A/N: I'm still debating whether I should continue this story. What do you guys think?

After a while, Emma lifted her head from David's shoulder, a pressing matter on her mind. "David," she said with a sigh. "As fun as it is to sit right on the edge of Storybrooke, the people at the hospital are probably looking for me. You know, escaped mental patient and all." Emma rubbed at her forehead with the palm of her hand. Her head was still pounding from earlier. "I think I need to move this somewhere else."

"But-" David protested. "Where would we go?"'

"David," Emma said, an apologetic look on her face. She tilted her head slightly to the side as if she were about to deliver upsetting news, which she was. "Not 'we.' Me. I'm going alone." She said this with as much seriousness and conviction as she could muster.

"Emma!" David exclaimed, sounding like he was about to reprimand a child who had knocked over lamp. "You need to take someone with you. Take me; your mom and Regina can look after Storybrooke."

Emma pushed stray hair from her eyes. "You know Regina is only good at keeping people at bay when she's in 'Evil Queen' mode. And Mary Margaret would be too focused on Neal to do anything else."

"Take Hook, then," David suggested, accepting that he would not be the one to go.

"Dad. I don't want to take anyone." Emma paused to draw in a deep breath. "I don't want to hurt anyone; that's why," she admitted.

"Emma, you won't hurt anyone," David assured her.

Emma nodded. "That's true; I won't, but Dark Emma might. I can't risk that." An idea popped into Emma's mind of how to explain her opposition to taking someone with her. "Imagine you had all these confusing thoughts and emotions, and you were terrified that they would make you hurt someone. Wouldn't you want to keep Mary Margaret and Neal away from you? Wouldn't you want to make sure everyone you cared about was safe?"

David nodded at the pavement in defeat. His daughter made a good argument. "I'd be afraid of hurting you, too, not just your mother and Neal," he admitted. "I don't like this, but I see where you're coming from."

Emma pushed herself to her feet and held out her hand. "Before I go, give me your sword, really quick."

"What?" David was surprised by this request. "Why?"

"Just give it to me. Please."

David pulled his sword out of its sheath. "Okay…" He handed her the sword.

In one swift, fluid motion, Emma flipped her hair over her shoulder and drew the sword across her blond mane. Locks of golden hair fluttered to the ground.

David was shocked. "Emma, what- what are you doing?"

His daughter stood before him, looking defiant as ever in her new shoulder-length haircut. "I'm leaving now," she informed him. Then, as an explanation, she added, "I need to look different if I don't want to get caught."

Emma began walking away. "Emma, wait!" David called after her. She turned, and he tossed her his cell. Emma caught it with ease; he guessed her reflexes were better with the Dark One in her. "Take this. I love you."

Emma smiled gently at him. "You, too," she replied before jogging away.

When Regina arrived for her turn at Emma Watch, David was sitting on the grass alone.

"Where's Emma?" Regina asked, a hint of anger present in her voice.

"I let her leave," David admitted sadly.

"You what?" Disbelief, not anger, now came through in her voice. She crossed her arms threateningly. "You let her go?"

"She made a compelling argument. She said the hospital was probably out looking for her, and she couldn't be in one place for too long."

Regina pressed her face into her hands. "Hold on; this is too much right now." She breathed in deeply, then began to yell. "You let her leave alone? How stupid are you? We just found her, David! I am not willing to go off on another Emma hunt!"

"She didn't want to hurt any of us!" David shouted back at her.

Regina threw her hands up in the air. "She hasn't hurt any of us yet! Doesn't that say something?" She shook her head, seeming more and more like "Evil Queen" Regina and less like "nice" Regina each passing moment. "We have to go after her," she declared. "How long ago did she leave?"

"About half an hour ago." David was starting to realize why it could be bad to leave Emma by herself. What if she couldn't figure out how to fix the Dark One problem, and something horrible happened? David couldn't allow it.

Regina pressed her fingers to her temples and shut her eyes, clearly indicating that she was annoyed. "Okay, I'll get the car. If she took the road, we should be able to catch up to her fairly quickly."

"I'll be here when you get back," David said from his spot on the ground.

"I know!" Regina called behind her as she reentered Storybrooke.