Ashley all the time."
"Really?" Ruby sounded almost convinced.
"He works specifically with poor, underprivileged kids—usually homeless or orphaned—in one of the nastier neighborhoods in downtown LA."
Ruby looked at least somewhat convinced as Leroy started heckling her for coffee from his seat at the counter. "Fine," she said, finally relenting, "but if anything happens to her, you'll answer to me."
"Got it," said Dawn.
Ten minutes later, when Gunn came back in, Dawn was sitting in her booth with Fred and the kids. "You havin' a party without me?" said Gunn, sliding in beside his wife and giving her a quick kiss.
"Always," said Dawn. "How'd it go?"
Gunn shrugged. "She listened to me, that's a start," he said. "Things like this don't magically fix themselves overnight, Dawnster. This ain't one of Mom's fairytales."
"I wouldn't bet on that," said Dawn cryptically.
XXXX
The long awaited Christening of Prince Chance of Andalasia had finally arrived. After two years of royal balls, Queen Nancy now considered herself something of a budding expert on political intrigue and relations in the Enchanted Forest. Many of the royal faces had remained the same over the years, though there were a few notable exceptions. The Dowager Empress of the Romanov Empire rarely left her palace anymore, preferring to send her granddaughter Princess Anastasia (always accompanied by her husband Dimitri) in her stead, and there had been a fair spattering of royal children born over the years, but most everything else remained the same. Perhaps it was foolish of Andalasia's queen to grow so comfortably complacent, but alas she did.
Andalasia might have been spared the Dark Curse were it not for Queen Nancy's complacency. In all the hustle and bustle of the Christening preparations, one single invitation fell to the floor, lost and forgotten: the invitation for one Queen Regina of Alba, niece of the late Queen Narissa, and a powerful practitioner of dark magic. Honest mistake it might have been on Nancy's part, but when Regina found out she had been snubbed, she was livid.
"You didn't really want to go to your step-great-nephew's Christening, though," Regina's father, the former Prince Henry of Marseilles, said in an attempt to pacify his hotheaded daughter.
"Of course not, Daddy," snapped Regina, her dark skirts swirling about her ankles as she paced agitatedly across her chambers.
"Then you will let this be?"
"And let others believe me weak? I think not," she scoffed. "Besides King Edward still has to answer for Aunt Narissa's disappearance. No, I will go to the Christening and those Andalasian monarchs will rue the day they chose to snub the Evil Queen."
XXXX
Dawn waved Henry over to her booth when he stopped by the diner after school. "Hey, squirt," she said as he sat down across from her. "I'd like you to meet my niece and nephew."
"I'm Casey," said the tan skinned, curly haired brunette girl sitting next to him. "That's Ben; he's seven," she added, pointing to the gangly, mocha skinned boy next to Dawn. "Aunt Dawn says you're in fourth grade, right?"
"Uh, yeah, that's right."
Casey smiled brightly at him. "Me too! Mom's letting me sit in on some of her Physics classes as UCLA this year too. I don't understand all of it yet, but Mom says I already know more than most of her newbies! Do you like science?"
"Casey," said Dawn, "what did we talk about?"
"What? Oh, right, no scaring off or boring cousins and aunties with science talk. Sorry." At least she tried to look contrite, which was more than her parents usually got out of her.
"Sorry Henry. Their mom's putting the twins and the baby down for a nap and their dad—my brother—is out trying to help Ashley, so I got put on babysitting duty."
"'M not a baby," mumbled Ben crossly, slouching down in his seat and picking at the skin of his thumb absent mindedly.
"'Course not, champ," said Dawn cheerfully. "If you were, you'd be going down for a nap with the twins and Amy."
"Luke an' Logan an' Amy are babies," Ben insisted. "Can't you just call it kid-sitting or something?"
"Sure, I'll just send out a memo," said Dawn dryly.
"Thanks," said Ben, brightening up a bit.
"That was sarcasm, genius," said Casey, rolling her caramel eyes at her brother.
"So Dawn," said Henry as the siblings started bickering, "how goes the Cinderella situation?"
"Cinderella?" Dawn looked confused for a moment. "Oh! You mean Ashley?"
"Of course," said Henry matter-of-factly. "She's a maid with a disproving step-mother and two spoiled step-sisters. Who else would she be?"
"Right. Well, Ruby sent Emma off to find Ashley's ex so that she could sneak outta dodge. Gunn—my brother—"
"Your brother's name is Gunn?" asked Henry curiously.
"Well, it's Charles Gunn Philip, but he's been going by Gunn—which used to be his last name—since he was a street kid, back before our parents adopted him and Alonna. Anyway, Gunn talked to Ashley before she ran off and now he's off getting ahold of his contacts who might be able to help him break Gold's contract."
"No one breaks a contract with Mr. Gold," Henry insisted. "Everyone knows that."
"So I've heard," said Dawn, swiping an onion ring from her still-bickering niece's plate. "If anyone can find a way out for Ashley, it's Gunn. He's got the smarts and the street smarts to pull off the impossible. That and he's impossibly stubborn and belligerent when he believes in one of his 'kids'—and he's already decided that Ashley falls into that category. Don't worry, squirt, Gunn'll fix everything; you'll see." She swiped a fry from Ben's plate and offered it to Henry. "French fry?"
Henry grinned and took it. "Don't mind if I do."
XXXX
"He's beautiful," said Queen Leah, allowing the tiny boy to grab at her loose, red curls.
"He has your eyes, Edward," said King Stefan, watching his wife coo over the babe, a wistful expression on his face.
"Aye, but he has my Nancy's nose and my father's ears," said Edward proudly.
"Have you selected a godparent for him yet?" asked Princess Aurora, her voice soft and sweet.
Nancy and Edward shared a glance. "We have," said Edward.
"Aurora," said Nancy, turning to the rosy young woman, "would you do us the honor of being godmother to our son, Prince Chance?"
"Me?" asked the redheaded teen, bewildered.
"Yes, you," said Edward. "We would have no other."
"I-I'm honored," she said softly, her blue eyes shining brightly with happy tears. "Of course I will be Chance's godmother.:
"How disgustingly touching," sneered a cold, sinister voice. "And to think I nearly missed this." Queen Regina, as always, cut an intimidating picture in her low-cut, black silk and brocade gown with its ridiculously high collar, blood red lips, and black hair piled mile-high on top of her head.
"Queen Regina," said Edward, "how lovely to see you again."
"Yes, I'm sure," Regina sneered, glancing around at the assembled royals until her eyes dark eyes alighted upon the baby prince. "So this is the little monster," she drawled. "He doesn't look like much, does he?"
Nancy reached into the cradle and pulled her son close to her chest. Edward's hand twitched toward his sword. "Touch but one hair on his head and I swear it shall be the last thing you ever do," he snarled.
"Please," scoffed Regina, waving her hand casually and freezing the raging father in place, "you are useless, Edward son of Luka, just as my aunt told me. Speaking of, where is my dear Aunt Narissa these days? I've just been dying to see her again."
Nancy started at Regina's choice of words and Edward narrowed his eyes. "The former Queen Narissa is dead," he snapped, "slain by the brave and fair Princess Giselle."
"Is that so?" said Regina, her voice eerily calm. "Who, pray tell, is this Princess Giselle you claim is responsible for the death of my kinswoman?"
King Stefan stepped forward bravely, his strong jaw set and his stormy eyes flashing dangerously. "Princess Giselle is our beloved eldest," he said, his voice deep and strong. "She is safe, far from here, where you and yours shall never again do her harm."
Regina smirked. "So this Giselle is the spawn of Stefan and Briar Rose?" she said. "How sickeningly appropriate." She turned to face Queen Leah (who, in her youth, had been called Briar Rose for her hair and her temperament). "You thought to save your eldest from the fate of your youngest and so you hid her away in the lonesome forests of Andalasia. How noble," she sneered.
"I did what I did out of love for all my children," said Queen Leah proudly, lifting her chin and looking the Evil Queen dead in the eye. "Have you fallen so far, Regina, that you've forgotten what love is?"
"Love is weakness," hissed Regina, "a fairytale for children, nothing more."
"You're wrong," spoke Aurora softly, inching closer to Nancy and baby Chance. "Love is beautiful and powerful, indiscriminate and unselfish. 'Love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.'" Her voice grew stronger as she continued on, "'It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no records of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.'" (1 Corinthians 13:4-8)
Regina laughed, full-bodied and powerful. "Foolish girl," she said, "love brings only pain and suffering. Better you learn this now when you are still young rather than later, when your heart is broken for want of some foolish emotion."
She smiled evilly at the assembled royals: strong and proud King Stefan; silent and determined Prince Thomas (ever his father's shadow); flighty and passionate King Edward; fierce and protective Queen Nancy with her small son; brave and kind Princess Aurora; and fiery and loving Queen Leah (once called Briar Rose). Regina's cold gaze lingered on the redheaded queen. "What better way to teach a young, naïve girl such as yourself the folly of love than through the one whom she loves above all," she said. "How fitting, I think, that my dear friend Maleficent's greatest failure should have spawned the murderer of my beloved Aunt." She conjured up a fireball in her hand. "Love is dead," she sneered, launching the fireball at Queen Leah.
"No!" shrieked the young prince and princess, rushing forward as their mother crumpled to the marble floor. Regina laughed manically and disappeared in a puff of purple smoke.
King Stefan moved in a daze as he bent to check his beloved wife's pulse. "The Queen is dead," he said, his strong voice in opposition to the hurt in his heart. He gently slipped the golden crown from atop her soft curls and kissed her brow.
He straightened and stared at his youngest, offering the crown to her. With pale, trembling hands, the seventeen-year-old took it and placed it upon her rose gold curls. "Long live the Queen," said King Stefan, his eyes alight with sadness and pride. "May your reign be long and prosperous."
XXXX
Dawn pretended not to notice when Henry snuck off with Emma after she came back from talking to Ashley's ex-boyfriend Sean. Instead, she dropped Casey and Ben (still bickering) off with their mother at the inn and headed off to the Sheriff's Station to see if Graham was in.
"Hello?" she called out as she entered the building.
"Dawn?" said Graham, poking his head out of his office. "What brings you by?"
Dawn shrugged as she stepped further into the room. "I just thought I'd stop by and see you," she said.
Graham grinned as he shut his office door behind him. "Well, you're in luck," he said. "I was just about to lock up for the night. Could I interest you in dinner?"
Dawn glanced up at the clock on the wall and raised her eyebrow at the brunette sheriff. "Isn't it a little early for dinner?" she asked.
Graham grinned. "Well, I could always take you on a proper tour of Storybrooke first," he offered.
Dawn smiled and linked elbows with him. "That sounds perfect, Graham," she said.
"Great," he replied, smile widening. "Just let me lock up first and we can get going."
XXXX
"…and that was how Gunn and Nick had the twins convinced that babies grow in flowerpots."
Graham was practically doubled over with laughter. "They—believed—that?" he asked between gasps of breath.
Dawn shrugged, smirking at the memory. "They were ten," she elaborated. "It wasn't 'til our oldest sister was pregnant with her first kid that they realized that the boys were messing with them."
"That's priceless," said Graham, still gasping for breath.
"That's my brothers," said Dawn with a smile. "They love picking on all of us, but especially the twins 'cause Xander's the only other boy and he and Willow are thick as thieves."
"It must be nice having so many siblings," said Graham, finally calming down. "You seem close."
Dawn shrugged. "We are," she said, "but sometimes—most of the time—we annoy the crap out of each other. The twins and Buffy are really the only ones who get along consistently since Alonna died."
"What about Emma?"
"Emma's always been kind of a loner," Dawn admitted. "She great with kids, though. We always wondered why she really decided to give Henry up."
Graham nodded thoughtfully. "I'm thinking of asking her to be my deputy," he admitted. "Do you think that's a good idea?"
Dawn smiled. "I think it's a wonderful idea," she said. "It'll give her a reason to stay in Storybrooke, for sure."
"And you?" he asked, boldly reaching out to hold Dawn's hand. "Do you have a reason to stay?"
Dawn smiled brightly at him. "I can think of one or two."
XXXX
"Edward! It's coming!" Nancy raced across the palace gardens, hitching her skirts up to her knees to give her legs stride. She nearly crashed into her husband as she came to an abrupt stop. "The curse is almost here!" she gasped as he held her steady.
Edward's brow furrowed and he hitched their small, two-year-old son on his hip. "I had hoped we would have more time," he said, azure eyes sad.
Nancy laid her head on her husband's strong chest and ran her fingers through their son's raven curls. "What are we to do, Edward? What will become of us?" she asked, tears falling from her chocolate brown eyes.
Edward pulled his wife and son close, burying their faces in his strong shoulders so that they would not have to see their doom crash upon them. "We stay together, my love, and pray for the best," he said, watching as the great cloud of purple began to overtake the gardens and eventually swallowed them whole.
XXXX
Dawn knocked on the hospital door, catching Ashley's attention. "Hey," she said. "I heard you had your baby; congratulations."
"Thanks," said Ashley tiredly. "I named her Alexandra."
"That's a good name." Dawn stepped closer and smiled at the small, pink-wrapped bundle. "She has your hair," she said.
"I think she'll have Sean's eyes," said Ashley. "I meant to thank you for calling in your brother," she said, looking up at Dawn. "He's really helped me figure out how to make this mother thing work. I guess I really owe your whole family."
"How so?" asked Dawn.
"Your sister got me out of Mr. Gold's contract, your brother's getting me help so I can take care of my baby, and you keep coming back and letting me talk you ear off."
"Well, that's what friends do," said Dawn, smiling softly at the new mother.
"Are we?" asked Ashley. "Friends?"
"I'd like to be," admitted Dawn.
"Then we are," said Ashley. "As my friend, would you like to be Alexandra's second godmother? Ruby already said yes and I really don't know anyone I'd want as godfather so..."
Dawn started at the sincerity in her eyes. "I'd love too," she said. "Are you sure?"
"I've only known you a couple of days, but you've already done more for me than most people I've known for my whole life. I can't think of anyone better suited for the job."
"Then I am truly honored."
"Would you like to hold her?"
Dawn took the small blonde bundle into her arms. "Hello little Lexie, I'm your Auntie Dawn," she said. "I have some wonderful stories to tell you about brave princesses and handsome princes and their many wonderful adventures…"
AN: I've given the kingdoms all names, mostly because it's always annoyed me how none of the many kingdoms of the Enchanted Forest are named. Just Arendelle, the Southern Isles (which aren't technically part of the EF), and Camelot (never shown) are called by name. If you are at all confused or interested, let me know and I'll fill you in.
AN2: I'm not a counselor or a social worker; I have no background in either. The most I've ever done that might be remotely close is a couple classes in college psychology. I'm sorry if my portrayal of Gunn as such is not completely accurate; I tried.
If you enjoy reading my story, please leave a review.
(Flames may cause me to hide in a corner and cry.)