Will Scarlet was seen trying to break into the library. He then saw the closed sign and narrowed his eyes, seeing the sign as a challenge somehow. "Oh. We'll see about that, won't we?" he then glared.
"Bloody hell." Killian muttered once he saw the former Merry Man.
"That's what I say," Will retorted before he looked up and saw Killian, and he suddenly looked a bit nervous. "You."
"I've been a pirate long enough to know there's nothing worth stealing in there." Killian told him.
"That's what you think." Will retorted.
"You're drunk, mate. Go home." Killian suggested as he tried to move Will away from the door.
"Get off me, man!" Will complained as he tried to shrug Killian off of him defensively.
Killian then suddenly shoved Will back and punched him across the face. Harry winced as he saw that, but did his best not to make a sound or draw any attention to himself.
"What the hell, mate?" Will complained as he held his bloody nose.
Killian glared victoriously until he realized what he had done, and stepped away from him. "You tell anyone about this, you're a dead man," he then told the Merry Man before moving to the side and leaned against the side of the library and looked down at his hand. "Bloody Crocodile was right." he then muttered.
"What was he right about?" Harry wondered to himself.
Killian then stormed right off to go and see Mr. Gold as Harry continued to follow his father, stepping away from Will.
"Two of them? I'm really out of it..." Will muttered at the sight of Harry since he looked so much like his father.
Meanwhile, Rumple had been working late, and he left his shop, holding a bunch of flowers and got into his car. Moments later, the passenger door opened and suddenly someone joined him in the car and slammed the door.
"You were right." Killian said once he had Rumple alone.
"Get out." Rumple demanded as patiently as possible.
"I don't want this infernal hand anymore," Killian then clarified about what he meant to get Rumple to talk to him. "It's taken possession of me."
"You should have heeded my warning when I offered it." Rumple reminded the adult pirate.
"I can't control it," Killian explained as he was still insistent and sounded very nasty in tone due to his impatience and control of his hand making him more like his old self. "Remove the damned thing before it makes me do something you'll regret, and I'd hate to imagine what would happen the next time I'm alone with Harry."
"Was that a threat?" Rumple smirked.
"Aye, mate," Killian nodded. "Take it back, or your family learns that the dagger they have is as fake as your new disposition."
"Oh, is it? Is it what?" Rumple taunted and retorted. "Fake."
"Well, you wouldn't have given me the hand if it weren't." Killian defended.
"After you extracted that price, I switched the real dagger back." Rumple retorted.
Killian narrowed his eyes. "No, you're lying." he then countered.
"Am I? Seems you've lost that leverage you once had," Rumple smirked. "So if you want to part ways with that hand and get this back, there's only one way I'll help."
"Damn," Killian cursed as Rumple had him there and he had no choice but to give in. "What do you want?" he then asked.
"All in due time~" Rumple replied mysteriously.
"And you think I'm daft enough to agree to that without knowing the terms? I taught Harry that as soon as I saved him from Neverland from that ruthless Lost Boy Rufio who was to be in charge in Pan's absence," Killian scoffed. "I'll find another way to rid myself of this damned hand."
"I'm afraid that's easier said than done," Rumple explained. "You see, my magic put that hand on, and only my magic can take it off."
Killian then suddenly buried his hook into Rumple's chest, and he breathed shakily at the sudden anger that just overtook him.
"You'd think you'd have learned the first time you buried that hook in me... it never sticks." Rumple smirked before he waved his hand and soon the pirate's hook disappeared.
Killian looked wide-eyed as he began to feel like he wasn't like the way he wanted to be at all. "That wasn't me." he then realized.
"You're losing control, dearie," Rumple reminded him. "Next time, you might do something to someone who can't be so easily fixed." he then added, referring to Emma of course.
"You have a deal," Killian relented. "I'll do whatever it takes."
"Oh, I do love it when they say that~" Rumple grinned impishly. "Meet me at the docks tomorrow morning, Captain. We have work to do." he then instructed.
Killian narrowed his eyes, but he nodded and agreed to that for now before he left the car to let Rumple get back home. Harry then continued to hide and watched his father, looking very curious about what was going on between the two of them. He also wondered if he should talk to his father about the hand deal or not. However, Jay was also seen to be running away from the library until he ran into an unhappy Lotus who somehow knew he was there.
The next morning then came as Harry was given his breakfast which was a traditional pirate breakfast, at least according to his father: grapefruit and boiled mackerel. "Have you guys seen my dad?" he then asked Smee and Samantha who had given him his breakfast.
"We saw him by the docks, but we don't think he came in," Smee replied. "Something clearly seems to be distressing him."
"Mr. Gold?" Harry guessed.
"We're not sure, why do you think him?" Samantha replied.
"Just a hunch considering everyone knows how Captain Hook feels about The Crocodile." Harry shrugged as he explained himself.
Smee and Samantha glanced at each other, not sure what to do about that, but decided not to disturb Harry from his thoughts because they thought it might be best.
Meanwhile, Rumple approached the adult pirate who had been sleeping on the table like a bed. "Good morning, Captain," he then greeted, making Killian sit up and look at him. "Well... I trust you're ready." he then added.
"I'm ready to pay the price and get this over with." Killian retorted.
"Good." Rumple nodded before he took out a broom he brought with him and used his magic to add something extra to it.
"What are we gonna do with that?" Killian wondered.
"This is gonna help me find an old friend," Rumple explained and soon, the broom began to walk. "After you." he then told Killian.
Killian didn't look amused, as he stood up, placing his jacket on, grabbing his hip flask, before following the broom, with Rumple behind him. They even passed by the vet's office and Dude could see them from out the window and soon barked frantically. Dr. Thatcher did his best to calm down Dude, looking confused and curious as Dude appeared to be trying to tell him something.
The two men were still following the broom, now down a street, before it turned up a path and headed towards a small cottage, which was secluded away behind some bush.
"To whom is our bristled guide leading us?" Killian demanded to know.
"Someone who wronged me long ago and today, he's going to pay the price." Rumple replied before knocking the door.
Moments later, out came a bushy bearded man who looked very unhappy to see Rumplestiltskin on his doorstep.
"Hello, old friend. Captain, please see our host a seat." Rumple greeted casually.
Killian then suddenly took a hold of the apprentice and forced him into the house and into a seat and continued to hold him down. Rumple followed them into the room, carrying the magical box. He placed it on the ground and unsheathed his dagger, before opening the box and it transformed into what looked like a hat, but not like Jefferson's hat of course.
"You have it." The man said to Rumple in shock.
"Don't tell me you doubted me." Rumple retorted.
"Every Dark One tries," The man counter. "Every one fails. It's even in our bloodline... your son and my young ward who has become my own apprentice which is why I made the choice to home-school her. Every Dark One fails." he then reminded the other man.
"Might be time to update the motto." Rumple smirked.
"You may have the hat, but we both know you will never collect enough power to do what you want." The man scoffed.
"Oh, I will, but , alas, you won't be there to see it." Rumple said before turning the hat over and it began to suck in the man.
"NOOOOOOOOO!" The man cried out, trying to get out of the seat and escape, but was suddenly sucked into the hat against his will.
Killian looked down at the hat and looked shocked at what just happened. "Where the hell did he go?" he then asked.
"Exactly where I need him." Rumple stated as he picked up the hat, feeling relieved for now.
"Uncle Mickey? Uncle Mickey!" A young voice suddenly called out.
"We better get out of here." Rumple suggested.
"What have you done?" Killian demanded.
"We can't discuss it right now," Rumple said as he magicked up a note to put aside. "We must leave right now."
"Not until you tell me what you just did because there's clearly a child in need." Killian glared.
Rumple glared back, but they both suddenly poofed away along with the hat before the question could be answered.
Suddenly, out came a teenage girl with mousy brown hair in a red hoodie who looked around in concern before seeing a note that said "GONE FISHING", but she shook her head and soon went away to her bedroom and took out her cell phone which was only for emergencies, but she knew exactly who to call at a time like this. "...Uncle Michael, where did you go?" she then wondered to herself.
"Okay. We're done," Killian soon said as he came to meet a certain man behind his post at his place of business. "I've fulfilled our deal. Now take it off."
Rumple glanced at the adult pirate before waving his own hand and soon, Killian's left hand appeared back in the jar it came from after removal. "Our deal actually isn't complete." he then clarified.
"I say it is. You can no longer control me, mate," Killian retorted bravely. "I just saw you use the real dagger, so I know you're lying to Belle and your son and new daughter. You've got nothing on me."
Rumple smirked and suddenly brought out a video tape. "Security tape... from the house we just left. How do you think Miss Swan is gonna react when she finds out what you did to that kindly old man?" he then taunted.
"I know how that device works," Killian retorted smugly. "And if I'm on there, so are you."
Rumple smirked as he already had a back-up plan for that. He then used his magic to remove any evidence of him on the tape. "And now I'm not. But you are." he then taunted his rival.
"I only did what you asked so I could rid myself of that cursed hand so I could become a better man," Killian then tried to counter. "Emma will understand that."
"Even when she finds out the truth?" Rumple retorted.
"What truth?" Killian demanded.
"This hand isn't cursed." Rumple explained in a trickster way.
Killian's eyes widened briefly. "No, you said..." he then muttered.
"You were right. Dark One lies. Dark One tricks. This hand is nothing but a lump of flesh," Rumple smirked as he explained a bit more to the pirate. "The only thing it did was give you permission, permission to be the man you really are... not some puppy dog chasing after the object of his affection, but a ruthless pirate who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. I did you a favor. I helped you remember the darkness that lies beneath."
"Then you know that that darkness will have no problem crushing Belle's heart." Killian challenged as he dropped his voice low into a threatening tone.
"If you go after my love and children... You will surely lose yours," Rumple countered calmly. "You threatened my marriage, tried to destroy the only light in my life, and for that, you will owe me as long as you live. The only thing Milah didn't give you was Harry."
"What if I'm willing to take you down with me?" Killian then retorted, though he looked soft about the mention of Harry as even though he really loved Milah at the time and he loved Harry very much as well, the two were from very different periods of his life on the Seven Seas.
"I think... I know you better than you know yourself, dearie," Rumple smirked as he was victorious right now. "So here we are, Captain, still in business together. I think... You and I are gonna have some fun."
Killian narrowed his eyes before a book was heard thudding and falling after someone ran into a shelf by accident. The adult pirate and Rumple then looked over to see that Ben had caused that as he looked like he was trying too hard to be quiet.
"Heh... oops..." Ben said sheepishly before he bent down to pick up the book.
"Benjamin, where are you sneaking off to?" Rumple asked his teenage son.
"Oh, um, n-n-nowhere?" Ben replied.
Rumple raised a sharp eyebrow at how funny Ben sounded with that answer. "Son... you know better than to lie." he then reminded him.
"Okay, a friend of mine has an emergency and I have to help them out." Ben then said, a lot calmer this time.
Rumple glanced at his son again to see how he responded before nodding. "Now was it so hard to tell your old man the truth?" he then asked.
"Sorry, Dad, I didn't wanna disrupt you too, this is an emergency," Ben explained as he rubbed his arm. "Can I go now? Please? I'm sorry, but this is very important."
"Very well then, son, I'll see you later," Rumple nodded. "Captain Hook and I have important business to discuss if you haven't already heard."
"Not a lot, Dad, I was mostly paying attention to my phone." Ben admitted softly.
"Oh, you children and your devices for talking," Killian sighed and shook his head. "I don't understand it most of the time."
"Me neither honestly," Rumple agreed. "Whatever happened to going to visit someone and speaking to them then over a nice cup of tea?"
"Uh, excuse me, sirs? But I must get moving." Ben replied, prompting him being able to go away freely with permission.
"You're excused, Benjamin," Rumple then allowed. "Make sure you get back home to your mother before it gets too dark though."
"Yes, Dad, I will," Ben promised with a nod before he headed out the door. "See you later."
Rumple nodded as he let his son go before smirking at Killian a bit.
"May I go now as well?" Killian asked Rumple almost sarcastically.
"Watch your tone with me next time you come by, but yes," Rumple replied. "There's still more that I need to do around here."
"For a while anyway." Killian replied.
"Yes, for a while anyway," Rumple nodded. "Away with you then."
Killian just gave Rumple a look at that and soon left the shop as well as Ben went to go and help out his friend in need.
"Hi, Ben," Audrey smiled as she saw her boyfriend and soon walked beside him. "Wanna carry my books for me while I tell you about how school is and what those other girls said about me in the bathroom?"
"I'm sorry, Audrey, but not now, I'm very busy." Ben replied as he walked down the sidewalk beside her on the way to a certain location.
"Too busy for your precious, sweet, and beloved girlfriend?" Audrey asked as she stood in front of him and leaned forward, puckering her lips a little and gave him a coy little wink.
Ben blushed a little at that and glanced away.
"You're having a hard time saying no to this face, aren't you?" Audrey cooed as she leaned in, balanced her hands on his shoulders and leaned in to kiss him on the lips suddenly before letting go and smirking as she batted her eyelashes.
"Heh..." Ben chuckled and blushed nervously. "I'm sorry, Audrey, but I need to help someone else right now, but... you can come with me?" he then offered, trying to cushion the blow a little.
"Hmph... fine..." Audrey firmly pouted as she stepped down and crossed her arms. "I really wanted you to myself today though."
"I know, Audrey, and I'm sorry, we'll hang out together just you and me, but right now I need to help someone out," Ben said to her softly. "Someone I don't speak to very often."
"All right, who is it?" Audrey demanded as they walked down the sidewalk together. "Is that girl Evie? I'm not sure about you hanging around her since her mother is The Evil Queen."
"Audrey, please don't start that drama again, if anyone should be dangerous in this town for being a fairy tale descendant, it should be me since my father is Rumplestiltskin and my grandfather was Peter Pan." Ben reminded her.
"Well, sure, but you're with the daughter of Sleeping Beauty," Audrey reminded him with a small smile. "You're in good hands and your mother is Belle."
Ben sighed at that and shook his head.
"So, who are we helping?" Audrey then asked as they continued along. "Is it someone from school?"
"She... she doesn't exactly go to school anymore..." Ben began to explain.
Audrey looked curious, but continued to follow Ben until they would make it over to where he wanted them to get to.
Meanwhile, Regina and Evie were still in the vault, reading up on ways to cure Marian.
"Mom, my eyes are about to fall out of my head," Evie complained. "I haven't read this much since we had to take those big, extreme, and stressful tests in school before the curse broke."
"Take a break, my dear," Regina suggested. "There has to be something in here we can find."
"You've been saying that for hours now..." Evie said before she took out her compact mirror and checked on her face. "I think I'm getting crow's feet and gray hair."
Regina rolled her eyes at how overly dramatic that sounded before she smirked. "Beauty is pain, my dear." she then advised.
"Mom. Evie. How's it going?" Henry asked as he suddenly came over to see them.
"No progress yet aside from your sister concerned about her beauty." Regina replied.
"Don't worry, Evie, you've always been the fairest in the land to me." Henry said with a small smile.
"Aww... aren't you sweet?" Evie smiled back bashfully.
Henry smiled with a nod before he looked at Regina softly. "Look, I know I might not understand everything that's going on with you and Robin Hood, but there is one thing I understand better than anyone else... Operation: Mongoose." he then said with his voice full of hope.
"The storybook?" Evie wondered. "What does your book have to do with anything?"
"We're gonna find the author, make him change it," Henry explained confidently. "I think I figured out who has all the answers we're looking for."
"Who?" Regina wondered.
"My grandpa." Henry stated strongly.
"David?" Evie asked, raising an eyebrow.
"My other grandpa, Mr. Gold. Everyone knows Rumplestiltskin doesn't get a happy ending, even if he's The Beast to Belle's Beauty which seems to be more of the story that Ben was following, at least when he met Mal, but look at Grandpa now. He just married Belle and they have Ben together as well as another child to call their own," Henry clarified and explained, showing how much he had matured over the years. "He must have figured out how to change his story, which means he might know who wrote the book."
"And your sister and I are the last people he'd ever share that with." Regina remarked.
"Well, I'm sure Ben would with Evie since they're known each other long, but either way, that's why I'm gonna find out for you." Henry then said.
"And how, my dear Henry, do you plan on doing that?" Evie asked her little brother.
"By going undercover." Henry replied knowingly.
"And what do you plan to do about going undercover if I may ask?" Evie asked her little brother.
"Simple, I'll take a job at his shop and stay on his good side until I find out what I need to find out and keep you guys posted." Henry explained.
"Oh, Henry, you've grown up to be so smart and considerate," Evie said softly before she approached him and hugged him. "I'm so proud of you. Soon you'll be going off to college and marrying Dee Dee and having babies of your own."
"Evie, Dee Dee and I are just friends, you know that." Henry reminded his big sister, blushing a little at the idea of marrying Dee Dee.
"Besides, I'm too young to be a step-great-great-grandmother." Regina added with a small smirk.
"And yet you're fine with being Emma's grandmother?" Evie teased her mother.
"This town really confuses me sometimes." Regina sighed and shook her head.
"How do you think all of Storybrooke feels?" Evie countered.
"Fair." Regina nodded.
"Well, uh, I better get going," Henry then said. "Wish me luck."
"You don't need it, but good luck." Evie told him.
"You'll do just fine, I know it." Regina added.
Henry smiled at them and soon left to go talk with Rumple about getting a job at the pawnshop.
"Why, Lotus? Why are you doing this to me?" Jay complained as he was shown to be sitting in a cell at the sheriff's station. "I thought you love me, Carlos, Carla, Enid, and Gil like your own, but you don't."
"I love you all to bits, I feel a special connection to you most of all if anyone, Jayden, but I'm just a little disappointed in what you were caught doing," Lotus sighed and explained before she took out a book known as "Alice in Wonderland". "Breaking into the library to get this?"
"The what?" Will mumbled from the next cell. "Oh, that's what that place was? I just thought it was a poorly stocked pub." he then added.
Both Emma and Lotus rolled their eyes at that.
"What is your excuse, Jay?" Lotus asked the boy with a sigh. "I thought you wanted to prove yourself better than what you thought you would be like everyone else. We would blame your parents, but we don't know who they are."
Jay just sighed and shrugged as he didn't know what to say right now, but he had a bit of guilt in his eyes since Lotus was clearly disappointed in him.
"I'm sorry, Jay, I may not be your mother, but I took you in to put you on a better path, you have to learn not to steal all the time." Lotus then tutted a bit.
"When Robin Hood does it, it's a good deed, but when I do it, it's wrong." Jay said with a pout as this felt very unfair to him.
"But Robin Hood was even wrong, stealing isn't the answer even to help someone... but he was stealing to help those being downtrodden not for fun or the thrill of it," Lotus reminded him and explained why Robin Hood was allowed to steal when he did and was a known hero in Sherwood Forest. "It'll be just for one more night, I really do love and care about you like my own, Jay, but you need to learn that people have rules for a reason and that includes not stealing just for your own benefit or what a kind stranger tells you to do when I look after you like my own child."
"Yes, ma'am." Jay sighed as he decided it was best to accept that than argue with the woman who acted as a mother figure to him.
"Okay, I get it... every town needs a village idiot, but your little stunt pulled me away from an important investigation and interrupted my night off," Emma soon said to Will and began an interrogation. "Start talking and why did you get Jay involved?"
"The last thing I remember is running away from you, and then I celebrated my escape with a nice bottle of whiskey," Will explained as best as he could. "I remember asking this kid here for a favor..."
"Yeah, because I have super sneaking skills since all I know is the life of a thief," Jay shrugged. "I thought I had a dad who had a junk shop to compete with Mr. Gold before the curse broke, but once we all got our memories back, I saw that that wasn't true, but I still have enough skills to be nimble and quick that would make the legendary Jack B. Nimble proud of me."
"I'm not even going to ask," Emma sighed at more reference to fairy tale characters being real since no matter how long she had been in this town, it would never stop sounding strange to her. "Did you celebrate with all your friends... Alice and the white rabbit? This was on you in the library. This was in your pocket. Mean anything to you?" she then added as he showed the Wonderland book to the former Merry Man.
Will gave a mere glance at the book before shrugging it off. "Nope. Doesn't mean a thing." he then stated.
"I don't know anything either, he just told me that getting him that book would be so important to him," Jay added. "I swear, I'm not lying about that."
"I believe you about that, Jay." Lotus reassured him since Jay was just a pawn in Will's scheme, but he still had to learn.
"How about your eye?" Emma then asked. "You get a look at whoever gave you that shiner?"
"At least Jay was spared from that." Lotus remarked as Killian and Harry came into the station.
"Yes, that's very fortunate." Emma agreed.
"Now, that is an interesting question, isn't it?" Will scoffed once he caught a glimpse of the adult pirate entering with his son.
"Where were you?" Emma asked as she turned around and faced Killian.
"Sorry, luv. I just got your message. I-" Killian tried to explain.
"It's okay. I just need another minute here," Emma interrupted as she reassured him softly before she turned back at the former Merry Man. "You were about to tell me who did that to your face." she then prompted the scrappy man.
Jay flinched slightly at the sight of Killian. Lotus noticed that herself, but decided not to say anything about it.
"It's a bloody mystery to me. Your guess is as good as mine," Will shrugged in response after he took a look at Killian and Harry. "Must have been some party, eh?"
"Well, if you remember anything, I'll know where to find you," Emma said as she was about to walk toward Killian. "Are you staying?" she then asked Lotus.
"I'm afraid I have to go back to the flower shop right now and get someone to look after Gil, Enid, Carla, and Carlos," Lotus explained calmly. "They may be teenagers, but they still need proper guidance, especially Carla and Enid since they've been stranded in Neverland for who knows how long."
"Good point." Emma nodded.
"Don't leave me alone in here!" Jay begged. "I'm claustrophobic! ...maybe? I don't know!" he then added before looking nervous.
"I'll be back later, Jay, I promise," Lotus reassured him with a small smile. "I love you, but you need to learn about the consequences of your actions, especially since we don't know your proper guidance before the curse broke."
Jay sighed and frowned. "Bring me back something?" he then requested.
"I will, I promise." Lotus smiled as she gently patted him on the head.
Jay blinked and smiled back as he seemed to enjoy that quite a bit and soon frowned quite a bit as Lotus then gathered her purse and began to leave the station.
"You're just gonna keep me in here because I broke into a bloody library?" Will scoffed as he seemed to be ignored about being released.
"Because you crashed my date and probably scarred Harry and Carla for life," Emma retorted before she stopped in front of the adult male pirate and his son before smiling. "Which turned out pretty good, despite the rude interruption. I think Harry had a magical night too, didn't you, Harry?"
Harry blushed and chuckled. "Carla is very nice." he then admitted and nodded.
Emma smiled at that and she then noticed that Killian had his pirate namesake back. "What the hell happened to your hand?" she then wondered.
"It appears the Dark One's magic wasn't all I'd hoped it would be." Killian sighed as he explained the best he could to Emma.
"Emma, there's something I need to talk to you about." David said as he suddenly came by.
"Well, make it fast," Emma replied, though she seemed to realize the next thing she said was going to sound like an unintended pun. "I want to go after the Snow Queen before the trail gets... cold."
"The name the Snow Queen's been using in Storybrooke, Sarah Fisher, that name doesn't appear anywhere in the census records aside from information about Elwin." David explained what they found out.
"What does that mean?" Emma wondered.
"You're right... She didn't come here by any curse." David told her.
"Then how did she get here?" Emma then asked. "What the hell does she want with me?"
"I guess that's what we gotta figure out." Harry remarked.
"You gonna help out, kid?" Emma asked the young pirate teen.
"I'll try my best at least," Harry shrugged. "I'm pretty good at finding lost things."
"It's true, I give him a treasure hunt every year on his birthday." Killian added with a proud smirk.
"The best birthday tradition ever," Harry nodded. "Next to having a white fish omlette."
"Like father like son, I suppose." Emma said with an amused smirk.
"You'd better believe it, Swan." Killian nodded.
"All right, I guess it's time to get some work done." Emma suggested.
In her secret fortress, The Snow Queen began to move her hands around to sculpt some sort of ice person. And in the meantime, Emma, Elsa, Elwin, and Lonnie were in the sheriff's station together, continuing their search on The Snow Queen.
"Somewhere in here, there's got to be something on her." Emma said out of determination as she checked the box in her hands.
"There has to be a better strategy. While we're reading files, my sister is out there somewhere," Elsa countered. "We have to confront this Snow Queen."
"Believe me, if I could, we would," Emma retorted. "We have to find her first."
"And, Elsa, we have to be careful," Lonnie advised. "This woman is tricky."
"That's right," Emma nodded. "She seems to know both of us, and we don't remember anything about her. And something tells me that that is not an accident. Especially since with some extra help."
"You think she took our memories?" Elsa wondered.
"I'm really good with names and faces. It was my job," Emma clarified confidently. "She took them, all right. The question is why."
"Maybe she just wanted to send everyone and tell her own story?" Lonnie suggested.
"That's Evie's mom, not The Snow Queen," Elwin reminded the teenage warrior girl. "Either way, we still need to find out what this Snow Queen is up to."
"Paperwork, ahoy!" Harry announced as he suddenly came in with his father along with a box.
"Old city records from the mayor's office, per your request." Killian added as he helped sort out the boxes.
"Oi! Somebody's forgotten about me dinner!" Will soon called out from his cell. "I had the bangers and mash."
"And I think I specifically asked for some of Tony and Joe's pizza." Jay added from his own cell.
"You both had some water and Pop-Tarts." Emma retorted as she gave them both a couple of packs and two bottled waters.
"Blueberry?" Jay complained once he saw his.
"Sorry, kid, I did what I could." Emma reassured him.
"Somebody's already had a nibble outta mine." Will frowned, seeing a bite taken out of his Pop-Tart.
"I've had my shots." Emma said with a shrug of defense.
Will soon looked at Jay and tried to trade with him, but Jay just shook his head and tried to put up with eating the blueberry Pop-Tart. "What a relief," he then told Emma before he took a bite out of his own Pop-Tart while leaning against the cell bars. "Now, I've served me time. So when will I be free?" he then added.
"When I say so and Jay will be out whenever Lotus comes over to pick him up." Emma said without looking at him.
"Ready to go, son?" Killian asked Harry.
"Aye, Dad." Harry nodded.
"Don't be jealous, no matter what happens, you're still my favorite son." Killian then reassured his son.
"Okay, Dad, I know," Harry nodded. "But if he brings that pigtailed girlfriend of his on board with him, I get dibs on bringing a girl on board with me."
"And which girl is this?" Killian smirked. "Is that girl Carla we took out to eat along with Miss Swan?"
"Erm... uh... erm... eh... uh... we're going sailing now, Miss Swan!" Harry blushered and stammered before trying to change the subject. "Unless there's something else you want us to do here?" he then offered.
"Make sure Henry wears his life vest, okay?" Emma requested both of them with a small smile, though her smile was more loving towards Killian than Harry.
Killian smiled back warmly, looking like he was about to kiss her, only for both of them to have an annoying interruption.
"Befriending the son to get in with the mum? Yep, no one will ever see through that." Will teased Killian.
"Why don't you keep your thoughts to yourself... Mate?" Killian offered in a warning dangerous tone of voice toward the former Merry Man. Will luckily got the message of that suggestion, standing his ground from his cell before Killian leaned in to kiss Emma on the cheek. "Goodbye." the adult pirate then told her softly.
"Farewell for now." Harry added as he joined his father.
"Have a fun time, guys, it sounds exciting." Lonnie said with a small smile.
"You think you can handle pirates?" Harry smirked at Lonnie.
"I'm interested, but I'd prefer to stay here and avoid pirates like Chen Zuyi," Lonnie explained. "He's from a story they used to tell us in Northern Wei, he was the most feared pirates to infest the seas of Southeast Asia. He ruled the city of Palembang, and raided the Strait of Malacca to plunder shipping and prey on both native and foreign merchants. It wouldn't surprise me if he allied himself with Shan Yu or someone like Polacky the Plunderer or Bluebeard."
"Bluebeard actually isn't much of a pirate." Harry replied.
"Sure, now he isn't..." Killian said mysteriously.
"Whatever happened to him anyway?" Harry wondered. "He seemed dangerous and like he was gonna come back or be important, but he just disappeared after that time Miss Swan went to New York City with Mr. Gold, Henry, and that Sugarplum Fairy girl."
"Well, I wouldn't think or worry about him now, son, especially around Goldilocks if we ever run into her again," Killian advised as they left the sheriff's station. "She seemed to have the most issues with him, I mean, we've barely seen her since we returned from The Enchanted Forest after The Wicked Witch took over."
Harry looked soft, but nodded as they continued along together to go and meet Henry for some sailing.
"Found something!" Elwin announced.
"Way to go, Elwin." Lonnie smiled.
"What are they?" Elsa wondered.
"Just look, Emma has some pictures mixed in with the city records." Elwin pointed out and showed them.
"Wow, she does," Elsa said in amazement before facing the blonde woman. "Why are there pictures of you mixed in with the city records?" she then wondered along with Elwin and Lonnie.
"Let's just say when Regina was mayor, she abused her power a bit. She was looking for any reason to run me out of town," Emma explained as she glanced at the photographs for a moment, knowing exactly where and when they came from back when Henry and Dee Dee were 10 years old and nearly everyone else was a teenager or an adult. "That's the first time Henry and I went for hot cocoa. When I walked him to school for the first time." she then listed before finding one picture that made her wide-eyed.
"Emma? What is it?" Elsa asked out of intrigue.
"It's me and her." Emma explained, showing the photograph that was of her talking with the ice cream lady in Storybrooke before anyone knew who she was or even who they were.
Elsa scoffed in disbelief as she took a closer look at it. "And you still don't remember any of this?" she then ordered.
"No, but I know someone who may..." Emma replied thoughtfully, having an idea suddenly. "The person who had the photos taken."
"Can I get a cheeseburger in here?" Jay asked, peeking his head out of the cell.
"Maybe Lotus will let you have one if you've learned your lesson." Emma suggested with a smirk.
"I hope you learned a lesson, Jay, that crime doesn't pay, even when you're trying to become a Merry Man since you don't have a story to tell." Lonnie advised.
"Haha, you're both very funny..." Jay pouted and rolled his eyes. "I just can't help myself sometimes, I mean, when Robin Hood steals it's an act of heroism but if I do it, it's a crime."
"Well, Robin Hood steals to give justice to people who deserve it, like Prince John being the phony King of England who just sucks his thumb all day and you taking a book from the library as a favor from someone else who's also a thief isn't a good idea." Elwin clarified.
"Well, I don't have a story to follow," Jay shrugged. "The only thing I really have from back home is an old snake cane or whatever it is."
"We'll figure out more about you after we help Elwin with his own story," Emma advised. "He may have had more of a family than you did, but he's just now finding out where he really comes from."
"Also see if you can find out if Little Miss Muffet and The Snow Queen were enemies or not." Jay suggested.
"Little Miss Muffet?" Emma repeated curiously, but wasn't surprised by now that someone would know that name personally in this town.
Elwin narrowed his icy sapphire eyes in response to that name.
"Elwin has a weird hatred for the kids who work in the frozen yogurt shop owned by the Muffet family and he won't tell us." Jay explained with a small smirk.
"I told you, she knows what she did." Elwin retorted.
"Is it because frozen yogurt is more popular for teenage girls than ice cream while little kids just visit you guys nowadays?" Lonnie suggested.
"It's a complicated story, okay?" Elwin sighed and shook his head. "I just can't get into it right now, but it's more than a war of frozen dairy treats."
"Next thing you know, you guys are gonna tell me that yetis own a snocone shop." Emma smirked, trying to make a joke and chuckled.
Everyone then gave her a bit of a blank stare in response.
"Heh... heh..." Emma continued until she saw them all. "...are there yetis in this town too?" she then asked with wide eyes.
"Would it really surprise you if there were?" Lonnie replied.
"Honestly? Probably not," Emma shook her head. "I mean, reindeer are probably common around here too and maybe even ones with glowing red noses."
"Not that I've seen, but the boy my sister was interested in had his own reindeer who had been his friend for his whole life." Elsa remarked.
"Nothing in this world surprises me anymore." Emma rolled her eyes slightly.
MEANWHILE...
The mousy haired girl continued to pace back and forth until she heard a knock at the front door. She usually was asked not to answer the door for anyone, especially if her uncle wasn't home, but she had called Ben over for a very important reason and came to answer the door, feeling hopeful for the extra help.
"So, why are we here again?" Audrey asked Ben.
"Well, she needs our help, mostly mine but you were insistent on coming along." Ben replied.
"She?" Audrey repeated curiously.
"Sort of quiet, shy, a little mousy even," Ben explained. "Her name is Sophie and her uncle is a very important man in our world. Think of her as like a Sorcerer's Apprentice for the new generation."
"I guess I shouldn't be surprised." Audrey replied.
Soon, Sophie made it to the door and answered. "Ben, thank goodness you've come." she then said.
"Yeah, hey, Sophie," Ben greeted with a nod. "I brought my girlfriend Audrey along, I hope that's okay."
"You probably heard of me," Audrey said, sounding almost smug. "Sleeping Beauty's daughter."
"And Queen Briar Rose's granddaughter, yes," Sophie nodded. "My uncle told me everything about everyone since I don't get to go outside often."
"Why is that, if I may ask?" Audrey wondered.
"Let's just say my powers compared to everyone else's around here are a bit unpredictable and Uncle Mickey keeps me here until we find a way to control it, but so far, it's been fruitless," Sophie explained with a sigh as she took out her birthright jewel that resembled a white crescent moon. "Sometimes it seems like we're cursed to be just like our parents and fairy tale ancestors as their descendants."
"I know someone who would know how you feel." Ben murmured at that.
"So, shall we get down to business?" Audrey wondered as she crossed her arms.
"Yes, it's just that Uncle Mickey went missing and it's not like him to go away without telling me or giving me a chore like tonight being one of the more important days." Sophie explained.
"Chore night?" Ben guessed.
"Yes, tonight is the night when I refill his well," Sophie said dryly. "I'll be carrying buckets of water all night."
"Well, did he leave anything behind?" Ben asked. "Maybe like a note or something?"
Sophie's eyes briefly lit up at that as she nodded and remembered something. "Yeah, he did leave a note, but that's another weird thing." she then said.
"What's weird about leaving notes?" Audrey asked out of confusion. "Though usually back home, my aunts Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather would tell me if my parents had an emergency. They're very important people in Misthaven you know." she then added, almost boastfully.
"Well, the thing is, he wouldn't really just randomly go fishing or anything, so I feel like someone probably kidnapped him." Sophie explained as she showed the note. "This isn't even his handwriting."
"Do you have any suspicions on who it might have been?" Ben asked.
"I have no idea honestly, but I keep hearing word about a Snow Queen in this town now." Sophie shrugged.
"Well, it might have been her, but that's quite curious," Ben remarked. "Maybe you should come with us to do a little exploring."
Sophie blinked with wide eyes and stepped backward suddenly.
"What's wrong?" Audrey asked Sophie. "Haven't you been outside before?"
"I've been outdoors before!" Sophie said defensively though she sort of paused. "Just... not really out for anything aside from tending to the well for Uncle Mickey."
"So, are you in or out?" Ben asked Sophie. "I know it's asking a lot for you, especially since your powers are more unstable compared to everyone else's from their Birthright Jewels and no one's exactly sure what you can do and how it will affect everybody."
"Yeah, try living my life aside from people talking about it and thinking I'm probably insane for being a home-schooled kid because of my unpredictable story and powers." Sophie scoffed and crossed her arms in mild annoyance.
"So...?" Audrey prompted.
"I think I should stay put just for now anyway," Sophie sighed as she made her choice, but it wasn't any easy one. "If you hear anything important though, just let me know. I know something's happened to Uncle Mickey and nobody knows what other than who could possibly have him right now."
"Understood, Sophie, you try to look after yourself," Ben nodded. "We'll look out for you."
"Will she really though?" Sophie wondered as she gestured to Audrey.
"Hey! I'm the daughter of Sleeping Beauty, I'm a hero!" Audrey retorted and pouted.
"And yet Chad is the biggest pain in the butt in school and he's the son of sweet and friendly Cinderella," Sophie countered easily. "Not everybody is like their families, ya know."
"Hm..." Audrey pouted at that.
"Seriously, Audrey, this is what got you in trouble with Mal and Evie's mom in the first place," Ben reminded his girlfriend. "Try to give people a chance, okay? This is what I wanted for Evie, Jay, and Carlos, and especially Evie since I've known her since before I can even remember. Now come along and try to be more respectful, okay?" he then added, a bit firm like his father, but not nasty or dangerously scary in tone like his father.
"Okay, Benny Boo." Audrey replied softly.
"Let's try to keep it that way," Ben nodded. "I mean, I'm the son of Rumplestiltskin and I don't have a mean bone in my body."
"It's true, if you bump into him, he'll apologize to you like Miss Blanchard used to with Evie's mom." Sophie added.
Ben raised an eyebrow and smirked at that curiously.
"You know it's true, Benny Gold." Sophie smirked back.
"All right, joke time is over, let's get moving, Audrey." Ben then suggested.
"Coming." Audrey nodded.
And so, Ben and Audrey went off together to do some more investigation. Sophie watched them go before she sighed and took a deep breath, feeling worried and concerned about her uncle, but went back inside and locked the door behind her, of course not going to take any risks as she had been raised this way since during The Dark Curse as she was a lonely home-schooled kid while everyone else went to school and for years, no one knew what the reason was, but just accepted it as a strange social norm while she was an "outsider".