After the successful training session Emma invited them over to Mary Margaret's apartment, which had been hers as well during her last stay in Storybrooke. The fact that it was now also protected from Zelena made it the safest place to be.
"They still haven't finished the crib", Emma sighed when they stepped inside, finding the parts spread across the floor.
"I can do that", Chris suggested. Emma turned towards him in surprise.
"Do you know how to do it?"
"I've got a wand; all it takes is a little swish and flick", the ginger boy remarked.
"You don't want them to levitate; you want them to assemble correctly", Arianne pointed out.
"Well, aren't all wand movements combinations of swishes and flicks?" Chris asked, before walking over to what would hopefully turn into a crib when he was done. Emma watched as he raised his wand and, truthfully, swished and flicked it over the pieces. All of a sudden these objects begun to move and assemble themselves, ending in the existence of a perfect crib.
"What did I tell you?" Chris said with a grin. In that moment there was a knock on the door and Emma walked over to open it. To her surprise she found Hook outside, without the company of her son.
"Swan?" Hook said, looking equally surprised. "I didn't expect to see you here."
"What do you mean?" Emma inquired, looking around the hallway. "Where's Henry? Is everything alright?"
"He's fine", Hook responded, "he's with his grandparents. I thought they might be back here."
"We haven't seen them", Emma said, frowning slightly. "If... you're not with Henry, what have you been doing all day?"
Hook's gaze flickered down for a moment and she stepped aside, motioning for him to come inside.
"I was enlisted to help Ariel find her lost prince", he responded, still not looking at her.
"Really?" Regina said from the table, where she had sat down together with Arianne. "That fish is in Storybrooke?"
"Wait, are we talking Ariel from The Little Mermaid?" Arianne asked. "She's here too? Where is she?"
Hook's lengthened silence made Emma wonder if everything was alright with the pirate in front of her, but with Regina's words ringing in her ears she decided to keep her questions at bay for now.
"She was here, yes", Hook eventually said, "and we found a clue in Gold's shop which led us to discover that Eric had been shipwrecked on Hangman's Island, just off the coast of the Enchanted Forest."
"The Witch's curse must not have reached that far", Chris remarked. Hook nodded.
"Ariel's on her way there now", he said, glancing back at Emma. "She wanted me to say goodbye to Mary Margaret for her."
"At the rate mermaids swim she's probably already there", Regina said, before she rose. "In fact, let's find out."
She walked over towards the tall mirror standing in one of the corners of the room and Emma followed, still frowning slightly.
"I thought you couldn't use mirror magic to look between worlds", she said.
"I can't", Regina agreed, "but after seeing the raw power you possess, I think maybe you can."
Emma stared at her own reflection, wondering how she could possibly make it change so that she could see what was happening somewhere else. Behind her she heard Hook sigh.
"There's no need", the pirate said, "I'm sure she's fine. Anyway, it's bad form to spy on such a private affair."
His words only spurred Emma on and she focused on the mirror.
"How do I do it?"
"Well, you've focused", Regina said, "you've let emotions awaken your power, and now you have to look inward."
Earlier that day Emma would have found her words beyond confusing, and if she considered them too closely she still would have, but somehow they still made sense. She closed her eyes and drew a deep breath. Suddenly she felt light touch her face and she looked up; the surface of the mirror had changed into the image of a faraway beach. Ariel was coming up out of the water, dressed in a blue dress, and Prince Eric was there to meet her, picking her up and spinning her around before kissing her.
"Woah", Chris said from behind.
"You did this?" Emma asked, looking at Hook. "You brought them together?"
The pirate averted his gaze again.
"No", he said, "it was Ariel. She never stopped believing."
"Modesty?" Emma said with an amused smile playing on her lips while the image in the mirror faded away. "You're just full of surprises today."
She had hardly finished the sentence when the door to the apartment opened and Henry came inside, laughing together with David. Mary Margaret walked slightly behind them and Emma could not help but notice how pale her birthmother looked, even though she managed a soft smile.
"Where have you guys been?" Emma asked, crossing her arms as she took a step towards her son. Henry grinned widely.
"Only having the best day ever", he said. "David let me drive his truck."
"You let him what?" Regina exclaimed, voicing what Emma also felt. David smiled sheepishly as he closed the door while Henry turned towards the woman he only knew as the town's Mayor in surprise. Regina quickly composed herself.
"As Mayor I can't let an unlicensed, underage driver out on the streets of Storybrooke."
She glanced at Emma and the blonde met her gaze, silently agreeing to talk to her father about things like this.
"As Mayor, you might want to throw a little money on road repair", David said. Henry snorted and looked down at his shoes while Regina's mouth fell open.
"Excuse me?" she said.
"Nothing", David quickly responded and turned away, seating himself by the kitchen island. Emma smiled in amusement as she noticed Regina following him.
"This is a terrible mistake."
"She's right", Emma agreed. "Someone could have been seriously hurt."
"Only if you're a mailbox", Mary Margaret said from her place by the table. Emma felt her eyebrows shoot up in surprise.
"It was so much fun!" Henry said, pouring himself a glass of water. David smiled at him, then looked up at Emma.
"What can I say?" he said. "I've got a reckless, carefree, fun side."
Emma fought back a smile when she realized that this was something caused by her mentioning that Henry did not consider David and Mary Margaret to be fun company. Her father still noticed and shot a grin at her.
"Killian", Mary Margaret suddenly said, "where's out friend?"
"It turns out her missing... husband was back home, after all", Hook responded, covering up the truth in suitable words.
"It's true", Emma agreed. "We just checked in on them on... Skype."
"She sends her regards", Hook continued, "but she was too excited to wait."
"A happy ending", Arianne remarked from her place by the couches. At that Mary Margaret turned around and gave a gasp.
"The crib!" she said. "You've finished it!"
"It wasn't that hard", Chris said with a grin. "Just needed some patience and hard work."
"Thank you so much", Mary Margaret said with a wide smile. "Maybe our luck's about to change, after all. Dinner at Granny's?"
"Can I drive?" Henry asked, jumping up from his chair.
"No!" everyone else in the room responded at once. At least everyone but Hook, who was already moving towards the door.
"Well, I guess I'll leave you guys to it", he said. Emma frowned and followed him.
"You're not coming?"
"Another time, perhaps", he responded, opening the door and briefly meeting her gaze. She smiled.
"Well, if you change your mind, you know where we'll be", she said. He shot her a smile over his shoulder before starting to descend the stairs.
"Killian", she called, stopping him, "whatever happened this past year, whatever you're not telling me; I don't care. I'm tired of living in the past."
She had hoped he would look happy at that, as he had looked devastated when she had claimed the opposite earlier that day. For some reason, however, he did not.
"I know how you feel", he instead said, before walking down the stairs and disappearing.
He saw her right when they arrived at Granny's, sitting in a booth at the back with her friends. Chris and Arianne walked over there at once and when she raised her head to greet them, she immediately noticed him as well. The smile she had been wearing faltered, before she excused herself and made her way to the bathrooms.
"I'll be right back", he told Mary Margaret before he hurried after the disappearing woman.
He found her outside the diner, hurrying to get away from him. He ran after her.
"Rachel!" he called. "Wait!"
She stopped and turned as he caught up with her.
"What is it?" she asked, her voice sharp.
"We need to talk about what happened", he answered. "I want to apologize to you; I don't even know what..."
"It was the Witch, David", Rachel responded. "She cast a temporary spell on us meant to drive a wedge between us. I talked to Regina about it and she confirmed my beliefs."
"Well, don't you think it worked?" he asked. "This is the first time we've spoken since... since it happened and I have a feeling you're avoiding me."
"Because I'm scared", Rachel said. He saw tears shining in her eyes and stepped closer.
"Scared? Why? The spell is gone, isn't it?"
"If she managed to do it once she can manage it again", she responded. "I can't let her do that; I can't let her destroy your family."
"She won't", he said, taking another step towards her, "I promise you, she won't. But I need you, Rachel. I don't know what it was that we experienced together back in the Enchanted Forest but I need you to be here with me during this time, because I can't do this without you."
He moved to grab her hand but found an invisible wall blocking him halfway there. His eyes widened as he stared at the distance magically kept between them before meeting her gaze again. A solitary tear had managed to find its way down her right cheek.
"I'm sorry", she whispered.
"Rachel, what have you done?" he asked, reaching out with his other hand to grab her shoulder and finding the same wall there. "What have you done?"
"This is the only way to stop her, David", she said, another tear falling down from her eyes, "by keeping us apart."
"Please."
"I don't want to lose you", she clarified. "You're... like a brother to me."
He lowered his hands, feeling tears well up in his eyes.
"You are part of my family, Rachel. I know it. I can feel it and I won't lose you. I won't let the Witch get to you again."
She forced a smile, before she turned away and left him standing alone on the sidewalk. When she had disappeared around the corner he drew a deep breath and looked up at the dark sky, forcing back the tears before hurrying back to Granny's, walking back to the ones he knew were his family for their dinner, while feeling like there was one person missing.
Aw, that was not fair!