The door to the shop swung open, the chimes ringing out only to stop suddenly with the door slamming shut seconds later.

Abraxas Gold looked up from behind the counter where he was looking through inventory. The second the door had opened and shut behind the woman who entered, he knew who they were. He met the cold stare of the mayor, who (almost impressively) looked even more irritated than usual. He smirked a little when she started towards him, her heels aggressively clicking against the floor. Unfazed, he looked back to his work. He did not react, even with a flinch, when Regina was only a foot away from him, arms crossed. She was upset, that much was clear. What about, however, was not. He considered that, a couple of possibilities coming to mind. Mary Margaret had done something that set her off, anything from walking into her by accident to saying something to Henry she didn't approve of. Lynn had gotten worse, somehow, had a bad accident after being home from hospital for about a month. She got some phone calls she didn't like. There were not a whole lot of other possibilities that seemed to be reasonable. He was given pause when Regina, seemingly tired of waiting for him to say anything to her, slapped a hand over his sheets of inventory, pushing them aside.

"Is something on your mind?"

Regina narrowed her eyes. "You ought to know."

"I'm afraid I don't," Gold said, straightening up. "You'll have to spell it out for me."

"Oh, for God's sake," Regina's fingers began to impatiently tap against the counter. "You know what I'm talking about, don't play dumb with me."

Gold raised an eyebrow. "Alright," He said. "So, has something else happened with your daughter?"

Regina flinched. "No."

"That's my only guess," He said, his smirk easily creeping back into his face. "I'm afraid you'll have to be quite direct with me."

She shook a little, caught between anxiety and anger.

The queen never changes. Gold restrained himself from laughing. She cannot handle people not doing what she wants them to in an instant.

"You're the only person in this town who, I imagine, would bring her here, and let her stay," Regina said, rather sharpish. "And be capable of keeping me in the dark for as long as possible."

This time he did laugh.

"Who is this 'she' you are referring to?"

"You know," Regina snapped. "My mother."

Gold startled for just a few seconds, betraying a hint of truth against his will.

"So," Regina drew out the word, angrier by the second. "I take it that means I'm right. Why? Why do you want her around? Didn't she betray you at some point? Or am I remembering wrong?"

"I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about," He said, quickly regaining his composure. "I don't believe anyone in this town has ever met your mother. The few times you've talked about it, it has been in an unfavourable light. I find it hard to believe anyone would want to cross you, especially right now."

"You've never had a problem with that," She scowled. "What is she doing here?"

Gold said nothing, merely offering her that same infuriating smirk.

"How long have we known each other?"

He startled again, quickly meeting her cold gaze.

"Quite awhile," He said. "I can barely remember not being around you."

True. I've seen her since she was a baby. Cora relied on me with handling her more than the father of her child. Cora never did like how Henry was always so gentle with Regina. I was the one who taught her how to discipline Regina, and the one who taught them both magic.

"Right," Regina paused, almost looking afraid. "What's your name?"

"What kind of question is that? You know the answer, dearie. I've always been Abraxas Gold in this life."

Regina frowned. "And in lives other than this?"

He said nothing, almost looking bored.

"You can't lie to me forever," Regina hissed. "And you damn well know it."

"Netta? Why are you weird about being a princess? It's like you're obsessed with it!"

Lynn turned around in surprise upon hearing her brother's voice. Henry stood in the doorway to her room, and his eyes went suddenly up to the tiara in his sister's hands, hovering above her head. She set her tiara on her head, and then, with a short yelp when her braced leg bumped against her desk when she stood up, walked over to her bed. She sat down, and waved her little brother over. Henry grinned and came over to sit down next to her. After a second to make sure she was okay, he leaned over and tightly hugged her. Lynn hugged him back, closing her eyes in relief. Things were finally getting back to normal. Things were finally starting to feel normal. She tried not to think about the interviews she had done in the past month. Gruelling. That was to say the least. They were over, though. It was over, and everything was going to be alright. And she would be going back to school, soon. That was one of the things she was relieved about most. Life was getting back to normal. Life was getting back to the way they were supposed to be, for the most part.

"I am a princess," Lynn said, ruffling her little brother's hair. "That's why I'm obsessed with it. Because that's what I am."

Henry eyed her strangely. "But you're not really a princess. Our mom's not a queen."

"She is," Lynn told him. "She's Queen Regina."

Henry scrunched up his face in confusion, looking up at her tiara.

"Is that real? Like with real diamonds and stuff?"

Lynn nodded. "Yep!"

"Okay," Henry paused. "That makes sense, I guess."

How is mom a queen? That's weird. I mean, if she is then it makes sense that Lynn is a princess but how is mom a queen?

"You okay?" Lynn stared at her little brother. "Did something happen at school today?"

"Sort of," Henry said, tiredly rubbing at his eyes. "I'm lonely at school. So, I often just spend time by myself. You know, I'll read after I finish school work, or I read during recess. Sometimes I talk with teachers during recess, but not really with other kids."

Lynn considered that. "I get that. Being lonely at school sucks."

Henry nodded. "That's why I mostly talk with Miss Blanchard."

Lynn startled, briefly looking scared.

"Netta?" Henry waved his hand in her face. "You okay? You're acting weird again…"

She started to respond but they both went silent upon hearing the landline start ringing off the hook downstairs. They shared a knowing look, and quietly slipped out of her room to sit at the top of the stairs and listen. Their mother's heels clicked against the floor, and went silent when she picked up the phone, and clicked it onto speaker phone.

"...Miss Mills? This is Annabelle Ryder with the Somerset District Attorney's office."

"...Is this an update on the status of my daughter's case?"

"...Yes. We submitted the filing, and recently heard back from the judge. The case is going to be presented before a grand jury on February the 23rd."

:...Has a countersuit been filed by the Watson family?"

"...No. They have not responded to the subpoena for their attendance at the hearing yet, though I imagine that will come through in a couple of days."

"...Oh, thank God," Regina sighed. "...Thank you for letting me know, when is the court date again?"

"...February the 23rd, 2053. So, about two months from today. I cannot make any promises, but we will be able to present our evidence to a grand jury for a hearing into the charges then. The Watsons may bring their own legal team to provide rebuttal, though. In fact, I would expect it. We'll have to prepare carefully."

"...They don't really have any legal ground to stand on, do they?"

"...We'll have to prove that we have enough evidence to bring the charges to trial. That could be tricky, especially since we intend to charge Watson with attempted first degree capital murder. So, please, be very careful. I don't know what may happen, so much as I know what should happen."

"So," Chloe said, setting down her wine. "What is this about?"

Emma sighed. "I heard about a brutal attack on a minor near the Maine-New Hampshire border in the course of my work, and I looked into it. I was shocked to find out the victim was from your town - Storybrooke - which is just…there's something about it that won't leave me alone."

Chloe considered that. "Okay…well, why do you think that is?"

"I don't know," Emma took a sip of her cosmopolitan, her mind still running amok. When she set it down, she continued: "Can you tell me about it? I read the legalese on it, all the basics on the web. I guess I might just need to hear about it from you? I don't know."

Chloe hesitated.

Listen to what you told her. When in a difficult situation, do not tell lies, but you do not have to tell the truth either.

"It's a quiet mountain town," She said, nervously reaching for her merlot. How much have I had already? Never mind, Emma's taking me back to the hotel anyways. "To be honest, it reminds me a lot of the town I grew up in back home in Virginia."

"When were you born, again?"

"September the 26th, 2001."

Chloe smacked a hand over her mouth, paling the little her just about translucently pale skin could, and Emma's brow furrowed in confusion. The bony, pink haired woman then nearly spilled her wine on herself, which Emma just barely caught.

That was your birthdate when you came here. Why are you still so attached to it?

"You should probably stop drinking," Emma said, pulling the wine glass to the centre and side before reaching over the table to rest her hands over her friend's. "I'm sorry to startle you, Chloe, I'm tired. I meant to ask: where. Where in Virginia."

She's so weird about things sometimes. The woman is barely older than me, no way in hell she actually thinks she was born in 2001.

"The south of it," Chloe said, tightly grasping onto Emma's hands, almost afraid she would pass out. "But I mostly grew up in the mountainous parts, apart from very briefly living in Boston as a toddler, which is where I learnt to talk, funnily enough."

"Hence your weird ass, almost Jersey accent," Emma teased. "But, okay: so basically Storybrooke is this quiet mountain town you moved to as an adult?"

"Shortly after I got married, yes," She said, her already high pitched voice squeaking a bit higher. "My wife, Sherry, had a lot of friends from there, some of them childhood friends, so it was a natural fit. Though it's way colder in Maine than back in Virginia. I mean, it gets really fucking cold."

Emma laughed a little. "Awe," She said when she realised her friend was smiling. "I'm glad that made you smile."

Chloe nodded, letting go of one of Emma's hands to fidget with her glasses.

"I get why you're curious," She said. "I mean, what you read was shocking. I don't want to know what you read because it would probably make me sick. And I already saw the aftermath. But I get how it might have sparked your curiosity a bit."

She really does get stuck talking in circles a bit when she's drunk. I'm glad I reminded her to take the second half of her daily medications when we sat down, because that's the heavy half of it. The last thing I want is for her to get drunk and manic.

"It was some of the most disturbing things I've seen in a long time," Emma eventually admitted. "And I've seen some pretty disturbing things."

"I'm not surprised, given your job," Chloe started to reach towards her wine again but paused, finally deciding against it. "But it would upset anyone, and you don't even know the victim."

Emma sighed. "I threw up when I first saw the photographs. But you know them?"

"I'm friends with her mother, actually," Chloe paused. "She's fine, they both are. Don't worry, Emma. And I hope you don't feel weird about this anymore. I mean, it's just one of those kinds of places that get lost on maps because it's out of the way and no one really wants to live that far out."

Emma went silent in thought.

She's telling the truth. Completely.

"That's all I needed to know, then," She started laughing again. "Crazy how some things just stick in your head for a little and then are resolved with a conversation or two."

"Yeah," Chloe giggled. "It really is crazy sometimes."

Thank God she didn't press. I don't even know how to explain Regina to her. I don't want to have to try and explain Regina or Lynn or Henry to her. That's too close. Far too close. At least she only knows me and Sherry from town. I don't know what I'd do if she wanted to get anywhere near town for real…especially since she has zero connexion to it directly and/or personally.

Replies To Reviews:

barrattajennifer: of course! i'm glad you're enjoying the story!

jasouatfan: Lynn really is a survivour, and she's incredibly lucky to have such a supportive family. also, i absolutely love that you guys are such big fans of my work in this passion project of mine that you theorise about it. that means the world to me, thank you so much.

Sammii16: slowly but surely, Emma is getting drawn towards a certain town in Maine…

Coral Skipper: i hope this gave you some insight! also, i hope you all enjoy the new cover art i did for this fic!

The White Shell Mermaid: i've actually hinted at Emma knowing Chloe for a couple of chapters - specifically with mentioning Chloe's distinctive hair colour in this world and not Misthaven! in fact, i referenced it in the chapter labelled as chapter 46 (the chapter Emma is first introduced in)! there, i wrote Emma as thinking about: "the pink haired woman and her wife performing at that bar in Boston"