Author's Notes: The stories veer off from canon starting with this chapter.

Emma ran all the lights and stop signs on her way from Regina's house. Henry sat still and silent in the front seat, fighting to wake up.

"Henry, I've got to stop at the station to grab something. Just give me a second."

He nodded sleepily before snuggling into the seat and closing his eyes.

Emma unlocked the door and flipped on the lights. She ran over to her desk to grab her wallet and a few other things and shoved them into her purse. Glancing over the rest of the office, she was surprised to see a steaming mug of hot cocoa on her desk.

She didn't even think about the oddity of the situation; Emma sank into her desk chair and gratefully lifted the cup to her lips.

"I wouldn't drink that if I were you," a voice from the doorway said.

Emma froze, the cup in mid-air.

"Who said that?" She stood up. "Henry?"

Jefferson stepped into the light, top hat in hand.

Emma gasped and dropped the mug. In a fluid motion, Jefferson donned his hat and caught the mug without spilling a single drop.

"You're in danger, Emma."

"Put the cup down, Jefferson," she said, hand already hovering over the handle of her gun. "You're under arrest."

"You couldn't arrest me if you tried," he said. "Because you'd have to catch me first."

"Cut the crap. How'd you get in here?"

Jefferson tipped his hat. "You got it to work."

"What?"

"Still choosing disbelief? When I jumped through the hat, I thought you would have realized." He stepped toward her. "The curse is real. Haven't you realized by now?" He took another step forward. "Worst of all, she knows it's breaking." He moved even closer yet, and Emma traced the handle of her gun with her fingertips. "She knows, and she'd go to nefarious lengths to stop you." He looked down at the cocoa suspiciously. "How do you know this isn't poisoned?"

"Why would someone try to poison me?" Emma said; her voice was shaking.

"Stop living in denial, Emma," he said. He was very close to her now, almost too close. "You know why." He bent and whispered into her ear. "And you know who."

Emma closed her eyes and shivered; she heard a rushing sound and a loud pop. When she opened her eyes, Jefferson was gone, but the hat was slowly spinning on the desk.

She dumped the cocoa out the window and ran back to the car to find Henry safe and fast asleep.

"All right, kid," she whispered. "I'm taking you back home. Just for a little while."