The ride back to his house felt so long. It was only a few minutes but Henry already dreaded what would happen the second he got out of the car. He was definitely grounded for all eternity.
"Please you don't have to do this," Henry begged.
"Kid. This is just how it has to be." Emma pulled up in front of the white house on Mifflin Street. "This it?"
Henry merely grumbled.
Emma parked the car and looked at him expectantly. Henry huffed and got out of the car.
"Please don't take me back there." Henry could read her face a little better now. Emma seemed to like the situation less and less the more he begged. He felt a little bad for trying to guilt trip her, but it was a necessary evil. Emma needed to stay in Storybrooke. She needed to break the curse. And even if she hadn't done anything particularly motherly yet, he needed her. Anything would be better than the Evil Queen.
"I have to. I'm sure your parents are worried sick about you." Emma replied as she pushed open the gate.
Henry tried to not get frustrated but Emma just didn't understand anything. "I don't have parents. I just have a mom, and she's-evil."
Emma whipped around to face him. "Evil. That's a bit extreme, isn't it?"
Henry looked at a spot on the ground and admitted. "She is. She doesn't love me; she only pretends to."
"Kid." Her voice was softer, an obvious attempt at comfort.
It didn't work. Henry tried to ignore the feeling of dread already spreading in his stomach. He was actually going to have to face Regina. He knew it had been a possibility (a very likely one if he had been honest with himself), but he never imagined what the meeting would actually entail. He'd probably be grounded forever. The next time he saw Paige she might actually look like she was thirty. And that didn't even take into account all the dirty dishes he would have to wash.
"I'm sure that's not true." Emma knelt to look him straight in the eye. Henry couldn't help but smile just a little bit. She was mothering him. He couldn't remember the last time Regina did something like this. Henry knew she tried, but Regina was always gone. The town was more important than he ever would be. She also would have been too scared about getting her perfect clothes dirty.
Almost as if Henry had summoned her by thinking about her, Regina burst through the door.
"Henry!" She ran towards him and pulled him into a very tight hug. "Oh Henry." She whispered into his hair. Her voice was slightly lower as if she had been crying. "Are you okay?" Regina patted him down looking for injuries. "Where have you been? What happened?" She squeezed him tighter.
Henry almost felt bad for his next words. He may not currently be on the best terms with this woman, but she still raised him. "I found my real mom."
Henry put on a burst of speed and ran into the house. He pushed past the adults and ran all the way upstairs to his room.
Why wasn't anything changing? Henry slid down the door so his back was keeping it firmly shut. Regina had a key to his room after all, and Henry certainly didn't want to talk to her now.
There was a knocking on the door. "Henry?" Graham's deep voice asked.
"Go away!"
"Henry, can I come in?"
Henry didn't answer. He really just wanted to be alone. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. His mother was supposed to want him instantly. Emma was supposed to love and hold him and take him away from the Evil Queen and tell him everything was going to be all right.
"Henry," Graham's voice was slightly softer now. "I know it's late but I think we should talk about this."
"I don't want to." Henry winced at how much those words made him sound like a little kid.
"I know." Graham's voice was empathetic, almost like he was talking to a wounded animal. "Your mom's just worried. I'm worried too. A little boy can get into a lot of trouble off on his own."
"I'm fine."
"I'm sure you are. I'd just be a lot more convinced if I could speak to you face to face instead of through a door."
Henry sighed. He pulled himself up and unlocked the door. "See I'm fine." He said giving the sheriff an impatient look."
"Was that so hard?" Graham's voice was joking and not nearly as patronizing as his words implied.
"I'm just tired."
"I can imagine. You've had a long day."
"Yep," Henry said, popping the p. "I just really want to go to bed."
"Okay." Despite his words, Graham took a seat on the bed. "You do know how dangerous it was to run off to Boston."
Henry nodded but Graham continued.
"There are all sorts of people in this world, Henry. Not everyone's looking out for your best interests and a little boy running around a big city by himself is definitely going to attract some interest."
"I know, but I had to-"
"Henry," Graham interrupted. "You never have to do anything. I'm sure you could have found a different way to meet your birth mother."
"Mom doesn't like talking about her." The words slipped out. It only took Henry a second to realize he had called Regina "Mom" again. It was just difficult. He wanted to stay detached. Since she was the Evil Queen, she had done terrible things and yet Henry still didn't want to hurt her.
"I don't think anyone likes to think they're being replaced."
"I'm not replacing her!"
Graham gave him a smile. "I know that. You know that, but I think it may take Madame Mayor a little longer to realize that."
"I just want to know where I come from." And Henry added silently to break the curse so people stop thinking I'm crazy and everyone can have their happy endings.
"We all do. It's just you have to remember how worried everyone was tonight."
"What do you mean?" Henry asked.
"Well, I got a frantic call from your mother claiming you had been kidnapped. Brenna Sawyer demanded me to tell you that you and I quote 'Better not be doing anything stupid,' and to inform her as soon as we knew your whereabouts. A little miss Paige Grace was out searching for you in the rain and had to be sent back home before she got pneumonia. You-"
"Paige is okay though right?" Henry knew they had discussed the trip to Boston, so why had she gone out anyway.
"Your friends are perfectly fine Henry and I think you should get some sleep. You've had a long day."
"Thanks Sherriff Graham." Henry put his bag on the floor of the closet.
He could hear Graham loudly calling down the stairs, "Madame Mayor, you can relax. Other than being a tired little boy, Henry's fine."
Henry smiled and began to get ready for bed. He turned off most of the lights in the room before peering out the window. Henry could see when Emma left now. That way he would have some way to gauge when Regina would come upstairs. Now that was a conversation he definitely wanted to avoid.
Henry saw something else though. Something almost more important. The clock on the clock tower began to move. Time wasn't frozen anymore. Emma was starting to break the curse.
He heard the front door close. Henry gave Emma a smile before closing the curtain and turning off the light. He jumped away from the windowsill and climbed into his bed. He closed his eyes and laid perfectly still. He pretended to sleep.
Henry squeezed his eyes tighter when he heard his bedroom door open. Regina crept toward his bed. She gave a sigh of relief before running her fingers through his hair. "Don't ever scare me like that again," she whispered, as she gave him a kiss on the forehead.
Maggie played a few of the keys on the old grand piano. She could only play a few songs and not anything that really interested her. It was always Alice's domain. Alice's or their mother's. The keys were hardly ever touched now.
It had been over a year since anyone had seen Alice. The extended family and other acquaintances spoke of propriety and the shame of a daughter running off. They spoke of lovers and unfaithful daughters. That wasn't what was going on.
Alice had never been that sort of person. She had never been rebellious for the sake of being rebellious. Alice had been far more interested in her fairytale stories. They sounded fantastic, talking rabbits, smoking caterpillars, mushrooms that made you shrink. Everything sounded so wonderful, but none of it could be real
That's why Maggie was sure something awful had happened. She remembered her sister's last words clearly. It had been the middle of July. Maggie should have known something weird was going on. She had heard floorboards creaking in the middle of the night and she had gone downstairs to investigate, only to find her little sister standing in the kitchen.
"I'm fine Mags. Just go back to bed," Alice smiled using the nickname she had come up with when she was a toddler. The name should have been another clue. Alice hadn't called her "Mags" in years. She had stopped when she was six because it sounded too babyish.
"No it's fine. I'll wait up."
"Really Mags. I'm not a little girl anymore." Alice gave a genuine smile. "I can get a glass of water by myself."
"I never doubted you for a second Alice," Maggie replied softly "You know me, I'm just a worrier."
"Good night Mags!" Alice motioned with her left arm that she was waiting for her sister to leave. Then she smiled.
Looking back on it, Alice's smile seemed a little sad.
"Sweet dreams Alice."
Henry woke up earlier than usual. He was more than a little excited. He would get to see Emma again today. He would have to. He had left the fairytale book in her car on purpose. She would have to return it.
Henry threw on a blue shirt and looked around for his bag. He wasn't sure he wanted to go to school today. If he was in school, Emma could just drop off the book and leave. He would explain everything to Paige later, but now he was going to his castle.
Brenna was not a morning person. The only reason she was even up at this hour was because her bratty little sister, Claire, jumped on her bed. It had been a late night. She had talked briefly with Paige on the phone about Henry. It was what her parents called a special situation. On a normal night, she wouldn't have been allowed to use the phone past eight, but they had been almost as worried about Henry as she was.
Her parents were overprotective. They never seemed to trust anyone. "There's evil in the world," seemed to be their mantra. Brenna couldn't think of a reason why. Crime in Storybrooke was basically nonexistent. It wasn't like there was some underground mafia family or something. Sherriff Graham kept almost everything completely under control.
Brenna sighed, gave Claire one last glare, found her shoes (which never seemed to stay together or in the closet) and headed out the door. She would be early, but that only meant she would be able to interrogate Henry the second he was off the bus. He better have some good answers.
Paige yawned widely as she ate her cereal.
"I knew you were out to late last night." Her mother gave her a cross look before continuing to read the Storybrooke Daily Mirror.
"I'm fine. It's just early. " Paige took a long sip of tea hoping it would wake her up more.
"Are you sure you don't want to stay home? You could be catching a cold. It was awfully chilly last night and it was-"
"I'm fine," Paige asserted, slamming her mug back on the table. "Sherriff Graham gave me a ride home."
"I still don't like it. I'll be able to pick you up if you start feeling worse. Just ask Ms. Blanchard if you can use her phone."
"Mom you've got nothing to worry about."
AN: So now Emma's officially in Storybrooke. I'm sorry this took so long. Unfortunately this will be the last update you get from me personally for some time. I'm trying to write as many chapters as possible before I leave and I have a friend of my mine who will be posting for me.
Now I have a note from my lovely replacement for the next two months or so.
Hello lovely readers of thecompletebookworm! I'm Lynnie76296 (you can just call me Lynnie) and I will be managing this account while my dear friend goes to China. I love these stories as well so I know how important it is to keep updating. And please keep reviewing! I will be staying in contact with bookworm as much as I can so questions and thanks will be delivered accordingly. If you need to get ahold of me don't be afraid to PM or check my profile!
She writes Lunar Chronicles and Divergent stuff so check them out if that's your cup of tea.
Character note: Brenna will be important to the story. Henry just isn't quite sure about her yet. She still seems to him more like Paige's friend than his.
Timeline note: The Maggie of this chapter has not yet started looking for Alice.
The Elsa and Anna interaction of last chapter happened a long time ago (think before Regina met Daniel). They have since grown up. You'll definitely see more of them, but I wanted to clarify. Elsa is also not going to make an appearance in Storybrooke anytime soon. She's still stuck in Rumple's vault.
Leanne: I love the sisterly relationship Elsa and Anna have even though they were raised separately. I wanted to play around with their story a little more. Their relationship is definitely going to be important in the future. (It's why I'm nervous how the shows going to portray them. I don't want just a retelling of frozen. I want the signature OUAT twist.)