Henry knew something was going on. Emma, Mary Margaret and David were hiding something from him and he intended to find out what.

His interest had first been peaked when Emma blew him off on the phone. Then while listening to Snow's side of their conversation it was obvious that they were talking about him. What other kids did they both know – curious or otherwise?

It had all be confirmed for Henry when the Charming's had dropped him off at Granny's and asked Ruby to watch him.

They'd left without giving him any sort of explanation or even imposing a limit on the amount of milkshakes he could order.

Oh yeah, he thought, something big was happening.

Aside from being insanely curious, Henry was also a little hurt. After all they'd been through together, he'd thought his family was finally starting to see how useful he was. After all, he'd been the one to recognise the curse for what it was. The one to come up with Operation Cobra. He'd been the one to bring the Saviour to Storybrooke.

Why did they keep leaving him out of things when he'd proven he could help?

And leaving him with Ruby? Honestly, Henry thought, it's like they're not even trying.

He'd managed to give Ruby the slip five minutes into her watch by pretending that he needed to go to the bathroom. As he was climbing out the window he almost felt sorry for her. Almost.

It hadn't taken him long to track down Mary Margaret and David. By the looks of things they hadn't even plotted an alternate course first, to lose anyone who might be trying to follow them – they'd just walked straight to Gold's.

Amateurs.

There had been no way for Henry to slip into Gold's shop undetected so he'd hid in the alleyway around the corner, waiting for his grandparents to come out.

When he'd heard the tell-tale ring of the pawn shops bell, signalling that someone was coming out, Henry had pressed himself against the alley wall – listening intently.

"What did she say?" came David's voice.

"Not a lot." Snow sounded upset.

"So what do we do now?"

"I don't think there's anything we can do David. Emma's going to stay with Regina so we should go and get Henry – take him home."

David's voice went quiet now and Henry had to strain to catch his words.

"Are we going to tell him?"

"No," came Snow's immediate reply. "Emma said Regina doesn't want him to know and we have to respect her wishes. Besides, Emma will want to be the one to tell him when the time...when it's all over."

Henry had heard enough. As quietly as possible he slipped down a side street and away from the main road.

If his Mom's were together then whatever was happening was serious. And if Regina was hiding things from him again then it was doubly so.

In his mind he was already compiling a list of places the two women could be.

He went to the mausoleum first, wagering that if something bad had happened then it might have something to do with the dangerous objects hidden in Regina's vault. When that didn't turn up anything the stables were next – the scene of his mother's most recent heartbreak.

Again, there was nothing there.

Henry was starting to panic. He'd been looking for them for ages. Ruby would have well and truly noticed his absence and notified the Charming's. Who in turn would have told Emma and Regina – giving them ample time to cover up whatever it was they were trying to keep from him.

Think Henry, think! he urged himself.

Like a flash of lightening the answer came to him and he took off, his feet leading him down the familiar path to Mifflin Street. His brain shut down, his body on autopilot. The only time he stopped to think was when he reached the front door of his old house.

Having the considerable imagination he's been blessed with, Henry had all sort of ideas about what could be waiting inside. The only thing they all had in common was that none of them were good.

Still, if he was going to be any kind of hero he knew that he'd have to charge into the situation regardless.

He pushed the door open and quietly stepped inside.

After quickly checking that no-one was on the ground floor, Henry made his way to the large staircase and climbed it as fast as he could. He went to his mother's room first, surprised to find it empty. That's when he noticed that his own bedroom door was shut.

He couldn't fathom why his mothers' would be in his room but all the evidence pointed him in that direction.

Filled with trepidation he cracked open his bedroom door.

"Henry!" Emma's shocked voice didn't even register in his ears.

For the first time in a long time, Henry only saw Regina. His wide eyes were glued to her scarily still body. He somehow felt like a little boy and an old man all at once.

"Mom?"

Emma knew she shouldn't have been surprised to see Henry. He was the biological son of two car thieves and the adopted son a mayoral monarch. The kid couldn't help but be resourceful.

She wondered briefly why Mary Margaret hadn't called to tell her that Henry had run off, before remembering that she'd put her phone on silent so that it wouldn't disturb Regina. She glanced at it now to see that she had nine missed calls. Emma sent her mother a quick message to let her know that Henry was fine and with her. She just hoped the 'fine' part wasn't a lie.

Henry walked over to stand next to Regina, his hands reaching out to touch her and then retracting. The helplessness of this gesture echoed the helplessness that Emma had been feeling since she walked into the room and saw Regina huddled on Henry's bed.

"What's wrong with her?" Henry asked.

Emma didn't know how to respond without making him feel responsible.

"What she did at the well – taking that death curse off. Well it made her pretty sick."

He still hadn't taken his eyes off Regina but Emma could tell by the shaky quality of his voice that Henry was in tears.

"When is she going to get better?"

The innocence of the question reminded Emma of just how young Henry really was. She ran a hand down his shuddering back and tried not to falter in what she had to tell him.

"She's not going to get better Henry. I'm so sorry."

"No!" Henry exclaimed "She has to! I need her to!"

"Henry..."

"No!" he interrupted. "She's going to get better. You said that it was a curse right? All curses can be broken!"

Emma ran a hand over her tired eyes. "I know that kid, with true love's kiss but..."

"I can do it!"

"Do what?" Emma asked, puzzled.

"Give her true love's kiss," he said excitedly. "I can save her!"

He leaned over Regina's bedside and pressed a sweet kiss to her forehead. When he pulled back they both waited for the rush of energy, for the glow of love to encase Regina and wake her up.

But the room stayed washed in hues of dark blue. And Regina's eyes stayed shut.

"I don't understand," said Henry. "Why didn't it work?"

Emma had no answers for him.

"Why didn't it work?" he asked again, starting to get hysterical. "I love her! I do! I know I acted like I didn't but I do!"

Emma pulled Henry to her tightly. "I know you do Henry."

"But she doesn't," he insisted hopelessly.

Emma pulled back and looked into her son's face. "Well how about you tell her now?"

Henry turned back to Regina and gently took one of her cold hand's in his own.

"Mom, can you hear me? Mom, I love you. I'm sorry I made you think that I didn't. I was just so mad at you for lying to me. I know now that whatever you used to be, that's not who you are any more and I'm sorry I didn't see that sooner. And I'm sorry that I asked you to take the curse off - I didn't know that this would happen."

He paused to furiously wipe away the tears that were streaking down his face before speaking again.

"I know I haven't been a very good son lately. And I know that I hurt you. But please don't leave me – I need you!"

Watching their son bear his heart was breaking Emma's resolve to honour her original promise to Regina. And when he looked up at her, a part of her already knew what he was going to say.

"Can't you do anything?" Henry pleaded desperately.

In that moment Emma thought she knew what it must have been like to be the one at the well. To be the one who chose to absorb a death curse simply because Henry had asked her to.

And, like Regina, Emma found that she couldn't say no to their son.

"Yes," she whispered. "I can."

"Really?" Henry's ability to transition from heartbreak to hope was astounding.

"I'm going to try my best. Now go and wait downstairs."

"But..."

"No buts kid. This could be really dangerous and your Mom would kill me if I let you get hurt."

Reluctantly, Henry headed for the door.

"What, you're not even going to wish me luck?" Emma asked jokingly.

Henry beamed back at her. "You don't need it," he said confidently. "You're the Saviour."

It wasn't the first time Emma found herself wishing she had half the belief in herself that Henry had in her.

Once he was out of the room, Emma rushed to Regina's beside, pulling the prone woman into a sitting position against the bed-head.

The previous silent Regina gave a small moan at the movement, her eyelids fluttering.

"That's it Regina," Emma urged. "Open your eyes. Come on, wake up!"

A groggy, slurred voice made it's way out of the brunette's mouth. "Miss Swan?"

Emma chuckled. "Since I'm about to do some magic funnel shit that could potentially kill us both I'm pretty sure you can call me Emma. We're there."

"What..?" Regina's head was lolling sideways, clearly struggling to follow what Emma was saying.

"I told you, I'm not doing this by myself. Besides, how can I keep on calling myself 'The Saviour' if I can't even beat one measly little death curse?"

Regina was still not entirely conscious, the ability to speak abandoning her again.

"That's okay, I get it. You're not in a joking mood. That's fine – maybe later."

Emma sat herself across from Regina on Henry's bed and put a hand on the ill woman's shoulder, steadying her.

"Okay bear with me Regina, I don't exactly know what I'm doing here."

Emma took a deep breath and tried to remember the feeling she'd had in the Enchanted Forest when her magic had come out. She allowed the intense need to protect at all costs fill her up, flooding her system. She was rewarded with a familiar tingle spreading throughout her entire body.

Emma closed her eyes and concentrated on what she wanted her magic to do, picturing it seeping into Regina and pulling the toxic curse out of her.

She felt the tendrils of her own magic respond. They unfurled delicately and she gasped when they brushed up against Regina's. The dark haired woman's magic tasted of dark chocolate and peppermint. Rich and smooth and slightly bitter.

The sensation of their magical essences touching was overwhelming and Emma found herself lost in the feeling. The force of it almost made her forget the reason she was doing this in the first place. That was until chocolate mint gave way to a jarring electrical current that set Emma's teeth on edge.

In her mind's eye, Emma could see the curse – a malignant growth that had Regina's magic in a stranglehold. Despite her discomfort, she willed herself to draw closer to the bright green light.

The closer she got the more her magic wanted to retreat but she clenched her jaw and refused to pull away.

Regina needed her. She wouldn't turn back now.

As she touched the curse for the first time a wave of pain swept through her and she couldn't keep herself from crying out. She could feel the dark magic hooking into her own and she willed the purity of her intentions to shine through and overwhelm the blackness she felt at the curse's heart.

As it latched on tighter to her, Emma could see the green swirling mass slowly releasing it's grip on Regina. In response the brunette started to stir.

Spurred on by her progress, Emma pushed harder, trying to draw all of the destructive energy she could towards herself. By the time Regina returned to full consciousness Emma was struggling. Having drained the curse from Regina, she was now battling to keep it from destroying herself.

Your magic is light Emma, she told herself. You can do this!

Henry's voice echoed in her head. "Good always wins."

God I hope so kid, Emma thought.

Through the fog of the strain she felt two strong hands grip her own and her body became awash with warmth. The velvety texture of Regina's magic was back and Emma could feel it bolstering her, encouraging her to fight harder.

The white light emanating from her pulsed brighter, chasing the evil shadows from her core. With one last push of her heart, Emma felt the greedy mouth of the curse dislodge it's teeth from her magic and fall away.

In the moments following the curses annihilation, there was just Emma and Regina. No walls, no darkness. Just the truth of who they were, looking into each other.

Unbidden by either of them, their magics sought each other out – embracing. Like a key in a lock, their jagged edges fit together. They felt whole.

As awareness crept into the experience, Emma felt Regina startle and pull away.

Returning to wakefulness, they sat across from each other speechless. Regina stared at Emma with a simultaneously awestruck and questioning gaze.

"Well," said Emma breathlessly. "That was interesting."

Come on guys, you didn't really think I was going to kill her did you?