Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke
A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover
Season 1, Episode 9, Chapter 2

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Five dollars. It was all she had earned today and that was for rescuing a kitten from a tree. Claire was feeling the pinch. The money paid to her by the city to settle the contract was already half gone. She had to pay the water, electric and gas bills along with insurance premiums, cell phone and cable bills and of course the credit cards. Plus there was city property taxes, federal income taxes, Christmas gifts, a tree, lights and ornaments. Her girls would be expecting that as they had every year.

During the spring Claire had taken to packing lunch to save money. Now she was reduced to nibbling on a slice of bread and washing it down with some coffee. To save on gasoline she parked the truck along the curb and began cold calling former customers. When they offered nothing she went through the phone book randomly calling around for work. Still no luck.

Claire revisited an idea she had right after Charlie's death, shutting down the business and taking a regular job. At least it would be steady income. Her first thought was the cannery. They were always hiring, but the jobs available were third shift. It meant sleeping during the day and working at night. She couldn't do that to her girls except as a last resort.

There was the diner or Bed and Breakfast. Granny might need extra help, but could she subsist on what a waitress made? What about washing sheets and pillow cases all day long? No, it wouldn't be enough. Even if she didn't owe money to Mr. Gold and other creditors it wasn't enough to fund a household of three.

She was deep in thought when Regina tapped on the driver door window. Claire rolled it down to greet the mayor. "Hello, Claire," Regina said with a smirk. "I'm quite taken by your little t-shirts."

The mayor was referring to the three game worn basketball jerseys of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish. All three were signed and authenticated. Claire had to give them up to pay off Mr. Gold one more month. However, Regina bought them almost immediately and used to make Claire suffer.

"I'm so glad," Claire replied trying to sound as if it didn't bother her that Regina had possession of those valuable jerseys. When Mr. Gold agreed to buy them he withheld that he was responsible for the very fire that brought an end to Claire's city contract thus forcing her into selling the framed jerseys.

Regina didn't like that this woman wasn't squirming under the pressure. So she turned it up. "I like sports as much as the next woman, but the city needs the money more than I need some sweaty basketball uniforms. So I'm going to put them on eBay and use the money to help repair Town Hall."

Claire tried to keep smiling, but underneath her heart was breaking. As long as those jerseys were in Storybrooke, Claire had a chance of recovering them. Once sold "into the wild" they would be beyond her reach forever. "That's..., that's a good idea. But why not ask for Mr. Gold to pay for the damages. He did set the fire after all."

"I'll deal with Mr. Gold in my own way," Regina answered. "Good afternoon."

Claire rolled up her window and dropped her sunshade. She didn't want people to see her crying.

~O~

THE WINTER WOODS, NEVER LAND (Late Victorian Period)

"Don't worry, Periwinkle," Fairy Nina told her. "You're doing fine."

Periwinkle had been practicing in the Frost Forest with the other Frost Talent fairies. She had made quick friends with Gliss and Spike who were helping her learn the craft. Fairy Nina, the Frost Guild overseer, had been watching her progress. She was coming along fine, creating white blankets over grass, leaves and branches. What she could not do was create simple shapes with her frost in the same way that others in her guild could.

"But I'm not as good as the others," Peri answered. "Maybe my talent glow was wrong. Maybe I'm not a great frost talent."

"Now don't say that," Nina told her. "It takes time to learn a talent. Just be patient and stop trying so hard. It will come in its own good time. I have faith in you."

"Thanks," she smiled. Inside, though, Peri had little faith in her own abilities.

To distract herself from her feelings of insecurity she visited the Keeper of All Fairy Knowledge. Dewey, to his friends, which was just about anyone who visited.

"Hi, Dewey," she bubbled. "I'm here to read new books."

"Oh ho ho ho. Why, I haven't had time to finish the last one," he said with a laugh. Dewey was tickled that someone appreciated his work so. Periwinkle visited more than anyone else in the Winter Woods, even the Lord of Winter himself.

"That's okay. Do you have that book on the Pixie Dust Tree?"

"It's in the same place it was yesterday."

Peri swirled in the air with delight before rushing off to re-re-reread the book Dewey had written about the magical, faraway tree that supplied both the warm and cold regions of Pixie Hollow with the much needed dust. Peri so wanted to visit, but she was disaffected of the idea when he told that her wings would break.

"You see," Dewey said, "a warm fairy's wings needs warm weather to remain light and fluttery. In the cold of the Winter Woods they would freeze solid and break. It's just the opposite for a winter fairy. Cold air is needed for a winter fairy's wings to stay light and fluttery. In warm weather they would wilt from the heat and then become so fragile that they can tear or even break."

"So, there is no way to visit?"

"No, dear, I'm sorry."

"Are you sure that our wings will break if we cross over?" she asked him, searching for even the tiniest sliver of hope.

"Oh yes," Dewey answered, looking rather downcast. "It's happened before. So the Lord Milori and the Queen Clarion agreed never to allow anyone to cross ever again. They won't even let us gather at the border to talk to each other. No contact is allowed."

"Maybe if I could talk to Lord Milori, convince him to speak with Queen Clarion, I'm sure they could-."

"Oh no. I've talked to the Lord of Winter over and over again till I was blue in the face," Dewey, realizing he had just walked right into a pun, chuckled. "Heh, heh. Blue in the face. Now where was I? Oh yes. Lord Milori. I'm sorry, child, he won't change his mind. He is as intractable as the ice in our ponds."

Periwinkle's wings drooped when she heard that news. She would be forced to adore the mysterious warm seasons only from his books. Despairingly, Periwinkle flipped halfheartedly through his book of the Pixie Dust Tree. She carefully traced the lines made by the branches with her finger, silently wishing she had been born a warm weather fairy.

When she reached the end of the book, Peri put it back and grabbed another. She opened the pages and found something else that captured her imagination. "Dewey, what is this?"

He looked at the page and smiled. "Oh that? That's a butterfly."

"Butterfly?"

"Mmh, hmm. These delicate creatures live in the Summer Gardens," he said. "They come in all different colors, too."

"They're so..., so beautiful." Periwinkle was absolutely captivated by the image of the butterfly in Dewey's book. She flipped the page and found another butterfly. This creature had different colors just as he said. The arrangement of pigments was different from the other one, too. Then she flipped another page and saw a third butterfly with different shaped wings. And then a fourth and another and another. She grabbed the book, held it to her chest and spun around in the air. "These are the most incredible things I've ever seen."

"Oh you like them?"

"They are amazing. I wish we had them here in the Winter Woods."

Dewey laughed a bit. "Take it."

"Oh, I couldn't. You need it for your library."

"I can always write another one," he told her. "Now you take it with you and enjoy."

"Thank you, Dewey!" she said, hugging him tightly in gratitude.

~O~

That evening Periwinkle retired to her apartment nestled in a mountainside that overlooked the Frost Forest. These apartments were where her guild lived. Peri's room was high up and gave her a great view of the three warm seasons of Pixie Hollow. She clutched the book tightly as she looked winsomely at the distant Pixie Dust Tree which glowed day and night. She could see the lush greenery of Springtime Square; the riot of bright colors from the Summer Gardens and the lovely reds, golds and browns found in the Autumn Forest.

She wondered if it would have been better had she been given an apartment closer to the ground so she wouldn't constantly be teased by the view of the one place she could not go. It seemed like torture to sleep and wake to this magnificent vista, always beyond her reach. Periwinkle sighed. She decided that seeing it was better than not seeing it because for some reason it had cast a strange spell on her. As if it were calling her, though she could not understand exactly why.

The little frost fairy climbed into her bed and flipped through the book of butterflies. Going from the first page to the very last. She rolled over and kicked her feet into the air, squealing like a giddy little girl. Then she opened the book and flipped through the pages one more time.

~O~

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

Children streamed from the room just seconds after the bell rang. Ms. Blanchard's class had let out for the day. She was gathering her books to go home when a familiar figure stood in the door.

"Claire, how are you?" she greeted the middle aged woman. "I think Tina is a little old for a parent teacher conference."

The other woman laughed. "Oh no, though I appreciate how well you kept Charlie and I informed of her progress. If it wasn't for you we would never have known she needed an honor's class for math."

"It's what I do. Now I'm sure you aren't here to visit about old times."

"No. In fact…, I hate to, uh..., to come to you about this, but you're the only person here I trust. Work has been hard to find lately and I've got bills to pay. I'm thinking of just giving up the business and finding a regular job."

"Wow, I had no idea. Well what can I do?"

"Do you know if the school is hiring? Preferably for a music teacher. Or..., or at least where I can find out."

Mary Margaret's shoulders slumped a bit. "Oh no, I'm sorry. The school isn't hiring for anything other than a custodian. Have you tried the middle or high school?"

"I was heading to the middle school next if there were no options here," Claire admitted.

"Do you have a teaching certificate?" Ms. Blanchard asked.

"No, do I need one?"

"Oh yes, you'll need to enroll at Storybrooke Community College for the classes to earn your certificate. Without it no school will hire you."

Claire sat down, despairing even more. "I can't afford that."

Mary Margaret sat down next to the woman and put a caring hand on her shoulder. "I'm so sorry. I've been following what's been happening in the paper. I don't know what to say."

Claire offered a weak smile, "Thank you. I had to try."

"It's not much, but are you still looking for jobs?"

"Anything I can get."

"I've been meaning to replace the toilet in my house. It's old and has started leaking. Can you come by this weekend?"

"Sure."

"And I'll put the word out to the other teachers, too. Maybe they'll have something for you."

"Oh, thank you. I don't want to put you out."

"No, not at all. Tina was the one of the best students I ever had. She was a joy. And I always appreciate a parent who is so involved in their child's studies."

"Thank you, Ms. Blanchard. You don't know what this means."

~O~

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Night. Hansel and Gretel approached the gingerbread house of The Blind Witch after dark so they could sneak while she was asleep. Gretel prepared to enter through a window, but had to stop Hansel from taking a lick of the tasty looking confections that dotted the outer wall.

"No," she whispered to him. "Remember, don't eat anything. Not even a lick."

The girl and boy stole into the house where they found the witch asleep in a rocking chair. The interior was filled with treats of every kind from candy to pastries. Even the walls looked delicious. On one wall was a large oven which kept the house warm. Gretel spied the small leather pouch the queen had told them to look for. It was hanging from a nail on the far wall.

Quietly Gretel stepped over to it, careful not to wake the sleeping witch. She lifted the bag from its perch and turned just in time to see Hansel take a massive bite out of a cupcake. "No," she whispered loudly, trying to stop him, but it was too late.

Instantly, The Blind Witch's eyes opened. She whiffed the air. "I smell dinner."

The boy and girl ran for the door, but it locked itself before they could reach it. Then all of the windows shut and locked. Despite lacking site, The Blind Witch took hold of both Hansel and Gretel by the arms and pulled them into a cage where she would keep them until she was ready.

Gretel looked over at the oven. Lying at the base was a huge pile of human bones. The remains of children who were unlucky enough to have come across this place. They were to be cooked alive and then eaten. They would never see their father again.

~O~

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

When Mary Margaret come home she found two children, a boy and girl, sitting at the breakfast bar noshing on sweets. Emma had taken them in. She explained that they were orphans looking for their father. Her plan was to keep them there until she could find him.

The mayor, Regina, had already made arrangements for them to enter into the foster care system in Boston. A foster system which Emma vividly remembered being absolutely terrible and dehumanizing. Unfortunately, no home had more than one empty bed. This meant they were to be separated.

The kids overheard the conversation. "You aren't going to let them separate us?"

"No, kid, I promise," Emma said. "I'll find your father. You aren't going anywhere."

~O~

Emma met with Henry at Granny's shortly afterwards. She told him about the two kids she had taken onto custody earlier and that they were looking for their father. This caused Henry to ask about his father. Emma explained that he was a fireman in training who frequented the diner where she was working. They hung out together for a while before she wound up in jail where she learned she was expecting. After Emma served her term in prison she sought out the man and found out he died saving a family from a fire. "He was a real hero."

As they talked Henry wished she had kept something of his. This gave Emma an idea.

"I'm sorry, Henry, I have to go. I think I know how to find those kids missing dad."

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