It Starts With a Family

by RedTailedHawkens

That night in the forest, Rumplestilskin was brave. He went with his son to the land without magic and they landed in the 1990s. With no dark one in the Enchanted Forest, the course of events were drastically different. However, the curse was still cast, and Emma still has to break it when she turns 28. SwanThief, Rumpelle, Snowing, etc.

15. Chapter 14: The Family You Gain

Chapter Fourteen: The Family You Gain

James,

You've done well for yourself, as I knew you would. You have grown up and grown soft. I am the same as I ever was, a brilliant boy who wants only to be a boy and to have fun. So, let's play a game of hide and seek. I've just acquired two new Lost Ones named Jack and Maggie, and they want you to come to Neverland and play as well. I would invite their father, but you know how I feel about grown-ups, (though I will, of course, make an exception for you. You should feel special!) You may recall that time moves differently in Neverland, but now that I've removed him from the equation, you needn't worry about how long you'll be gone, and how your poor husband will worry for you. I expect you to express your gratitude when you see me. I won't help you find the island, because that's your part of the game, but you will be able to wash up on our shores once again. That is, of course, when the game truly begins. Let's play.

~P

"Oh, Alice," her father said as he drew her into a hug. There had been such sympathy in his eyes; Pan had taken his family too.

For a few minutes she clung to him and let herself sob for her husband and her children. Then she stepped back and steeled herself. There would be time to cry later. She hadn't come home for the comfort of her parents, much as it was always welcome. She had come for their aid. It might be too late to save her husband, but her children were another story.

"I'll need the Jolly to get there," she said. "Mr. Smee will listen to you if you tell him to make me acting captain."

"I'm afraid I can't do that, little love," her father said. "Your mother and I aren't going to let you go off to that dangerous island all alone."

"But Maggie and Jack – "

"Need rescuing. And their grandparents can do that. I'll Captain the Jolly and bring them back to you. I give you my word."

Alice shook her head. "I can't just sit back, wait, and do nothing! Besides, Pan did this to lure me, not you and Mama. If I don't come, he'll find another way to drag me there. I need to end this and end him now, once and for all."

"We need to let her go," her mother said.

"But Milah – " her father said.

Her mother cut him off, "Yes. It's dangerous. As was much we did in our youth. Alice is our daughter, through and through. She wouldn't be the daughter we raised her to be if she could just sit on the sidelines and let someone else take the risk to rescue those she loves."

Her father sighed. "I suppose you are your mother's daughter, aren't you?"

"And your father's," her mother added.

"All right. But we aren't going to let you do this alone. We'll be coming as well."

"I have no issue with that. All that matters is Jack and Maggie's safe return home. I do have one request though."

"And what is that?" her father asked.

"When the time comes, leave Pan to me."

---

Emma didn't like putting her fate—or the fate of those she loved—in someone else's hands. Sadly, she wasn't a lawyer, and they needed one. Lily hadn't gotten back to her with any names yet, and it looked like lawyering up was something they needed to do sooner rather than later. So, they'd met with the lawyer Graham had recommended. He was British, charming, and for some reason Emma couldn't put her finger on, seemed totally slimy to Emma. She'd learned to trust her gut over the years, but given their current options, she figured they should at least sound the guy out.

"So, can you help me?" Neal asked, and if he didn't look like a puppy dog just then, Emma didn't know what he looked like, but seeing him so vulnerable and scared melted her heart. Oh, she didn't think the vulnerability would be obvious to an outside observer, but she knew him. Maybe she didn't know everything about him, but she knew him. That was what had to matter.

"It sounds like it would be a difficult case for any lawyer," he shot Emma a smile. "Luckily for you, I'm not just any lawyer. I don't lose."

"That's great!"

"However," he said, "part of why I don't lose is that I only take cases I can win. I'm not sure about this one."

"You seem to being going back and forth here," Emma said. "Are you taking the case, or not?"

"Honestly, I'm on the fence. Though I could be persuaded." He looked from one to the other, his eyes coming to rest on Emma. "Mr. Stiltskin, might I have a moment alone with your wife?"

"What?" Neal exclaimed. "Absolutely not. What kind of guy do you think I am? Someone who would trade a night with his wife for - "

"Relax, Neal. May I call you Neal?" He didn't wait for Neal to answer. "I wasn't suggesting any sort of lewd arrangement. I'm a man of honor. I simply wanted a private word with her." He pointed to the window that separated his office from his waiting room. "If it makes you more comfortable, you'll be seated just there, able to see whatever transpires."

"Can I ask why I have to leave the room for this conversation?"

"Because I have a delicate personal matter, and I believe your wife may be able to help me resolve it."

"Neal, it's fine," Emma said. It wasn't, really, but they weren't going to get anywhere if she didn't let this man speak his piece to her.

"I'll be right out there if you need anything," Neal said.

Emma nodded, and they both waited for Neal to leave the room, before she turned to the lawyer, arms crossed protectively over her chest. "Well, Mr. Langland, what exactly can I do for you?"

"I believe you're acquainted with my former nanny, a certain Miss Boyd?"

And Emma remembered Ashley saying that the boss who'd knocked her up and tried to bully her into getting an abortion was the only lawyer in town. Crap.

"We've met," she said with a shrug.

"Oh, you've more than met," Mr. Langland said. "I have it on good authority that you've helped the girl out, found her a place to live, a job—indirectly, of course. It seems you've been giving her advice and, being the impressionable girl she is, she's listened to it."

"On good authority?"

Langland gave her faux-bashful smile and a shrug that he probably thought made him look impish and innocent. "This is a small town. People talk."

"But you don't want them talking about you. Or Ashley."

"I like my privacy. That's hardly a crime, is it?"

Emma snorted, "No but taking advantage of your young employee is."

"I don't know what story she has told you, but Miss Boyd is a troubled young woman. I offered her guidance –"

"You guided her, all right."

"Guidance on her unfortunate … situation. It is not a situation that I know how she got herself into, but I did advise her on how to get out of it. I believed she'd taken my advice to heart and planned to do what any young woman in her situation should do when she has few other options … until you intervened."

"And now she has options," Emma said. "I suppose this is the part where you tell me to butt out, or however you say that in British?"

"Quite the contrary. I want you to, as you would say, butt back in. I want you to advise her again, but this time, to listen to my advice."

"Are you serious?"

"I believe she will listen to you. She did once before. Once she is no longer in trouble, thing can return to what they once were." He picked up a picture from his desk of a little boy with dimples smiling at the camera. "My son, Roland. He very much misses his nanny. She was good to him; she helped him to feel a mother's affection. From what I've heard about you, you understand how not having a mother can create a void in a child's life."

"Let's leave my personal history out of this. And while we're at it, why don't we leave Ashley out of it too? I'm not here to talk about her or the decision she chose. Because she did choose it. It was what she wanted. I didn't tell her what to do. It's like you said, she was out of options, but once she had options, she made a choice, and I'm not going to tell her to make a different one."

"Well, then, I'm afraid I can be of no help to you or your husband. Pity I'm the only lawyer in this town, but perhaps I'll be on the prosecuting side of things. And, as I believe I mentioned earlier, I never lose."

"Yeah, well, you may be the only lawyer in Storybrooke, but you're not the only lawyer in Maine. We'll find someone else."

"I wish you luck with that endeavor. I do, however, doubt it will go your way. If you reconsider, you know where to find me."

"Yeah. Not likely." With that, Emma stormed out, pulling Neal along with her.

---

When Maleficent answered the door, she had been expecting Neal Stiltskin to be on the other side of it. She had not been prepared for his father.

"I apologize for dropping in unannounced," he said. "My son had an important appointment this morning, and I said I'd relay the message that he would be late."

"While that's a good pretense for coming, that's not why you're here, is it?"

The elder Mr. Stiltskin shook his head. "Very perceptive of you. May I come in?"

Maleficent nodded. "My mother is still asleep, so we won't be interrupted," she said as she led him into the sitting room. "May I fetch you some tea?"

"Chamomile would be nice," he said.

Maleficent put the kettle on. "We have a microwave, of course, but I prefer to do some things the old-fashioned way." She took a seat across from him. "This new world has many advantages, and I use them, but there was a certain poetry to the old ways, was there not?"

"I see we're dropping pretenses then; speaking of other worlds?"

"Well, according to your son, you know who I am. So, why pretend?"

"And, according to my son, you know who I am, or at least you think you do."

"Your time was a great deal before mine, and as you were only the Dark One briefly before disappearing from history without a trace, many wouldn't have heard of you. I, however, was a skilled mage, dragon-born and trained. Dragons live a long time. They remember things."

This was not, of course, the only way Maleficent was familiar with the Dark One, but she thought it best to leave him in the dark as to her relationship with the Seer for now.

"And what exactly do they remember?"

"About the Dark One? A great deal: his or her existence was a blight for centuries. As for you specifically, bits and pieces. I know you took on the curse for your child, and I can appreciate a man who will go to any lengths for his child."

"I imagine you could."

"Your son seemed to believe he wouldn't do what I did, had he been in my place. Perhaps that is true, or perhaps, he is lying to himself. Either way, something tells me the same would not be true for you."

"If you're asking if I would sacrifice lives for my son, I probably would have, once. Now … I wouldn't be the man he wants me to be if I were willing to put lives at risk for him."

"And yet, you still would?"

He didn't answer. "Since you know so much about the Dark One, perhaps you would care to share how that particular curse would take effect in this town?"

She nodded. "I'd say that's a fair question. As I understand it, this is a land without magic. However, magic keeps the curse going, so we are in a certain kind of in-between place. I have it on good authority that, once the curse breaks, this town will function like any other in this land. Your curse should not reassert itself … unless, of course, you want it to?"

The kettle began to whistle, and Maleficent excused herself to prepare the tea. A minute later, she placed a cup and spoon before him. "Where were we?"

"You offered my son help. Knowing what I do of your motivations, I can understand why you would make that offer. My question to you is, in what way do you think you can help?"

"Our mayor is staging a witch-hunt for your son. She means to drive your family from this town. I imagine that your daughter-in-law plans to fight the charge using legal means, but you and I know better. This is not a normal town, and no trial here will be fair. Outside help will not be able to enter this town, and if the mayor succeeds in ridding this town of your family, all will be lost."

"So, what do you propose?"

"I have ensured that I have privacy here. Nobody speaks with my mother but me. Nobody comes here. I have also kept my employing your son a secret. A time may come, very soon, where he needs a safe place to hide until the dust settles. I would like to offer my home as that safe haven for him."

"My son is not his father; he is not the sort to run and hide from a fight."

"Well, perhaps you can persuade him, as it may be his only chance. And it's not really running, is it? Running is leaving town. Running is what she wants. This is being strategic. This is biding time."

"My daughter-in-law is ignorant of certain things, and bringing her around may take some time."

"That will unfold as fate intended. She will believe when she is ready."

"Perhaps. In the meantime, she will want her husband to follow the law."

"Again, it falls to you to persuade your family. They are far more likely to listen to you than they are to me."

"You want her to believe. You want the curse broken, and you believe it will be. But how am I to know that you do not intend to throw my son under the proverbial bus in order to get what you want if I leave him in your care?"

"In what way would that benefit me?"

"I don't know. I don't see the whole board, but you've had a lot of time to plan out this chess match."

"This is no game to me. This is about something far more important."

"Yes: your daughter. I do understand, but you see, I also understand the lengths a parent will go to for their child. It can lead them down dangerous paths. Perhaps you would sacrifice my family for yours, and I warn you, Dearie, that I won't stand for that."

"You have no power here," Maleficent said. "You need what I'm offering."

"Perhaps … perhaps I would simply like some assurance that I can trust you."

Maleficent nodded. "I understand. Allow me to spell it out for you then. I need your daughter-in-law, not just to break the curse, but for what comes after. She will break the curse, whether she does it for me or not, but after that, she is a free agent. I will need her on my side, and if any harm were come to her husband at my hand, I doubt she would be willing to help me. So it is in my best interest, you see, to make sure your family remains whole and happy."

"And how do I know you aren't lying?"

"You have some … source, that told you who I am? Why not check with this source again. Whoever it is who knows about me, should corroborate my story." She stood then, taking both of their cups to the sink. "I believe teatime is over. I'll expect your son to arrive within the hour. I've been lenient with him due to the extenuating circumstances, but it would hardly do to have him slacking. Someone needs to watch my mother while I'm out."

"Yes, Sierra. I assume that is the Seer who helped you?"

"She didn't just help me," Maleficent said. "Someday, I will introduce you to her. I believe you will find you've met before." Rumpelstiltskin starred at her. "I see I've shocked you. Well, you needn't worry; she has no memory of who she is at the moment, which makes her rather useless to me. She won't know you. Now, you'd best be on your way, and it would benefit both of us if you didn't come here again. Having people knowing of our acquaintance won't help your son when the time comes."

He nodded as he left the house. "She was wrong, you know," he said. "What she told me all those years ago did not come to pass. Perhaps she isn't as reliable as you think."

"Perhaps. Or, perhaps, someone played around with fate."

---

"Mr. Donald," Jamie said, looking up from her papers as her father's oldest friend stood in the doorway of her office. "What are you doing here?"

"Last time, you stopped by to see me. I thought I'd return the favor." He held up takeaway containers from Granny's. "Can I join you on your lunch break?"

---

"You really didn't know?" Dr. Plum asked, as she sat with Zelena and David.

"I had no idea," Zelena said. "Is that unusual?"

"It's not as common at this point in the pregnancy, but not unheard of. You appear to be about six months along."

Zelena nodded, unsurprised. The one upside (or downside, depending on how you looked at it) of the fertility potion she had taken was the timetable. With the potion's aid, pregnancy tended to be accelerated. Still, Zelena thought that could work to her advantage. If she was unable to stop the curse breaking (and she had her doubts about the efficacy of this so-called Savior, now that she knew what she was dealing with) it was important that there be no question to her child's paternity, and that it was too late for an abortion. An accelerated pregnancy achieved both.

"I can't believe we're expecting," David said, starring at the sonogram, his eyes looking slightly glassy.

"You're happy, aren't you?" Zelena asked.

"Of course. How could I not be?" He gave her a peck on the lips and then went back to staring at the sonogram, rubbing at his eyes a bit as they teared up.

"Well," Zelena said, "I suppose I'd best tell my sister."

---

"No progress on those names?" Emma said into her phone.

"Emma, I'm about to go into court. I can't talk right now."

"Sorry, but we met with the only lawyer in this small town, and he's a total dick."

"That's the majority of lawyers, you know? And I'm saying that as a lawyer. Do you know how many dicks I work with?"

"But this is, like, new levels of dickishness. He wanted me to convince his nanny, who he knocked up, to have an abortion, or else he won't take the case."

"Okay. That's pretty bad," Lily said. "And I'll find you someone, I promise. But I can't right now."

"Well, do you have any advice, at least? We might need to start building a case before we find someone. Like, should I talk to the sheriff again? I think he might be kind of into me, I think. Maybe I could try to – "

"No! Emma, don't do that. Come on. Play it smart. You know how the law works. You have to do stuff by the book."

"I get that, but I'm a little desperate here."

"I know. And I will help you, just give me time." With that, Lily hung up.

"I may not have time," Emma muttered to herself.

---

"It's been nice seeing more of you," Mr. Donald said, as he and Jamie enjoyed their lunches at her desk.

"Agreed," Jamie said. "I can't explain it, but I've felt, adrift … lost at sea for some time. Coming here feels like coming home and having a family again."

"Speaking of having a family, are there any young men on the horizon for the lady Jones?"

Jamie laughed. "Not as of late. Frankly, I'm not sure I'm the type to settle down. A family and kids …"

"You adore kids; isn't that why you went into education?"

"I suppose. Perhaps, someday, if I met the right man –" She was cut off by her phone ringing and was surprised to see that the call came from the sheriff's station.

"Sheriff?"

"Ms. Jones. I hope I'm not disturbing you?" the sheriff said in his normal genial tone.

"Well, I suppose that depends on why you're calling."

"I was hoping you would be willing to come down to the station."

"Am I in trouble, sheriff?"

"No. You've done nothing. I'm just trying to get some clarity on this Neal Stiltskin character in town."

"Oh, that again. I've told you everything I know of him."

"Perhaps. But I'd like to go over it with a fine-tooth comb, as it were. So, when can you come in?"

"Well, I suppose I'll need to check my schedule. I'll be in touch." She hung up before he could say anything else.

Truthfully, she didn't owe Neal anything, and he certainly was an odd bird. Still, it seemed he might be in some trouble, and if that were the case, she'd rather have all the facts. Perhaps it was time to call on Mr. Stiltskin and see what he had to say for himself.

---

"Where are they?" Alice asked, as she held her cutlass to Pan's throat.

Pan just smiled. "I'd be happy to take you to them … or what's left of them. Honestly, James, all you ever had to do was ask."

"Enough games!" said her father, who was a step behind with her mother.

"James likes games, don't you James? Or have you grown up too much to enjoy them?"

Before Alice could answer, Pan had risen into the air. He wasn't flying away, simply bobbinh just out of reach. "Now, show, me you're still a good sport, James. Let's play follow the leader."

Reluctantly, Alice trudged through the jungle she had once known so well, her parents behind her. (Mr. Smee and the others were back at the ship).

Neverland looked the same, but then, it would. As Alice recalled, time didn't pass on the island.

Finally, Pan landed outside of a cave. She couldn't say for sure if she'd been in it before; Neverland had ever so many caves.

"They're in there," Pan said, pointing.

Alice ran into the cave. "Maggie? Jack? Can you hear me?"

There was no response. The cave was large, and the ground was flooded. Alice swam the length of it, checking frantically under every rock. She found a pair of skeletons chained to one of the rocks, and for a moment her heart stuttered, but the skeletons where much too large to have belonged to Maggie or Jack

After hours of searching, she whirled to face Pan. "This is a trick. They were never here."

"It's no trick. They were here. What remains of them, is just there," Pan said, pointing towards the two skeletons she had noticed before.

"Liar!" Alice said, "They're too big. Those are the bones of adults."

"Well, that's what you wanted, isn't it? For them to grow up like you did, to grow to a ripe old age?" Pan smiled. "I gave you what you wanted. They grew up, and they grew old. They were wrinkled as prunes and could barely remember their own names when the time came. It was a mercy killing. That's what growing up does, James. It kills you in the end."

"I … how?"

Pan smiled, and something large, scaled, and full of teeth rose up from the water behind him. "I call it the Crocodile," he said. "It need only touch you, and it'll suck the youth straight out of you. Oh, it may take a few hours, but you'll be old as dust in a day's time."

Without warning, the creature leapt at Alice, grabbing her by the hand. She felt the life draining out of her.

"Unhand my daughter, you monster," her mother said, slashing at the beast. It roared up and went after her, but then father poked it from behind.

"Such a show of motherly concern," Pan said. "Quite surprising, considering how you abandoned your first child. But then, given who his father is, who could blame you for running off? Second time's the charm I suppose."

While it was distracted by her father, Milah threw what looked like a grenade right into the gullet of the beast. Within seconds, the Crocodile exploded, chunks and fluids hitting the cave walls, and splashing all four of them.

"Well, that was bad form. You ruined my new toy, lass, and after I went to all the trouble of imagining it."

Alice went to grab her cutlass, but her hand felt weak. She looked down, and saw that it had become a wrinkled, nerveless old thing hanging at her side.

Pan laughed. "It'll spread, you know, over the next few hours. Very soon, you'll have just what you wanted, James. You didn't want to live in Neverland anymore; this paradise where you could always be a little boy and have fun. You'll grow old rather quickly now and be reunited with those stupid children of yours."

Alice was not skilled at fighting with her other hand, but she used it to grab for her cutlass, all the same.

"Oh, by all means, fight me. It's not as though time is precious for you now."

"Time doesn't move in Neverland," Alice said. "I think I have enough time to kill you."

"Perhaps. You'll have to catch me first, though." With that, Pan flew out of the cave.

Alice fell to her knees and screamed.

"I'm so sorry, little love," her father said.

"Maggie and Jack," Alice said as tears streamed down her face. "They're gone. They're gone forever. We came here for nothing."

"We'll mourn later," Milah said. "There's no time for it now."

"Mother!"

"I'm sorry, Alice. Truly I am. I love you, and I loved your children. But we have hours before that disease spreads, so we need to figure out a way to prevent it."

"Perhaps there's a cure?" her father asked.

"Perhaps there is, but I don't know that we have the time to find it. Best to treat this like a case of gangrene."

"You mean …?" Alice asked, unable to complete the thought.

"That hand needs to come off. Killian, get out the rum, get her good and drunk. I'll tie up the arm with my headscarf."

"Surely, there's some other –"

"We can't waste time!" her mother said, tying her scarf tightly around Alice's arm. "I won't lose you, Alice, so you need to be strong for me."

Her father put his flask to her mouth and poured rum down her throat. She felt the sting, he pulled away the flask so that she could take a breath, and then he was pouring more.

Alice sat there, shaking, cold and scared, as her father kept plying her with rum. She tried not to look at her hand, and eventually, her vision began to blur slightly.

"Mother?" she asked, remembering a bit of the confrontation that had confused her. "What did Pan mean about you abandoning your first child?"

"None of that now ," her mother said.

"I deserve to know, seeing as I've lost my children, my husband, and I'm about to lose my hand."

Her mother sighed. "Before I met your father, I was married to another man. He was … Well, he wasn't any sort of husband I wanted, but we had a son. We named him Baelfire. When I met your father, I ran off with him and … It was wrong. I should have taken Baelfire with me. I didn't think I could at the time, but looking back …

We talked about going back for him. Years later, I heard he and his father had left the Frontlands. Nobody knew what had happened to them."

"So, you just gave up on looking for him?"

"I always regretted it, but I could only hope his father had been good to him. He had taken him away from that gawdawful little town we'd lived in so unhappily. Perhaps they built a new life somewhere happy."

"It's started to crawl up her arm, Milah," her father said, looking down, Alice saw that the skin on and just above her wrist had become thinner. She could see veins popping out.

"Well, let's hope she's drunk enough. All right, baby girl. Close your eyes."

---

"Open your eyes," Zelena said, after she had placed the picture Dr. Plum had given her in Mary Margaret's palm. "Surprise! David and I are expecting."

"A baby?" Mary Margaret asked, as she stared at the sonogram.

"Isn't it wonderful?" Zelena beamed. "We weren't even trying."

Mary Margaret shook herself, as though trying to dispel thoughts she couldn't understand. Zelena had a sneaking suspicion what those thoughts were.

"Congratulations, Selena. You and David must be over the moon."

"Oh, we are," Zelena said.

Mary Margaret sounded genuine enough, but Zelena could tell that her sister's heart wasn't entirely in her congratulations. Well, she had noticed Mary Margaret and David getting closer. It was probably because of that blasted savior, mucking everything up. Still, her pregnancy should halt any unfaithful thoughts David was having. As for Mary Margaret's lackluster response to her happy news? Well, that she could misunderstand to her own advantage.

"Oh, how insensitive of me. You don't much like babies, do you?"

Mary Margaret gasped. "That's not true!" Zelena arched an eyebrow at her, and Mary Margaret sighed. "I mean, I don't want to have one of my own, but I love my niece and nephew. I'll love this baby too."

"Have you made a decision on that front? Preventing yourself from ending up in my situation, I mean?"

Mary Margaret nodded. "I think so. I mean, I read the material Emma got for me, and I think getting my tubes tied makes the most sense. It's a simple, easy procedure I can get done at any time with minimal risk."

Zelena nodded. "I do apologize for my paranoia regarding Emma. Of course, nobody could ever replace me in your eyes. And I want to show my support. Why don't I make an appointment at Dr. Drake's clinic for later today, so you can have the procedure? I'll even go with you, for moral support."

"Are you sure? I mean, given your news, I wouldn't think you would want – "

"Nothing would make me happier than sitting in that doctor's office, knowing I'm carrying David's child, and knowing that you will never carry anyone's."

Mary Margaret smiled. "All right then. Make the call."

---

When the phone on the kitchen counter buzzed, Emma didn't think, she just reacted. It wasn't until after picking up that she realized it was actually Neal's phone. He must have left it by accident.

"Neal?" She heard Jamie say on the other line.

"It's Emma, actually," Emma said briskly, "Can I ask why you're calling my husband?"

"I wanted to give him a heads up about something."

"Well, I can relay the message."

"I suppose you can," Jamie said. "Sheriff Graham called me up. He's been sniffing around Neal, and he wants to talk to me. I agreed to check my schedule and head to the sheriff's station, but I thought I should hear from Neal exactly why the sheriff is interested in him."

"I see," Emma said, biting her lip. "Can you come by the house? I'll try to get Neal here, but I think you should talk to both of us."

"Of course. I'll be there as soon as I can."

---

"You could move home," Alice's father said to her gently, as the waves lapped the Jolly's side. They hadn't returned from Neverland just yet, but they would reach Misthaven soon. Alice looked down at her arm, where her father had fastened a hook in place of her hand. "It doesn't look so bad," he said. "Rather fearsome, in fact. You're a proper pirate now."

"I don't want to move home," Alice said.

"Well, perhaps we can find you somewhere new, then. Somewhere without … bad memories."

Alice shook her head. "I'm going back."

"Alice, I know it was your home, but –"

"No, not to my home. I'm going back to Neverland."

"Alice!"

"I have too! Pan takes children from their beds, promising them things. He did it with the Darlings. He's done it with countless children. He might well have done it with Jack and Maggie." Alice stifled a sob. "Someone has to help those children. Someone has to return them to their homes. Someone has to protect them from that monster."

"That's not your job."

"Isn't it? I don't have children of my own anymore. And if I did try again, if I tried to find love and have another family, Pan would take them from me as well. It's time I took something from him, and his lost boys are ever so dear to him."

"So this is about vengeance, is it?"

"Would that be so terrible? Those children need to be returned to their families, and if I get revenge in the bargain, all's the better."

"Alice, time doesn't move normally in Neverland. You know this. If you go back, time will pass. Your mother and I will grow old and … And we may never see you again."

Alice nodded. "I know. And I will come to Misthaven, as well as other lands, to return the children, but I won't stay. As long as there is Peter Pan, there must be me to stop him."

"And you think he'll just let you leave his island with the children he's stolen from their beds?"

"I'll find a way. I have to."

Her father shook his head. "I don't like this for you. It's a lonely life. Perhaps –"

"It's the only life I want now. It's the only way all I've suffered can mean something." she was quiet for a moment. "Father, do you truly not know what happened to my brother?"

"Liam and Asher are – "

"No, not them. I know they're fine. I meant Baelfire."

Her father sighed. "We did look."

"Not very hard."

"Alice –"

"How can someone simply let their child go? How could Mother?"

"Your mother was very unhappy. Her husband was a coward. He made her an outcast and refused to improve her life in any way, even though he could clearly see how miserable she was. He never would have let her take their son with her, and frankly, a pirate ship is no place for a four-year-old. There's a reason I retired when your mother and I began trying for a family."

"I just … I can't help but wonder, if he's out there … Mother said nobody knew what had become of him, but Pan knew about him. Perhaps Pan knows what became of him. Perhaps I might meet him one day."

"You don't need to go on some grand journey to find family, Alice. You have family. Your mother, me, your brothers… You have a family that loves you waiting for you at home."

Alice shook her head and swiped at her eyes with her good hand. "No. No, I'll never have a family again."

---

"Neal's not here yet," Emma said, as she let Jamie in. "I don't have his boss's phone number, but I reached out to his father and asked if he could swing by his place of work."

Jamie nodded. "I don't know how long I can hold the sheriff off before speaking with him, so we'd best get this resolved quickly."

Emma nodded. "I couldn't agree more."

"Perhaps you'd like to tell me exactly what your husband is being accused of?"

Emma didn't say anything.

"I know you don't trust me, Emma, and I do understand why, but if you want my help, you need to meet me halfway."

Emma shook her head. "He—Graham—he thinks Neal is connected to those attacks that have been happening around town."

"And what do you think?"

"I think that Neal would never do something like that. But since I'm answering your questions, maybe you can answer mine: why would Graham reach out to you?"

"When you first came to town, your husband … He made a point of seeking me out. To the outside observer, it might resemble stalkerish behavior."

"But why would Neal –"

"I think that's something you need to discuss with him."

"No, you're going to tell me. Because the sheriff will make you tell him, so I need to be prepared and … and I deserve to know, don't I? I deserve to know why my husband is so invested in having a relationship with a woman he met yesterday and won't talk to me about it."

Jamie's face softened. "Emma, it wasn't anything romantic. He told me … He told me his mum ran off when he was young, and that I looked like her. He thought maybe we could be related."

"I … was not expecting that. I mean, I don't know what I was expecting, but not that. So, he thinks you're… what, his long lost sister or something?"

Jamie shook her head. "No, not anymore. He had us do a blood test, and if I'm being honest, I got my hopes up that maybe I did have a long-lost brother, but then the blood samples went missing from the lab, and when I told him about it, he said we didn't need to do the test again. For whatever reason, he had changed his mind. He no longer thought we were family."

"Why?"

"That's probably a question you should ask him."

---

"Pop? What are you doing here?" Neal asked, as he opened the door to let his father in.

"I can't stay," his father said. "And I know I mustn't make a habit of this, but Emma asked me to get a message to you."

"Is she okay?"

"Yes. However, she wants you to rush home. Something important has apparently come up regarding your case. She didn't share details with me."

"But why didn't she just call me?"

"She said she found your phone; you must have left it at home."

Neal sighed. "I didn't even notice. Well, I would ask my boss if I could cut out early, but seeing as I was late, I don't know if I can get away with that."

His father nodded. "I'll relay that to her. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go pick Henry up from school."

---

Jamie's phone rang pretty much the second she left Emma; Emma's father-in-law had called to let her know that Neal wouldn't be able to get home early, and they had both decided there was no point in her waiting around.

"Principal Jones," she said, not really looking at her phone.

"Jamie P. Jones," she heard the sheriff say in his brogue. "You've not been easy to track down today."

"I suppose not. I haven't had much time since school let out."

"But you had enough time to confer with the Stiltskins?"

"Are you having me followed, Graham?"

"I'm simply doing my job," he said sheepishly. "Now, I think it's best you come down to the sheriff station right away. No more excuses, Jones. This is important."

"Very well. I'll head right over."

---

Captain Hook generally spent her time in Neverland, finding ways to shuttle children home, after convincing them of Neverland's—and Pan's—danger. At times, she had to drag them kicking and screaming. It wasn't her preference, but it was for their own good. They didn't understand the danger they were in. Pan had convinced them, with his ever-so-seductive promises, that they were better off. Children could not always be reasoned with, but they needed to be saved, whether they wanted to be or not. And it didn't hurt that some parents paid handsomely for the return of their children.

The couple who had called upon her could not pay handsomely. They barely had two coins to rub together between the two of them. They did have a farm, and Hook had agreed to help them find their sons in exchange for meats and cheeses.

It wasn't uncommon for parents to call on her. She always had her ears open for tales of missing children. They had been surprised that the fearsome Captain Hook was a woman, of course, but then, most land-lubbers were. In the end, however, all they wanted were their twins returned.

"Did you find them?" the mother, Ruth, asked.

Hook shook her head. "They aren't in Neverland. I've looked the land over, and while there was a pair of twins, they aren't yours."

"Are you certain?" the father, Robert, asked.

"I've returned them to their parents. They are not yours."

"So, what do we do now?" Ruth asked, looking at Captain Hook imploringly.

"You'll figure something out," she said. "I must be off."

"You're just going to leave?" Robert asked, his eyes wide and his voice booming.

"I need to return to Neverland; I'm needed there."

"You're needed here!" Ruth said. "The fact that your pied piper didn't take our boys doesn't make us any less in need of your aid, and we paid you."

"You paid me for their safe return from Neverland. They are not in Neverland."

"Please," Ruth said, "My boys, I … I can't lose them. Please help us find them."

Something tugged at Hook's heartstrings, and she remembered seeing that look in the mirror when she had lost her own children, so many years ago.

Sighing, she said, "Very well. I will do what I can. Were any clues left behind when they disappeared?"

Robert shook his head. "But gold coins had appeared under their beds two days before. Their uncle, my brother, told me they were unlucky, that I should get rid of them before they brought a blight on my family. I refused him, of course."

"Well then, perhaps we'd best pay this brother of yours a visit."

---

"We need to talk to Dorothy again," Henry said, after his grandfather had related what Maleficent had told him. "We should get Paige and – "

"I'm not sure how wise that course of action would be," his grandfather said, startling him.

"Why not? She's in this with us!"

"Is she? I was under the impression she was as cursed as the rest of this town."

Henry shook his head. "She knows about the curse. She's the one who told us – "

"Being aware of your prison does not mean you are no longer in prison. Paige does not remember her previous life or know who she used to be. She knows someone who made her aware of the curse, and believes in its existence, but does that make her any less under the mayor's thrall?"

"Of course it does. She helped us. We can trust her."

"The fact that she helped us does not mean we can trust her, Henry. It might be that it suited the mayor for us to have the help, or for us to trust your young friend."

"So, you won't trust Paige, but you'll trust Maleficent? You know she was a villain, right?"

"I never claimed to trust her, but as far as I can tell, she remembers who she is, and she created contingencies before the curse was cast. She is not under the mayor's thumb in the same way as the rest of this town. Also, as I recall, you encouraged cooperation with Maleficent."

Henry nodded. "Yeah, because she wants the curse broken. That doesn't mean we can trust her, just that it's smart to work together for now."

His grandfather smiled. "You're a clever lad."

"I just … I feel bad for Paige. I don't think she has the best life—which makes sense, because she is cursed, and like you said, knowing it doesn't make it less true. It might make it worse. I can't imagine what it would be like to grow up in a cursed town, being the only one who knew, but being unable to do anything about it."

"Being powerless is one of the worst curses out there," His grandfather said. "Henry, there's something Maleficent said. I wonder … does that book of yours say anything about someone changing fate?"

"Oh, fate is a big part of it, for sure."

"Yes, but can it be altered? Was there someone who altered it?"

"I … I'd have to read it again. I mean, I think there was some reference to that, but it happened centuries ago. The book shows glimpses of those stories, but it mostly focuses on the stuff that happened during Snow White and Prince Charming's lifetime. Even the stuff on Maleficent is going back a bit in the timeline." his grandfather nodded, but didn't say anything. "Grandpa? If I ask you a question, will you promise to answer me honestly?"

"I've always tried to be honest with you, Henry."

"Yeah, you have," Henry said. He took a deep breath and asked quickly before he could change his mind, "Except when it comes to where you and Dad are from, or what your lives were like before you guys met Mom. It was like you just appeared out of thin air. And I know Dad loves Mom more than anything, but he still won't tell her about his past. And then we end up in this town, and find out about this curse, and you guys just believe it. And Dad is upset, and kind of mad, but he still believes. And then you're asking all these questions about fate and Rumpelstiltskin, and the look on your face when you saw that Belle was real … in the Beauty and the Beast story, Rumpelstiltskin told Belle that his son was called Baelfire, and Dad's name is Neal, but sometimes you call him Bae, and near the end of the story Rumpelstiltskin and his son disappear through a portal or something to another world. The book doesn't say what happened to them next, but I think, maybe, they would just show up there, like how you and Dad just showed up on Minnesota before you met Mom. And I guess I was wondering … if you were from there too? From the Enchanted Forest?"

His grandfather didn't speak for a long moment. Then he said, "You truly are a clever lad."

"Does that mean … Am I right?"

"Henry, do you realize what you're asking? Because if you are right, and I confirm that for you, it would change everything."

"It would make everything better," Henry said. "We went on this trip because Dad wouldn't share a part of himself with me and Mom."

"And if you were right, you wouldn't be able to share that with her either," his grandfather said. "You're clever, Henry, but it takes more than cleverness to lie to those you love."

"But why do we have to lie? It'll all be out in the open soon, won't it? And I think … I think a part of me knew even before we came here. Because the storybook felt true to me when I read it, but that doesn't make any sense. Because if I really thought this world was all there was before, then why would I believe it so easily? But you and Dad say weird things sometimes, just little things that… slip out, and then there's the stuff you say when you think I'm not listening. This is our lives, our legacy, and don't Mom and I deserve to know all about it?"

"You said it yourself, Henry. Your mother is not ready to know her destiny. She wouldn't accept it."

"She trusts Dad, but he's been lying to her, and if he keeps lying to her, she'll stop trusting him and then everything will fall apart. Wouldn't she trust him more if he actually told her the truth?"

"The truth can be a hard pill to swallow. Sometimes, people are happier with a lie or a half-truth."

"So, you think it's okay to lie to people you love?"

"'Okay' is not the word I would use, but sometimes it is necessary."

"I guess I get that. I just … I want us all to be okay."

"We will be, Henry. I've put too much work into this family to let us be anything else. Your parents will be fine. As you said, they love each other, and in time, they will be able to have an honest relationship. They can overcome any hurtle. Their love is powerful, just like the love in your book."

Henry nodded. "I hope you're right."

"I am right. Now, why don't you call up Paige, and we'll see if we can arrange another meeting with Dorothy."

"But … but I thought you didn't trust her?"

"Oh, I don't, but as you said, and not unlike the matter of Maleficent, we still need her help. We'll simply have to play things close to the vest. Can you do that, do you think?"

"Yeah. I can keep a secret."

"Good."

It was only after calling Paige and arranging to go back to the asylum that Henry realized her grandfather had never confirmed that he was from the Enchanted Forest. He probably wouldn't, and that very fact, Henry thought, was all the confirmation he needed.

---

"I got home as soon as I could," Neal said.

He had been worried Emma would be angry with him, but when he found her in their room, she just seemed thoughtful.

"I talked to Jamie today," Emma said.

"Oh? Why?"

"The sheriff was asking her questions, and she wanted to touch base with you before talking to him. I tried to get in touch with you, but …"

"Yeah, I know. I left my phone."

"She told me that you thought you two were related … and that then you didn't. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I've never been sure about what happened to my mom, and I didn't want …"

Emma sighed. "I get wanting a connection to the parent that abandoned you. If I had any idea where my parents were, or if I knew about some long-lost sister, I would jump at the chance."

"Even now? After everything?"

"You are my family, you, and Henry, and your dad," she said, grabbing his hand. "Nothing can change that. And I'm happy. I have what I need. But there will always be a part of me that is that lost little girl who doesn't know why she was just chucked aside."

"Maybe, someday, we'll both get the answers we want," Neal said.

"I hope so," Emma said. "But what I don't get is why you changed your mind. If you were so sure … and you wouldn't have been following her and asking for blood samples if you weren't sure, why just give up and decide she isn't?"

Neal sighed. "The truth is, I still think she's my sister. But after the blood disappeared, I spoke to my dad, and he didn't want me pursuing this. In fact, he seemed pretty convinced it was a bad idea, so I promised I would back off."

"Why would he do that?"

"That's a question only he can answer."

"Did you come to ask me more questions?" Dorothy asked. There was something very tired in her voice, something almost resigned. Rumpelstiltskin found it concerning.

Henry shook his head. "We came to tell you what we've learned and to maybe come up with a plan."

"I'm not sure you should be discussing plans with me," Dorothy said, not meeting their eyes.

"Is it because of him?" Paige asked, pointing to Rumpelstiltskin. "I know he wasn't here last time but –"

"But that's just my grandfather," Henry said. "You can trust him."

"It's not that," Dorothy said, as she continued to avoid looking at them. There was an air of something about her that Rumpelstiltskin recognized. Guilt. She stank of guilt.

"Then what?" Henry asked.

"Perhaps it's that you fear we can't trust you," Rumpelstiltskin said, approaching the girl's cell. "The Evil Queen visited you, did she not?"

"She always visits me," Dorothy said.

"And you told her about my grandson's visits?"

"She already knew!" Dorothy said. "She has eyes everywhere. She knew that you'd been here, that you knew things, and she threatened Red. I can't be out in the world to protect those I love; I don't even have magic here! What was I supposed to do?"

"What did you tell her?" Rumpelstiltskin asked.

"Not a lot. I told her … I told her about the Savior, who she is, and that she can break the curse."

Stupid girl, Rumpelstiltskin thought. She was putting everything at risk, including his family.

"You do realize that you won't be free until the curse is broken, and that you have now made it more difficult for that to happen?" Rumpelstiltskin asked with a sneer.

"The Savior breaking the curse is fate. Your family being here proves that. It will happen. But Red … she isn't necessarily fated to survive. I had to protect the person I love most. Can't you understand that?"

He could.

"But you're a hero," Henry said, his eyes shining. Oh, he was so like his father.

"I haven't been a hero for 28 years," Dorothy said. "I've just been rotting in this cell like Zelena said when she came to taunt me. I want everyone to be saved. I would even sacrifice myself to save them. My life … isn't worth much anymore. But I wouldn't sacrifice Red. I can't."

"It's okay," Paige said, reaching through the bars for Dorothy's hand. "It's okay."

"It's not," Henry said. "But I do understand."

"I didn't tell her about your book," Dorothy said. "I told her as little as I could. But … you probably shouldn't tell me anything. She will threaten me again, and I can't tell what I don't know."

"How noble of you to be able to claim ignorance," Rumpelstiltskin said.

"It's easy to say things like that when you haven't fought magical battles and seen loved ones die."

"Oh, I've seen people die. And I've fought battles," Rumpelstiltskin said. "I never claimed to be a hero, though."

"Paige," Dorothy said, turning to the girl most sympathetic to her, "will you still visit me?"

"Of course," Paige said. "I know you're lonely, and I come here to see my sister anyway. I won't let you just rot in here."

"Thank you."

---

Robert's brother was a scoundrel. The man was a wealthy goldsmith, but he rarely if ever helped out his brother, and when Robert and Ruth found a bit of fortune, the goldsmith made them doubt their own family.

As it turned out, he had been responsible for the golden coins, if indirectly, and while they weren't cursed as he had claimed, they were magical. Hook knew magic. She hadn't learned to harness magic during her time in Neverland; she did not have the makings of a sorceress. She did, however, understand how magic worked, and she knew how to use a magical object to find its owner.

With Robert and Ruth in tow, Hook followed the trail the coins left to the forest, where the three of them happened upon a tree that had a knife sticking out of it. The tree itself was ordinary; the knife on the other hand …

Hook reached out to take the knife out of the tree, a felt a dagger at her back, "Leave the knife be, pirate. It's not the treasure you seek,"

It wasn't often that people got the drop on Captain Hook. She spun out of the man's reach as best she could, the dagger grazing her leather jacket. She made to kick the dagger from his hand, but he saw the move coming and dodged her, before reaching out to pull her toward him, the dagger now at her throat. "How dare you?" she hissed. "Do you know who I am?"

"You're a pirate," he said, as she used her hook to dislodge the dagger, and it clattered to the ground. He bent to retrieve it, and she swiped at him with the hook. He dodged surprisingly well, and smiled before he stabbed out at her. "The fearsome Captain Hook, I'd wager."

Hook drew her cutlass, and lunged at him. He parried and countered and they went on like that for a bit. The stranger held his own fairly well. Hook was impressed, despite herself. However, they weren't getting anywhere this way, and she had boys to find. Perhaps she should try talking to him.

"You don't seem surprised that I'm a woman," Hook said. "Most are."

"Woman or man, it makes no difference to me. You're all the same."

"What, pirates?"

"People," he spat. "I'm a huntsman by trade, and you've come to take my best hunting knife."

Hook laughed. "That's a lie if I ever heard one, Huntsman. This is no hunting knife." She lunged for the knife, but he blocked her. "This knife is connected to two missing boys, and if it's yours, I can only imagine that you're the one who kidnapped them."

"I would never kidnap two innocent boys," he said, seeming insulted by the notion.

"Then, why don't we sit like civilized people, and you can tell me how you came to know them?"

The huntsman nodded, dropping his dagger to his side. He kept a tight hold on it, but he wasn't angling for her anymore.

Hook took a seat on a nearby tree stump, and the huntsman slid to the forest floor, his back to a tree.

"They came to me," he said. "Claimed they had overheard their father discussing with their uncle how they were bringing bad luck to the family, so they'd decided to run off and make it on their own. They asked me to teach them how to survive."

"And you just helped them, did you?" Hook asked skeptically.

"They were innocent children, and they would have died without my help. I taught them what I could."

There was a tenderness in his voice that surprised Hook. "You truly cared for them, didn't you?"

The huntsman nodded.

"Well, where are they?" she asked.

The huntsman sighed and rubbed at the bit of scruff on his face. "They left. Said they'd heard tell of a dragon causing trouble a town over, and they wanted to help. Much as I tried to teach them the difference between glory and honor, they wanted to be heroes, slay the dragon, save the princess. I let them go."

"You couldn't stop them from embarking on such a dangerous quest? These boys you claim to care for?"

"I do care for them, but they weren't pups anymore. They had learned what they needed to from me. They were ready. Would you have had me keep them forever, never let them live?"

"Letting them live isn't the problem; it's letting them die."

"They're strong. They'll live. They felt they needed to prove themselves, prove that they weren't unlucky, that they could be –"

"Men are so foolish! They needed to prove themselves, so you were fine just throwing them to the wolves, is that it?"

"I was actually raised by wolves," he said with a cheeky smile. "It was the best thing that could have happened to me."

"Please," Robert said, interrupting. "We're grateful, but we need to find them."

"And who are you?" the huntsman asked, as he eyed Robert and Ruth, once again on guard.

"These are their parents," Hook said.

"The parents that chucked them out for being unlucky?"

"We didn't … we would never …" Ruth stuttered.

"It was a misunderstanding," Robert said. "Their uncle may have said that bad luck bit, but I never believed it. I told him as much."

"Please, tell us where they are," Ruth said.

"Those boys have the makings of great huntsmen. They're kind and true. If you take them back, how do I know you'll raise them with honor? Humans have so little of it."

"You speak of humans like you aren't one," Hook said, looking the huntsman up and down. "Are you a werewolf?"

"I'm not so blessed," the huntsman said.

"Well, are you human?"

"Only by birth. Not at heart. I was raised by noble and honorable creatures, and I've seen humans hunt them for sport."

"We don't hunt," Ruth said quickly, her hands up in supplication. "We're simple farmers. We treat our animals well, I swear, and we're raising our sons to do the same."

"How can I be sure-?" the huntsman began.

Hook cut him off, though. They didn't have time for this. "This only matters if you know how to find them. Do you?" The huntsman didn't answer, but his eyes flicked to the tree with the knife in it. "It's the magic in this knife, isn't it? It'll help you find them?"

"Not find them, no, but it will alert me if they need my aid. After that … well, I'm good at tracking."

"As am I," Hook said.

"I'd wager you're good at many things," the Huntsman said.

Hook felt her face warm a bit, but she chose to ignore it. "You said it'll let you know if they need help," she said. "Do they? Are they in trouble?"

"Not as of yet, and I have been keeping an eye."

"Well then, I suppose we'll keep an eye with you," Hook said, inviting Ruth and Robert to settle in against two nearby trees. After the couple sat down, the four of them had only to wait and to watch.

---

"We've known each other a long time, Jones," Sheriff Graham said.

Jamie was seated across from him in his office. When she had come in, he'd offered her a bear claw and a coffee, but she had declined both.

"Shouldn't I have a lawyer present?" she asked.

"You're not being accused of anything," Graham said. "I just need you to shed light on some issues regarding a Mr. Neal Stiltskin."

"So, you've said. But I've already told you everything I know,"

"That's not strictly true, is it?" Graham said, leaning forward in what he liked to think was an intimidating cop sort of way. "You didn't tell me about your familial relation to the Stiltskins."

Jamie's eyes widened for a moment, but then her expression went blank. Got you, Graham thought. "As I said, we've known each other for a long time, and I do like you, Ms. Jones."

"Principal Jones," she corrected.

"Yes, Principal Jones. As a principal, your job is to keep people in line, to make sure rules are kept, yes?"

"For their own good," Jamie said.

"Well, I'm trying to do the same thing. I'm trying to keep the people of this town safe. Three women have been attacked. One of them was at one point accosted by Mr. Stiltskin. He's also noticeably followed you, and I have it on good authority that he once told you he believed the two of you could be related."

"That was a flight of fancy," Jamie said. "And I can't help but wonder who your source is."

"Well, I wouldn't be very good at my job if I told you that, would I?" Graham said. "The question is, how can this knowledge help the investigation?"

"That is a good question. I can't for the life of me figure out how a suspect thinking for five minutes that I might be his sister would affect anything."

"Well, it paints a new picture, doesn't it? I mean, by all accounts, The Stiltskins came to this town by chance and decided to stay. But if they came here looking for family – "

"Then that's motive for coming here, not for harming women. And given the shock on his face when he first met me, I don't think Neal was expecting the potential blast from the past that he got."

"Perhaps not. Perhaps it stirred old resentments in him. Tell me, what do you know of his relationship with his mother?"

"Only that he hasn't seen her since he was young, that she left."

"And surely you can see how a man left by his mother might grow up to hold certain resentments toward women?" Graham asked.

"And surely you can see how these questions would be better directed at Neal."

"Emma Stiltskin is a good person, I think. But she's determined to believe in her husband's innocence, even if the evidence won't support it. Neal likes you, maybe trusts you, and I need an ally who cares more about stopping the person hurting women than she does clearing his name."

"So, what, you want me to spy on him?"

"I want to know you're on my side."

"I'm on the side of the law," Jamie said. "I'll cooperate and I'll help because, you know, I don't like the idea of women not feeling safe in this town. That doesn't mean Neal is responsible."

"You don't owe him anything, Jamie. You two never even confirmed that you were related. Why defend him?"

"Gut instinct," Jamie said.

"And if he is guilty?"

For the first, Jamie seemed to really falter. "I don't … I don't know. Lock him up, then."

"And you'll help me with that? Finding the truth, and locking up the guilty party, whoever he may be?"

"Of course," she said indignantly.

"Well then," Graham said, standing up and opening the door to his office, "I don't believe there's anything more for us to discuss."

---

Neal had gone to sleep early, citing a long day for a reason. Emma could hardly blame him for it. Still, she had waited up until after Henry had gone to bed so that she could have a moment with her father-in-law.

"Is something on your mind, Emma?" he asked, saving her the trouble.

"How'd you guess?"

He smiled. "You've gone out of your way to stay up after your husband and son have gone to bed, but you don't appear to be doing anything significant with the time. The only conclusion I can make is that you want a private word with the only person not asleep; me," he took a seat beside her. "I do know you, Dearie. You've been my daughter longer than you've been my daughter-in-law, and you've been my daughter-in-law ten years."

Emma smiled. "I may not have shown it at the time, but it meant a lot to me, you guys taking a chance on me, going to all the trouble of making me legally yours."

"I wouldn't have done any differently if I had another opportunity today."

"Well, now we have different legal trouble. You know what's going on with Neal? What the sheriff is accusing him of?"

Her father-in-law shook his head derisively. "He's no more likely to beat another woman than he is to beat you or Henry. Not that that will hold up in court."

"No, it won't," Emma said. "The thing is, when we got to this town, Neal did some strange things, and I'm only now finding out what some of that was about." Mr. Stiltskin raised an eyebrow at her, and she shook her head. "Oh, he hasn't told me everything, though he promises he will, but he did tell me that he thought Jamie Jones might be his sister."

"Ah."

"He said that after the blood-test went missing, you told him not to pursue it, and I was wondering … why not?"

"Does it matter?"

"It could. I mean, if it helps his case and … and even if it doesn't, if she is his sister, doesn't he deserve to know? Don't they both deserve that?"

Her father-in-law sighed. "Emma, I'm going to tell you something that I've never shared with you before. Neal knows some of it, but … well, I've shielded my son from the details of how his mother left us, and you, by extension. I wanted to protect him. But I think, given the questions you're asking me, that you need to know what sort of woman Milah was."

Emma nodded for him to continue.

"When she left, I was given the impression that my wife had been taken by a man intent on raping and possibly killing her. At the time, given the place where I lived and my standing in that community, I had no legal recourse. When I was able to, I did my best to find her, only to discover that she had chosen to leave with that man, a man who I knew to be a criminal."

His tone turned mocking. "She loved him, supposedly. They were building a life together." He sighed and shook his head. "Perhaps I should have kept pursuing it, brought him and possibly her to justice for whatever crimes they had committed together since she'd left me, but, well, I had my son to think about.

"It wasn't long after that that we left our homeland behind, and I never looked back. I don't want to look back. I love my family. And a woman raised by that man and my former wife … I shudder to think.

"I don't know what sort of woman Ms. Jones is, but until I do, I do not want my son near her, and I certainly don't want him to innocently give her information that might be used against him. Neal is loyal to his family, and he would see her as family. I thought it was best that he didn't."

"We aren't our parents, you know. I mean, found family is a thing; you taught me that."

"Biology doesn't decide everything, it's true. We are made by our choices and our experiences, one usually influencing the other. Milah's child with … that man … her experiences would be largely influenced by those who raised her."

"Well, telling Neal not to pursue a familial relationship didn't stop them from being friendly. Friends, even. And that's why, when the sheriff started asking her questions, she reached out to him and talked to me. To warn us. Maybe she is capable of making the right choices."

"I certainly hope so. Still, I wouldn't be too trusting of her just yet."

Emma stood up and started heading for her room. "I'm probably going to tell Neal what you told me."

"I expected as much."

"Is there anything else you want me to tell him?"

He shook his head. "I know you'll find the words. You love us both, so you'll be gentle with him. That's what family does."

---

When David got home from work, he wasn't expecting to find Mary Margaret dozing on the couch in his living room.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I'm sorry about today," she said sleepily. "I know I didn't come back to work –"

"It's fine," David said. "Selena called me and said something important had come up and I needed to give you the day off."

"Okay. Good," Mary Margaret said with a lazy smile. "I like my job. I don't want to lose it."

David didn't say anything, but he continued to stare at Mary Margaret, who was cuddled under a blanket his mother had crocheted. She looked tired, and maybe a little off, but also comfy and like she fit perfectly right where she was. His heart ached, and he didn't know why.

Mary Margaret ached an eyebrow. "What? No quip about how amazing it is that I like a job?"

"Sorry. I just … wasn't expecting you to be here."

"I had a medical appointment, a, er, procedure –"

"Is everything okay?" David asked, surprised by the concern he felt.

"It's fine; it was very simple. Selena said I could recover here. I suppose it's good practice, caring for someone weak and helpless," she said, with a laugh that was slightly watery.

"What?"

"Because you're expecting. Congratulations, by the way. You must be so … " For no reason David could determine, Mary Margaret burst into tears.

David sat down and drew her to him, almost on instinct. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know," she said through sobs. "Probably something hormonal, related to my procedure."

She seemed to be trying not to cry, swiping at her eyes and shaking herself, but the gut-wrenching sobs coming from her would not stop. David found it a tad scary, but he also knew she needed someone right now, and something deep inside him wouldn't let him just leave her like that. "Shhh," he said, rubbing her back soothingly. "It's okay."

"I don't regret … " she said, though he couldn't quite make out what she didn't regret through the sobs, "…happy for you."

"Um, thanks," he said. "But let's not talk about me. Just … just tell me what you need."

"Just … just keep holding me."

"Okay," David said, still rubbing her back. "Okay."

---

"I never want to see a dragon again," David said, as he wiped his brow.

"And I never want to see a princess again," James said sourly.

David put a sympathetic hand on his brother's shoulder. "Any girl who would pick a prince over my brother is not fit to be called royalty."

James nodded, and he and his brother kept walking with their two companions.

"I apologize for your broken heart, but the important thing is that we were able to rescue you when you needed it," the Huntsman said.

It was true. The Huntsman and Hook had been able to revive one of the boys when he had been left for dead by the princess he had rescued. She was, apparently, happy to marry some prince who, according to kingdom gossip, was taking credit for the dragon's slaying.

"Hopefully, you've learned a valuable lesson about the dangers of illusions of grandeur," Hook said.

"We thought we could be heroes," David said, looking down dejectedly. "We want to be the sort of men that our parents could be proud of."

Hook shot them a smile. "Perhaps you will be, when you are men. For now, you are boys, and you might as well enjoy it. As for your parents being proud …" She stopped walking. They had reached the clearing where the boys' parents were waiting.

Ruth sobbed when she saw them, and the twins ran into her arms. The three of them shared hushed reassurances. It made something in Hook ache for simpler times, when she had been reunited with her family as a child, after they'd rescued her from Neverland, and she'd thought that all the pain would be over.

She noticed that the Huntsman was also starring at the reunion, longing in his eyes.

"You've lost family, haven't you?"

"My family is the wolves," he said. "They are the only family I need."

"But ...?" Hook prompted.

"But ... perhaps I'll miss those boys," he conceded. "Having pups to look after … filled a hole."

"Well, we all have holes that need filling," Hook said. "I haven't had a family for a long time."

The Huntsman turned to Hook, quirking his eyebrow at her curiously. "What happened?"

"Time. I've been around longer than you can guess, and they grew old and died as they should have. Except … well, there was one brother who might yet live. It would make sense for him to be dead, but as I don't know what happened to him, I can't assume such things. If he were alive, and he knew about me, which he doesn't, he would probably assume I was long dead too."

"Why doesn't he know about you?"

"That's a longer tale, as is my life."

"Well…" The Huntsman inclined his head. "Perhaps … perhaps it's a tale you could tell me sometime, over a drink." When Hook didn't answer, he stuttered out, "if you like that is."

"I thought you didn't like humans?"

"Well, you aren't like other humans I've met."

"Perhaps you should meet more, then."

"I'd settle for getting to know you better."

Before she could answer him, Ruth, Robert, and the twins made their way over.

"Thank you for returning our sons to us."Robert handed over a sack of coins. "Here's the payment for your services."

"Thank you," Hook said, graciously. She wasn't the sort to say something silly like, 'This one is free,' but she knew how to show gratitude.

"Boys," the Huntsman said. "If you ever have need of my aid, use that knife, and I'll find you."

Both boys nodded, each giving the Huntsman a hug. He seemed startled, but he responded in kind. Afterwards, the family left, and the Huntsman watched, a few stray tears falling down his cheeks.

Hook sighed. "One drink," she said, taking pity on him (or so she told herself). "You don't seem like you want to be alone just yet."

---

Neal had called Jamie that morning. He figured that he should talk to her himself after what Emma had told him, so he asked her to grab a coffee with him at Granny's. Under other circumstances, he might have preferred to do this over alcohol, but after what had happened the last time he went to a bar … he was good sticking with coffee.

"Thanks for meeting me," he said when she took the seat opposite him in the booth.

"Well, I did try reaching out to you first," she said.

"I know, Emma told me. And I want you to know I appreciate it. I … I know you had your doubts about me when I first came to town."

She nodded. "Well, you came off a bit unhinged, to be frank."

"Do I still?" he asked.

She didn't answer.

Granny came over with Neal's coffee, and Jamie ordered the same.

After she was gone, Neal asked, "So, why tip us off, then? If you don't trust me?"

Jamie sighed. "I want to trust you, despite myself. I'm not sure why; gut instinct, I suppose. Except that I've more reason to trust the sheriff as I've known him longer, and frankly, he made some good points. Bits and pieces of your story don't add up."

"Such as …?"

"Neal, why did you and your family come to this town?"

"We were doing a family road trip, trying to see where we ended up, and we kind of just ended up here."

"I see. And then you decided to stay?"

"Henry wanted to, and Emma had her reasons. Frankly, I was outvoted. Not that I wanted to leave, but I had reservations about just up and moving on a whim."

"So, it was just a coincidence then? That you ended up in a town with someone you were near-certain was your sister, to the point of stalking her? And then you do a 180, suddenly deciding I'm not?"

"I don't … I wouldn't have come here if I'd suspected anyone connected to my past was here. Believe me on that, if nothing else."

"Why? Is there something in your past that you're running from?"

Granny came by with Jamie's coffee, and Neal waited for her to leave before he said, "My childhood was crappy. I don't make a secret of that. My dad and I were in a bad situation, and we left to have a better life."

"Is that why you decided we weren't related? Because it was easier than dealing with your past?"

Neal sighed. "I don't want to get you caught up in anything."

"Well, it seems I'm already caught up in it, regardless. So, why change your mind?" Neal started to speak, but she cut him off. "Because it seems suspicious to me. You were so sure. And then our blood samples disappeared, and you were no longer interested."

"Do you think I did something to the blood samples?"

"I'm not sure. But I don't think you're being honest with me."

Neal shook his head. "You sound like my wife." Jamie's eyebrows shot up, and Neal came close to swearing. That was probably the wrong thing to say. "What I mean is, it's hard for me to open up about myself, sometimes. Like I said, my childhood was –"

"Everybody has childhood trauma of some sort, Neal. That's why therapists make so much an hour. But it doesn't excuse heinous behavior as an adult."

"So, you think that I –"

"I have no reason to trust you," she said. "I met you very recently and only started spending time with you after you bullied me into it. It wasn't even that much time, either. I believe in rules, Neal, justice, and I'm a woman. I can hardly condone someone going around battering women. I would never be okay with that. Men who hurt women are despicable."

Neal winced, remembering what Emma had told him earlier that morning about his mother. If Jamie was who he thought she was, then her father wasn't the best of people. He'd hurt people, might have hurt women. Still, he might have loved Neal's mother, for whatever that was worth. "I would never – "

"What happened to your mother, Neal? She left you, yes? Maybe you blame her. Maybe you want revenge."

"I'm not on some revenge quest against a woman who didn't care enough to stay, okay? Look, it sucked that she left, but I had my dad, and then I had Emma, and then I had Henry. I love my family, and I wouldn't jeopardize what I have, risk everything I've worked to build, to revenge myself on someone I haven't thought about in years."

"Until you met me," Jamie said. "Maybe you hadn't thought about her in years before, but you did when you met me. You can't deny that, because you admitted as much to me"

Neal breathed out through his teeth. "No, I won't deny it. It brought up some … complicated memories. But if I were going to get revenge on her, wouldn't I have gone after you? Tried to hurt you? Instead of coming to you and trying to forge a connection because … because family matters to me. And if you were family, I … my dad taught me what family means. It means the people who stay, the people who love you."

"But I don't love you, Neal. I don't know you. And if, as you say, you have everything with what you built, why try so hard to forge a connection with me?"

"Because maybe I want to believe that there were more than the bad memories, that my mom … that there was some good in her. And that good would be you. I … I never had a sister. I don't know what that's like. But I wanted to find out."

"And then you changed your mind," Jamie said matter-of-factly.

"And then I changed my mind. I guess … I guess I got scared of the answer. Maybe I wasn't ready to confront that part of my past after all. And I won't pretend that I've forgiven my mother for what she did. But I'm not the sort of person to punish innocent women for something that one women did to indirectly hurt me in what was another life at this point." He stood up, threw some money on the table, and left the diner.

---

The past week had been hellish for Granny Lucas. Ruby was still recuperating from her accident, and even though once she was recovered, she had agreed to come back to working at the diner, running around taking care of her housebound granddaughter and running the diner short-staffed was taking its toll. Of course, Granny was relieved that Ruby was okay, home, and safe.

All the same, the strain of the added workload was probably why she didn't see Graham until he'd nearly bowled her over, causing her to drop the tray of cups and silverware she'd just cleared.

"I'm so sorry," he said, getting on his hands and knees to help her collect it.

She waved away his apology. "I wasn't looking," she said. Graham was a sweetheart, and she knew he would never hurt anyone if he could help it.

"How is Ruby recovering?" he asked. "I was glad to hear that you two patched things up."

"Thank you, sheriff. She's doing better, but I'm still short-staffed."

"I could lend a hand, if that would help?"

Granny shook her head. "It's nothing I can't handle. I ran this diner long before Ruby was born."

"Well, perhaps put an ad out that you need an extra set of hands? I'm sure there are some kids who would like some after-school work."

Granny nodded. "Maybe. For now, I have a diner to run."

She thanked him again for his help and got back to work.

It was only later that she noticed the two mugs missing, and by then, she just assumed they had been broken, and that the sheriff had helpfully thrown them out.

---

Hook and The Huntsman had spent a long time talking. He had told her of his time with the wolves, of his misadventures with werewolves, and of all the ways humans had shown him that he was better off away from people. She, in turn had told him of her parents, her brothers, and her time in Neverland. She had told him of Pan's cruelties, and her mission to reunite families by freeing innocent children from his clutches. They talked and drank, and afterwards, they spent a great deal of time not talking. The tavern had rooms for such dalliances … and that was all it had been: a dalliance.

Hook had fallen asleep in the Huntsman's arms, which seemed to put a smile on his face. She watched his peaceful slumber now, having woken from nightmares that had long haunted her.

He was a pleasant man, much as he would resent her calling him so. He was sweet. There was a vulnerability to him. In another life, perhaps she would have stayed and built a life with him. That life, however, was not this life.

In this life, she had an enemy in Neverland, who had once murdered her husband and children because she'd dared to have such things. Oh, she could handle Pan. She had been handling Pan for centuries. But risking herself and her crew was different than risking an innocent man who dreamed of home and hearth. She could never give him what he wanted (and what she refused to admit she wanted as well).

She left a note for him, telling him she valued the night they had spent, but that it could only be the one. They were ships in the night, for lack of a better term.

She returned to the Jolly Roger that night and let Mr. Smee comfort her in his role as her surrogate father for a few brief moments before she set a course for Neverland. They had tarried long enough. It was time to return to her mission.

---

Most small towns had to send DNA samples to state crime labs, but luckily, Storybrooke wasn't most small towns. The sheriff's department had a contract with and authorized private lab right in town.

"Hello, Dr. Walsh," Graham said to the lab-tech.

"Sheriff. Good to see you. Are you here about those test results you wanted?"

"Actually, I'm here for another reason." Graham produced the two mugs he'd swiped from the diner. "These mugs were used for coffee earlier today, and they haven't been cleaned. Would there be enough DNA on them to run a test?"

"Um, what kind?"

"I want to determine if the two people who drank from them are related."

Dr. Walsh nodded. "It's possible. Give us a few days."

"Thank you, Doctor." Graham turned to leave.

"Sheriff!" Dr. Walsh called after him. "About those other test results; the ones for any fluids and fibers on that hoodie you gave us? Well, we have an answer for you."

"Oh? I didn't get a call."

"We've been swamped. Understaffed, you know how it is. But the mayor wanted this rushed, so we pushed it and … and someone was just about to reach out, I swear."

"I believe you, Doctor."

"Good. I'll just go get those for you," Dr. Walsh said, as he headed into a back room.

"Take your time," Graham said. "I don't have anywhere else to be."

---

Author's Note: A shout-out to Chris Gauthier, who played Mr. Smee on OUAT and passed away earlier this year. RIP. Also, this chapter makes reference to "The Two Brothers," from Grimms' Fairy Tales.