Title: Vengeance, Sacrifice, and Forgiveness

Author: AoN

Word Count: 4,450

Genre: Drama, Adventure

Rating: PG-13

Feedback: Please and thank you! Let me know what I'm doing right or doing wrong.

Summary: With the Evil Queen's curse weakening and Regina struggling to keep Storybrooke under control, hidden secrets and lies from long ago are beginning to surface – and they want their happily ever after.

Author's Note: Firstly, I wanted to thank all of you for reading and reviewing this fan fic. I absolutely love hearing from all of you and chatting with my fellow OUaT fans!

Also, I wanted to apologize for the delay! The first few chapters were updated only a few days apart and I was very impressed with myself. However, I was out of town for a few days with very spotty Wi-Fi. Not to mention, when I saw Sunday's new episode, I had to start this chapter over.

So, without further delay, here it is. Thank you again! ~AoN

Chapter Four

This playground – it was not his castle. This playground would never be his castle; it was not replaceable. None of the other kids never really came to his special fort. This new playground was usually pretty crowded. Usually. This afternoon, the playground was empty.

Henry walked around the new structure, frowning. He could not help it. There was not a lot to smile about these days. His evil adoptive mom destroyed his only safe haven. He lost the book. To top it off, he and Emma could not hang out. Everything had happened because of his mom, because of the Evil Queen. Operation Cobra was more important now than ever. He hoped Emma was working equally as hard as he was. He had written down everything he could remember about the book.

The ten year old boy sat down on the steps of the playground, some sort of metal and not wood. It did not feel right. He stared down at the walkie talkie in his hand. He knew Emma's voice would not be heard over it soon. The thought only brought on more frowning as he set the thing down beside him.

They had to break the curse and they had to break it now before things get worse. The Evil Queen proved what she was capable of and now they had to assume she had the book. He still could nto believe the book was gone. He was glad Emma was out there looking, but he was almost certain the book was gone forever. They were never going to see it again.

And they needed it.

What if that girl was not Rapunzel or Sleeping Beauty? What if she was someone else? He did not have the book to flip through anymore.

"Why the long face, kid?"

Henry looked up quickly, expecting to see Emma. Instead, the voice belonged to a woman he had never seen before in Storybrooke. Sleeping Rapunzel Beauty had snuck up on him from the woods. He had not heard her.

"Are you the one who broke into Granny's last week?" he asked bluntly.

"Is that the reputation I have in town?" she asked in return.

"You've also made my mom upset," Henry added. "That's probably worse."

"Ah, you're the mayor's kid."

"And you're Lucy," Henry stated, recalling the name from Emma's and Mary Margaret's conversation. "I've heard about you, I'm Henry."

"Henry," Lucy repeated. "So I take it you've heard some pretty terrible things from the mayor about me. Did she make me out to be some big bad wolf?"

"No, not her. I heard from the sheriff."

"Well. That's good. I've met the Big Bad Wolf – very mean," Lucy commented. "But really? The sheriff?"

"You've met the Big Bad Wolf?" Henry questioned.

"Maybe," Lucy answered quickly, smirking slightly. She caught the little boy's attention and seemed to have brought him out of his funk. Good. "I may have also fought with him in the woods too – a couple times." She needed to get him to trust her, it was the only way she could get close enough…

"You fought him? The Big Bad Wolf?" Henry blurted out, rising to his feet. He was bursting with so many questions.

Lucy nodded, giving Henry the confirmation he was seeking. "It's an interesting story," she reassured. "He definitely did not go down without a fight – threw me around like I was a sack of potatoes. And it hurt," she recalled, walking over to the playground. She took a seat on the lowest step, Henry retook his own at the top.

"Where did you fight him? Near here? In Storybrooke?"

"In Storybrooke? No. Near here?" Lucy pondered. "Yes and no – sometimes, it feels like it's near and others, it's a million miles away. Can I trust you with a secret, Henry?" she asked, leaning towards him.

When Henry leaned forward also, Lucy looked over her shoulders, double checking that they were alone on the playground. She could not risk being overheard after all. "All these fairytales we've heard – they're real," she whispered. "Red Riding Hood, Snow White… I've met them."

Henry sat up straight, wide eyed. "You know about the fairytales?"

"Know about them? Kid, I was in them," Lucy pointed out.

"W-Which one? Are you Rapunzel or Sleeping Beauty?" Henry demanded.

"Rapunzel or Sleeping Beauty?" Lucy scoffed at the idea, shaking her head. "For starters, I'm not blonde. My hair's long, but not that long, and I would love to sleep for an eternity," she remarked. He believed her. Good. She was not lying by any means; she had no reason to lie to him. She knew this is what he believed – the idea of this parallel world. He was still a child, still able to imagine something that unrealistic and believe it to be true.

"Then which story are you from?" Henry asked excitedly.

Lucy smiled lightly at this enthusiasm. "Well," she began. "I'm part of a few, but I don't have my own. Unfortunately, I think I was pretty far from my happily ever after right before the curse was cast."

"You know about the curse?" Henry could barely sit still anymore. "Do you have your memories? Did you get them recently? Is that why no one has seen you in Storybrooke before? What's your real name?"

"Henry, I don't think you're ready for all those answers yet," Lucy replied honestly. "I will tell you, however, that I do know about the curse, yeah, and I want to help you. I'm on your side."

Instantly, Henry grabbed the walkie talkie. Lucy immediately reached out and took his hand. "But you can't tell anyone else, not yet. It's our secret, remember?"

"How do I know you're not lying to me?"

Smart kid. Just when Lucy was convinced that her words alone would do the trick, she asked the one question she could not prove by means of speech alone. She could have easily been giving him false ideas, just saying the things she knew he wanted to hear. Instead of saying anything, Lucy got up and took a couple steps away from the playground.

She turned around to face Henry, her blue eyes staring directly into his own. Her muscles began to spaz, she grinded her teeth to bear it and stand her ground. Bones started to shift and morph, forcing her on all fours. She had never imagined how anyone would react to a person shape shifting into a wolf, but Henry's was that of pure excitement. He was instantly on his feet again and the frown that plagued him earlier had disappeared.

"The wolf," he said. "The huntsman's friend. You were his friend. That's why you had no happy ending – the Evil Queen took your friend away."

For the time being, she allowed him to believe that was her story.

xxxx

The deer lifted its head from the spring it had been drinking at the sound of a branch snapping in two. The wolf watched from a safe distance as the deer sprang into action, but it was already too late. An arrow, fired from its bow, flew through the air and into the animal's side. The wolf saw the huntsman approach the fallen creature and kneel by its side.

The huntsman never missed his mark which was why the wolf always lingered behind him. He had said he would not be able to live with himself if he had accidentally mistaken her for another animal. The wolves were his family and he was hers. They protected each other – at least he would her and she him. The other wolves were not too keen about her. They knew she was different from them. To the huntsman, it did not matter. Actually, he was fond of the multicolor eyed wolf. She was a good companion.

Each step the wolf took towards the fallen prey was slow. Her tail was tucked behind her hind legs and her head lowered as she approached. When the huntsman looked up and saw her, she smiled.

"Don't worry, girl," he said. "We won't go hungry tonight."

Tail now wagging slightly, the wolf went to his side and nudged his arm with her nose. He laughed lightly and gently caressed the top of her head. "You're very welcome."

xxxx

Henry had never been in such a hurry to get home before in his life. For the first time in a long time, Operation Cobra was going somewhere. He still could not believe he saw a human being transform into a wolf and back right before his eyes. He had tried to get some answers, but Lucy did not budge on the subject, even after she caught her breathe. She did say that every transformation was painful and she could not stay human for very long without concentrating. She had been a wolf for too long; it was now what she considered to be her natural state. Not to mention the whole transformation thing was fairly new.

However, that was not the reason why he was in a hurry to go home. If anything, up to that point, he wanted to stay and talk with her more.

Lucy said she needed his help. The mayor had taken something of great importance from her and she wanted it back. When Henry had asked what, she did not say, but promised to show him if she got it back. She would also answer more of his questions too, she promised. Needless to say, Henry was more than willing to help if it meant learning more about the curse and the fairytales.

What he had to do was simple enough. He had to disarm the security alarm at home, a couple hours after his mom went to bed, and unlock one of the windows – preferably the one in her home office. She would just look around for a little while, that was all. Henry did not ask what she was looking for; he knew he would not have gotten an answer. Maybe she was looking for the huntsman's heart – they were close friends. Maybe… Maybe the Evil Queen had cursed her and that was why she was a wolf. Maybe there was an object that controlled her own personal curse. He did not know. All he knew was that she was looking for something and that his mom had it.

"Are you feeling alright? You've been rather quiet all day," Regina commented, sitting on the edge of her son's bed. She took the comic book he had been pretending to read and placed it on his nightstand.

Henry faked a smile and nodded as Regina tucked him in. "Just tired," he answered. "Lots of school work."

Regina nodded slightly, watching him carefully. "Okay," she said, leaning down to place a kiss on his forehead. "Good night. I love you."

"Good night," Henry repeated.

She lingered for a moment, waiting for Henry to say something more, but he did not. Without another word herself, Regina stood up and dismissed herself from his bedroom. When Henry heard the door close, he sighed heavily and relaxed somewhat. He still had a while to wait. A couple hours at best, but he was positive it would be longer.

He laid there for what felt like an eternity. Seconds were slowly dragging into minutes and then becoming hours. About an hour and a half after she had tucked him in, Henry heard his mom go into her bedroom. Okay, good. All he had to do was wait another hour or so, right? It was still kind of early to try to rob someone, was it not? Henry definitely thought so, but, then again, he was not an expert by any means. He hoped Lucy would not attempt anything before he could disarm the alarm. Their whole plan would be ruined if she did. Maybe Lucy was already out there waiting for him. Would she be waiting as a wolf? Henry would – being a wolf would be cool.

His mind continued to wander, thinking about the what if's and about Operation Cobra overall. When he finally snapped back into reality, Henry sat straight up in bed. What time was it? Was he late? He had to accomplish his part of the plan.

As quiet as he could be, Henry snuck out of his room and made his way down the dark hallway to the stairs. He took each step very carefully, not wanting to make a single sound that could possibly bring an end to this mission. That would be devastating considering Operation Cobra had been at a standstill for weeks.

Disarming the security alarm near the front door had been simple enough. His mom had never verbally told him the code, but Henry had seen her enter it loads of times. Once it was confirmed that the system was offline, Henry went to the back of the house where the office was located. He silently pushed his way through the door. His heart was racing. He could not believe this was actually happening.

This was too good to be true. He was almost expecting his mom to come through the door to bust him, catch him red handed in the act of letting a stranger into their home. He would not be grounded, oh no – he would be dead, without a doubt. As he unlocked one of the windows in the office, Henry had realized something.

He was putting a lot of trust into this Lucy girl.

xxxx

If there was anything more incredibly boring than a royal court assembly, it would be one that was planned last minute that kept them away from their morning walk through the woods with their parents. King Leopold had told them that they were too young to understand (too young? Snow White? She was 10! Practically an adult). Snow had overheard something about a war from one of the guards, but before she could eavesdrop even more, the Queen promised to take the two of them to a very special place down the river after.

"But the two of you have to behave," the Queen told Snow. "Otherwise we won't see the fairies."

"Fairies?" Snow repeated, eyes growing wide with excitement. "Lily loves fairies! Maybe they'll make her feel better."

"Maybe," the Queen smiled softly, taking the girl's hand and leading her back into the bedroom which the two princesses shared.

Once inside, Snow let go of the Queen's hand and went off to her bed where books and toys had been scattered across. The Queen, however, made her way over to the other bed across the room and sat down on the edge of the mattress. She gazed down at the sleeping child warmly, her heart so full of love. Even now, five years later, she could not believe that a single human being could bring her such happiness. Gently, she stroked her little one's dark hair. The girl stirred slightly, but did not wake. The queen would allow her to sleep some more.

She always needed the extra sleep, her poor Lillian. She was such a weak child, always had been. There were days when she was stronger than others and sometimes weeks where it was difficult to simply get her out of bed. Needless to say, the Queen was very protective of the girl.

Recently, Lily had been having strong days and therefore the royal family had planned a small outing. The Queen had been very secretive about the whole matter, wanting to surprise the two girls, but this sudden assembly had changed everyone's plans for the morning.

Before the Queen stood up, she leaned down to place a small kiss on Lily's rosy cheek. The Queen then turned to Snow with a small smile. "Remember, dear, it's our little secret, alright?"

"Alright," Snow replied with a nod, returning the smile.

"Good girl," the Queen grinned and headed out of the room.

Snow, who could barely contain her own excitement, waited patiently for the door to close before bolting across the room. She jumped onto Lily's bed, an action which was met by a tired groan. "Lillian! Lily! Did you hear?" she asked eagerly, shaking the other girl awake. "Well, did you?"

"No," Lily grunted, pulling the blankets over her head in an attempt to keep Snow away.

It was a futile attempt. Snow just pulled the blankets right back down. "Fairies, Lily. We're going to see fairies!"

Now the little girl sat up. Her attention had been caught. "Fairies?" she repeated. "Are you sure?"

"That's what mother said – you've always wanted to see them!"

"Do you think they'll grant my wish, Snow?" Lily asked enthusiastically, more awake. "I've been wishing really hard, but maybe I have to be closer."

"Of course, they'll grant it!" Snow replied, leaning over to kiss her on the forehead. "And it will be doubly granted because I'll wish for the same thing too."

"Don't waste your wish!"

"I'm not," Snow reassured, standing up. She walked over to the armchair where Lily's dress had been laid out earlier in the morning. She picked it up and went back over to Lily's side. "A wish for my baby sister's health is never one that could ever be wasted."

Lily's smile grew as she pulled her nightgown over her head. Snow then helped her into the simple blue dress, one that matched her eyes, and then fetched her sister's necklace from the dresser. It was a special necklace, Snow knew – one that had been in the Queen's family for generations. She also knew why Lily had it instead of her. She was only Snow's mother through marriage. Lily was blood.

Snow latched the chain around Lily's neck and then helped comb her hair. "When are we going to go? Soon?" Lily asked once Snow set the brush down.

"We were supposed to have gone by now, but a royal court assembly was called," Snow said. "It was supposed to have been a surprise, but mother told me before she left for the assembly."

"We're never gonna get to go now," Lily groaned. After a second, the groan had turned into a pout. "I'm not going to get my wish."

"Don't say things like that, Lily. You are going to get your wish," Snow reassured. "I know where to go. Mother told me. I'm going to take you myself."

"What?"

"It's just down the river," Snow explained. "The assembly's going to take forever. We can go, make our wish, and be back before they're done. Can you imagine how happy mother and father will be to see you so strong and healthy? This was supposed to have been our surprise, but instead we can surprise them!"

Lily watched Snow, contemplating her plan. After a moment, the little girl smiled and nodded. "Okay – let's go."

xxxx

From just beyond the backyard's prized apple tree, Lucy watched as Henry's figure appeared and disappeared from the window leading into the office. She assumed it to now be unlocked and the security system to be down. She was putting a lot of trust into this kid. What if he was just leading her on?

It was something she was willing to risk if it meant getting back what was rightfully hers. If the kid failed to hold up his end, well, he would not be getting any information from her. It truly was that simple and something told her that he really wanted to know more about her and from where she came. It was not everyday a young lady transformed into a wolf right before your eyes.

The kid had even called his mother the Evil Queen and, well, she was. He got that one right – how could he think she was Rapunzel or Sleeping Beauty?

Focus. Right.

She waited in the dark for about an hour more, watching the house intently, and then approached at a quick run while staying as low to the ground as she could in this form. She could have moved faster and sniff out things as a wolf, but opening the window along with getting in and out would have been rather difficult. Not to mention, the whole transformation process was so incredibly painful… If she could avoid it, she would. She could probably stay like this well into the morning before the transformation would force itself on her. Plenty of time.

Hopefully, it was time she would not need.

Lucy lingered at the window. Bracing herself, she pushed the panel up and open, half expecting an alarm to sound. When nothing but silence rang out, Lucy sighed heavily out of relief and climbed right on through into the office. At first, she stayed low and listened – still nothing but silence. Good. Lucy straightened up and began to look around.

She started first with the desk, pulling out the various draws and shuffling through the different components. Nothing. It was not in the desk. Lucy gazed up and glanced around the room. Her eyes landed on a filing cabinet- maybe. To her good fortune, it was not unlocked, but her necklace was not in it. Damn. Where else?

Various decorative boxes lined the shelves around the office, Lucy took note. All she had to do was start at one side of the room and work in one general direction. Simple enough, but Lucy quickly discovered something – they were all sealed shut. There was no getting into them. Very problematic. What if what she was looking for was in one of these things? How would she find the right box? How would she open the damn thing?

Minor setback, she told herself. Lucy took a step back and placed her hands on her hips. Minor, right.

Once more, Lucy took another look around the office. This time, something else caught her attention – behind the desk. There was another one of those boxes behind the desk and it, unlike the others, looked very familiar. Eyes locked on the box, Lucy dragged herself over, a bit mesmerized. Her eyes furrowed slightly as she reached out. Her fingers lingered over the lid –

The bright lights flooded the room suddenly.

Lucy immediately turned on her heel to face the mayor standing in the doorway in her nightgown. The anger she had given Lucy back in the sheriff's office was nothing compared to what Lucy was getting now.

"Do you really think I don't know what goes on in my own home?" Regina hissed. "Trespassing in Granny's will look like nothing compared to coming in here – I'll make sure you're taken to Boston. What are you doing here?"

"Getting what belongs to me back," Lucy replied, standing her ground.

"It was never yours to begin with," Regina snared.

"And I'm saying it's rightfully mine," Lucy snapped.

"Impossible."

"Oh?" Lucy grinned, her eyebrows rising. She laughed slightly and shook her head.

"Do you think this is funny, Ms…? Do I even get to know my robber's name?" Regina asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

Lucy stared at her for a second and smirked. "Mills," she answered. "Ms. Mills."

xxxx

Snow gave her sister's hand a tiny squeeze as they continued down the marked path through the forest. Sneaking out of the castle had always been easy for little Snow and bringing the younger girl along did not add any challenge. Lily was doing a good job at keeping up. "Are you okay, Lily?" she asked.

Lily only nodded so Snow gazed over her shoulder towards her. "Yes," Lily verbalized with a second nod.

"Good," Snow grinned. "We're almost to the river," she said, stepping off the trail. Lily immediately stopped in her tracks. Snow looked back, frowning. Did something go wrong all of a sudden?

"We have to stay on the path, Snow," Lily pointed out.

"Lily, it's a shortcut!" Snow promised. "I can hear the river from here. We're really close – don't you want to see the fairies?"

"Yes, but-"

"Then come on!" Snow grinned, pulling her along. Lily finally took a step off the path and began following Snow through the bushes and trees. It had been easier to walk the path, of course. Here, the ground was very uneven and tree roots threatened to trip her with every step she took. Snow had a bit more experience exploring the forest. Lily usually just heard stories about woodland creatures. Snow definitely had the advantage.

With each step, Lily could feel herself growing more and more tired. She was not use to the terrain. She started to pant, struggle to catch her breath as they continued. Snow did slow down when she felt Lily starting to drag behind. "Do you want to stop for a second?" Snow asked.

Lily shook her head.

"The assembly won't be out for a while."

"I want to see the fairies," Lily stated, her voice shaking.

Snow smiled faintly and nodded. "We will," she promised, slowly down their pace slightly. Although she was eager to get to the river, Snow did not mind slowing down some even though Lily did not want to.

It took them a bit longer, but the sound of the river gradually got louder as they got closer. Lily picked up her pace and walked ahead of Snow. The two came upon the edge of the ten foot drop leading down to the raging river below. The water, Snow noted, was a bit higher than what she remembered. Lily wiggled her hand free from Snow's and took a couple steps away, along the edge.

"Lily, be careful."

"Snow, it's so powerful!" Lily said in awe. Her eyes were wide as she admired the rushing water. The force was intense. There was no stopping it.

"It's normally calmer than this," Snow pointed out, taking a few steps down the river and away from her sister.

Lily glanced over her shoulder and frowned when she saw Snow walking away from her. "Hey!" she spoke up, getting Snow's attention. "Wait for me," she whined, turning around quickly. The little girl began to run towards the other. Before Lily could catch up with Snow, she stepped on a bit of soft earth that gave away from under her weight. Snow sat everything in slow motion. Her eyes grew wide and her heart leapt into her throat.

Snow jumped forward and threw her hand out to grab the girl's outstretched arm as Lily fell over the edge. A wave of panic overcame the both of them when the two realized that Snow could not reach her. The two girls shrieked each other's names and Snow screamed when Lily's body disappeared under the water.

To be continued…