Chapter Text
“Are you sure you know the task that you signed up for Ms. Swan?”
“It’s Swan-Jones now, and yes, I know what I signed up for. It was Killian and I that cleaned out this place when we thought your evil doppelganger was going to live here.” Emma told Regina smugly.
“Well this is different, we actually have to go through with everything and figure out if there is anything that we can get rid of.” The blonde rolled her eyes.
“I’m sure Henry’s jealous he is missing out on this adventure.”
“Isn’t he with your mom today, doing some school project or something?”
“Yea, I dropped him off on my way over here.”
“Well I’m sure that he’d rather be there.” Regina began leaning over a box before she straightened again, “Wait which class is it for?”
“American History, I think.” she called back as she started looking through another box.
“Well maybe he would rather be here. I honestly can’t even remember all the weird magic objects I have down here.”
“We better get started, my dad's letting us borrow his truck for however long we need it to get this junk moved. That doesn’t mean I want to be spending more than two days in here.” It was Regina’s turn to roll her eyes.
“I won’t take that long.”
“It won’t if we get started.” And with that the two sorceresses got to work. Emma was discovering that out of everything the amount of spellbooks was staggering compared to everything else in the vault. It was strange to her to realize that she actually could understand some of them. She would never be a traditional student of magic but she was coming into her own. It had taken awhile, then again five years wasn’t that long in the grand scheme of things. Though the amount of crap that they had gone through in that time probably shortened her life by a few decades. The more she thought about her story the more she was curious.
“Regina?” she asked into the quiet room.
“Yes?” The queen wasn’t looking at Emma as she stacked books into piles.
“Is there anything that you’ve done that you regret? I mean I know in Neverland you said that you didn’t regret anything then because it got you Henry but since then, is there anything that you wish had turned out differently?” She leaned back against the table she was working at and looked at her friend.
Regina didn’t turn around right away but Emma could tell she was pondering her question. “There are some things that I wish had turned out differently.”
“Robin.” It wasn’t a question.
“He didn’t deserve to die. He had two kids, men to lead, so much more to give but to protect me he, he sacrificed himself. I still have to try hard not to think about him all the time. I think of Roland and wonder how he is living without his dad. I regret separating myself from the Evil Queen, but in the end I guess it was a good thing. It helped me come to terms with my own feelings. I regret how long I was angry with Zelena. I mean I feel pretty vindicated in my reasons but still I could have had a sister earlier.” They were both quiet for a moment as Regina’s words settled. “What about you? You can’t ask me such a heart opening question and not expect to answer it as well.” she chuckled through the lump in her throat.
“I regret how long I was mad at my parents. It isn’t surprising that I was mad at them for so long but I pushed them so much in the beginning. All they wanted was to make up for lost time and I couldn’t get over the past. I wish I could say that I regretted turning Killian into a Dark One but if I hadn’t I would have lost him. Though I do regret how I reacted to it, shutting you guys out. Also the things I did, however unintentionally, that hurt you. Marian comes to mind.”
“We’re past that, Emma.”
“I know, but still. It kinda felt like my family was cursed to steal your happiness.”
“I thought that at one point, but there is something big that proves that theory wrong.”
“Henry.”
“Henry. Becoming his mom was the key to finding my happiness. Even if it wasn’t what I expected at all.” Emma laughed.
“It never is, six years ago I would never have seen my happiness as having a son and a pirate husband but hey things happen.
“No kidding.”
“And for the record Regina, Robin’s sacrifice wasn’t your fault and Roland knows that. I’m sure that kid misses you just as much as you miss him.”
“Thanks.” The pair smiled at each other.
“Sorry, for bringing up old scars, it’s just being around all this stuff made me think about what we have gone through.”
“Yea, we’ve literally been to Hell and back. Well the Underworld. You know what I mean.”
“Yea, I do. Anyway, now that we have enjoyed that lovely break, back to books.”
“Ok, when we finish the books, let’s start on the potion ingredients. We also should probably take some of these books up to David’s truck too.”
“Alright, when we finish these.” Emma gestured to the books scattered around her, Regina nodded and they went back to work. It was about an hour later that they got to the potion ingredients.
“You know, I don’t think it matters how many times we clean this place out. I am still going to find something weird and unsettling.” Regina rolled her eyes as she leaned over to search through another box.
“What was it this time?”
“A box of spider legs. Why just the legs?”
“Oh, come on. You should know by now the number of weirdly specific things that are needed for potions.” It was the blonde's turn to roll her eyes.
“Whatever you say.” Emma could hear Regina scoff amusedly as she grabbed another box to take up to her dad’s truck. As Emma lifted another box off the pile, she heard the clattering of something hitting the floor. Carefully placing the box to the side, she crouched down to see what it could have been. Under one of Regina’s small tables was a familiar silver and emerald pendant.
Emma picked it up, placing it in the center of her palm to investigate it. “Regina?” She called out unsure if the Queen was still in the vault or not.
Before she could hear a response, the jeweled pendant in her hand shot out a pulse of magic, and suddenly everything around her went dark.
***
When Emma opened her eyes, she was somewhere very different, yet still familiar. She was leaning on a kitchen counter, a cupcake with a blue star birthday candle sat in front of her. The candle still had smoke coming off it as if it had just been blown out. Emma recognized where she was just as there was a ringing of her doorbell.
“What the hell?” She whispered under her breath. Emma looked down, she was wearing a tight hot pink dress she hadn’t seen in years, not since she had left Boston the first time. It was unsettling, something was very wrong. There was another ring that had her looking up to see a yellow door covered in elegant cursive. “This can’t be happening.” Slowly as if she was walking in a dream, Emma walked towards the door. Took a deep breath before she got the courage to pull it open.
There, on the other side, just like she remembered, was a young boy. Emma knew she had frozen, but this whole situation was really off putting. It was like the worst sense of Deja vu ever. She knew this memory, it felt like only yesterday sometimes, the moment Henry came into her life and upended it in the most chaotic way possible. But here in this moment she could only stare at the ten year old that only this morning she had seen as a sixteen year old.
“Are you Emma Swan?”
“Henry?” She couldn’t stop herself from whispering. It was almost amusing how taken aback Henry looked.
“What?” He asked, like he hadn’t heard her correctly. It was then that Emma remembered what had happened last time she was in the past. Though in this moment she wasn’t exactly sure what was happening now, she figured it was better to play along like she had the first time. If she had been correct about the pendant that she had picked up off the ground in Regina’s vault, then it was possible that she had been sent back in time.
“Yeah. Who are you?” She asked, as if the whole exchange hadn’t happened. Henry was still giving her an odd look, but he seemed to be too excited and nervous to dwell on it and plowed on.
“My name’s Henry. I’m your son.” And just like before Henry pushed past her.
“Whoa! Hey, kid? Kid? Kid?” The feeling of Deja vu was getting worse as she called out to him as he made his way farther into her apartment. Emma closed the door behind him and followed. “I don’t have a son.” She called out. Though she knew it sounded weak even to her own ears, because she did have a son, and it was the boy standing in front of her. “Where are your parents?” she questioned, her mind going straight to Regnia.
Henry completely ignored her question, “Ten years ago did you give up a baby for adoption?” Emma remembered the wave of utter confusion, fear, and the hint of curiosity that had hit her the first time he had said that to her. Now it just made her insides sting a little with regret. “That was me.” He finished when she still hadn’t said a word.
“Give me a minute.” And with that she turned and walked into the bathroom. This time it was so much different from the first time. Whatever she had accidentally done when she had picked up Zelena’s pendant was really screwing with her. She was definitely in the past. This was different from last time though. Last time she was more of an observer watching the past, this time she was literally back as the woman she had been in this moment. Even though she didn’t know what was going on, she knew that continuing this charade was better than maybe screwing up her future. Oh, how badly she wanted her family right now. They would know how to help her figure this out.
“Hey, you have any juice? Never mind. Found some.” Just like that, the moment of overwhelming confusion and nerves ended. Emma couldn’t help the smile that came to her face. That was her kid alright, and even if it wasn’t the Henry that she had left at her parents' house this morning, it was still her son.
She took a deep breath before making her way back into the kitchen, where Henry was setting down the juice that he had pilfered from her fridge. “You know, we should probably get going.”
“Going where?” Play along, she reminded herself.
“I want you to come home with me.” Emma remembered the first time that she had threatened to call the cops on him, but right now Emma was in more of a hurry to get home.
“Where’s home?”
“Storybrooke, Maine.”
“Storybrooke? Seriously?” Even after all this time living there she still found it amusing, that is what the big bad dark curse had ended up calling it. It wasn’t subtle.
“Mm-hmm.” Emma couldn’t help but smile, he was so cute at this age.
“All righty then. Let’s get you back to Storybrooke.”
***
It didn’t take long for Emma to change, she was desperate to be back where her family was. It was a strange feeling putting back on her classic red leather jacket. Ever since the Underworld she had been trying to wear it less. Killian had given her the courage not to put her armor back on. It wasn’t until they were in the car driving that she remembered what kind of world she was about to enter. It was that uncertainty whether she really knew what she was doing that had her pulling off at the next exit when Henry mentioned being hungry. Another change in the timeline, but it was minor. She hoped.
When they were back in the car, she asked the question she knew she needed to. “What’s that?” The very familiar brown leather book was sitting on Henry’s lap.
“I’m not sure you’re ready.”
“You’d be surprised.” She muttered under her breath before saying louder for him to hear her. “Ready for some fairytales?” As she said it, she realized he had been right the first time. She had not been ready for some fairytales.
“They’re not fairytales. They’re true. Every story in this book actually happened.”
“Of course they did.” Emma did her best not to smile.
“I promise it’s true! I’m not lying.”
“Just because you believe something doesn’t make it true.”
“That’s exactly what makes it true. You should know more than anyone.”
“Why is that?” She feigned curiosity, though she was sure she remembered what he would say next.
“Because you’re in this book.” Emma couldn’t remember exactly what she had told him last time, but she didn’t have the energy to continue her charade, so she just stared at the road, ironically feeling more alone than she had in a long time.
***
It was a strange feeling passing the ‘Welcome to Storybrooke’ sign. What felt even stranger is not seeing the obvious signs of something hitting it. Emma really didn’t know what to say, plus she didn’t want to give any sort of sign that she was more comfortable with all of this than she should be. So, she just stayed silent as the thunder rolled over them. Driving down main street was odd, it was too quiet even for how late it was. Everything felt silent, like time was frozen. If only she had known the first time how very true that was.
“Ok, kid how ‘bout an address?”
“44, not telling the street.” Even though Emma knew exactly where she was going, just like last time she slammed on the brakes, causing the bug to screech on the wet pavement. She remembered last time how annoyed she had been as she got out of the car and slammed the door behind her, this time Emma couldn’t find it in herself to be annoyed at Henry. Still, she gave him a look as he climbed out of the car as well.
“Look kid, it’s been a long night. It’s almost… 8:15?” The clock was once again stuck at 8:15, what was happening to her. If this was a dream, why was she so tired?
“That clock hasn’t moved my whole life. Time is frozen here.”
“Time’s frozen?”
“The Evil Queen did it with her curse. She sent everyone from the Enchanted Forest here.”
“Hang on. An Evil Queen sent a bunch of fairytale characters here?”
“Yeah, and now they’re trapped.”
“Frozen in time? Stuck in Storybrooke, Maine?” Emma knew the first time she had done this with Henry she had sounded dismissive and though she knew that that hadn’t deterred Henry, she still felt too guilty to do the same now. So, she stuck to curious.
“It’s true!” He insisted.
“Ok, so why doesn’t everyone just leave?”
“They can’t. If they try, bad things happen.” Just as Emma was about to ask another question, there was a voice from in front of them. Oh yes, Archie. She thought, as the humanified cricket walked up to them.
“Henry, what are you doing here? Is everything alright?”
“I’m fine, Archie.”
“Who’s this?”
“Someone trying to give him a ride home.”
“She’s my mom, Archie.” Henry cut her off.
Archie looked taken aback, “Oh, I see.”
“You know where he lives?”
“Yeah, sure. Just right up on Mifflin Street. The mayor’s house is the biggest one on the block.”
“So, you’re the mayor’s kid?” Emma asked, raising her eyebrow at her son amusedly.
“Maybe.” Henry looked down embarrassed. Emma thought he looked adorable, it had been a long time since her Henry had looked so guilty for being caught.
“Where were you today, Henry? Cause you missed our session.”
“Oh, I forgot to tell you. I went on a field trip.” Emma couldn’t stop her eyes from rolling good naturedly at him. He really was her son.
Archie then crouched down to be at Henry’s level. “Henry, what do I tell you about lying? Giving into one’s dark side never accomplishes anything.” She had to put her hand over her mouth to stop the laugh that bubbled up at that comment.
“Okay, I really should be getting him home.”
“Yeah, sure. Well, listen, have a good night and you be good Henry.”
“Well, he doesn’t seem cursed.” Emma said when Archie was far enough away.
“None of them remember who they are. They don’t know they are cursed.”
“Ok, who is he supposed to be?”
“Jiminy Cricket.”
“Right, the lying thing. I thought your nose grew a little bit.” She teased as they got back into the car.
“I’m not Pinocchio.”
“Of course not.” Emma chuckled, amused, as she headed to Regina’s house.
***
It wasn’t until they were pulling up in front of the large mansion that Emma realized something. The first time around, her and Regina had not been friends, quite the opposite in fact. If she was forced to relive this entire part of her life, she would be forced to suffer under Regina’s tyranny all over again. There was a possibility that it could be different. She had so much more information than she had had the first time. But it had taken a lot of time to not only reform the Evil Queen but make Regina a friend.
As Emma exited the car, she took a stabilizing breath, this was not going to be fun. She wrapped an arm around Henry’s shoulders and guided him along the paved path to the house. “Please don’t take me back there.” Henry’s almost pitiful voice begged.
“I have to. Your mother is probably worried sick about you.” If he was thrown off by her not saying parents, plural he didn’t sound like it.
“She’s evil.” He whined.
“Evil? That’s a bit extreme, isn’t it.” Though he wasn’t that far off at this point.
“She is.” He insisted. “She doesn’t love me. She only pretends to.” It was a clear sign of Emma’s growth that Henry saying that caused her heart to sting for Regina.
“Henry,” she crouched so that she could be at his eye level. “That’s not true.” Before he could respond, the door to the house opened and out ran an overwhelmed Regina, followed by a very much alive Graham.
“Henry!” She raced to Henry and pulled him into her arms. “Oh, are you okay? Where have you been?” she asked, pulling away, leaving her hands on his shoulders. “What happened?”
“I found my real mom.” He exclaimed before running into the house.
Emma watched Regina’s reaction. She couldn’t tell if she knew her friend too well or if it was possible for Regina’s eyes to reflect more pain that she was obviously feeling at her son’s rejection than she had the first time. Emma guessed she was just wishful thinking.
The Queen stood up slowly and stared at Emma. “You’re Henry’s birth mother?”
“Hi.” Just like before, she had no idea what else to say.
“I’ll just go check on the lad, make sure he’s all right.” Graham volunteered, leaving the two women outside just staring at each other.
“How would you like a glass of the best apple cider you’ve ever tasted?” Once again Emma saw something in Regina’s dark eyes that she could swear wasn’t there the first time. The callous smile that she had given her all those years ago was missing. The smile on her face now still looked forced, but there was something else there.
“Got anything stronger?” With everything she was feeling right now, Emma needed it. She followed Regina into the house and waited as she grabbed two glasses from the kitchen. As Regina walked over to the table to prepare their drinks, she spoke again.
“I promise my cider is worth the praise. It’s not alcoholic I’m afraid but we don’t need somebody crashing into anything on their way out of town.” Emma’s eyes snapped to meet the Queen’s.
“Madam Mayor, you can relax. Other than being a tired little boy, Henry’s fine.” Graham said, walking down the stairs towards them.
“Thank you, Sheriff.” When the door was fully closed behind Graham, Regina walked towards the sitting room.
“I’m sorry, he dragged you out of your life.”
“Kid’s having a rough time. It happens.” Carefully Regina closed the door behind her.
“You have to understand, ever since I became mayor, balancing things has been tricky. You have a job?”
“Uh, I keep busy. Yeah.”
“Imagine having another one on top of it. That’s being a single mom.” Setting down her glass she sat down across from Emma. “So, I push for order. Am I strict? I suppose, but I do it for his own good. I want Henry to excel in life. I don’t think that makes me like an evil queen.”
She was instantly glad that she had put down her drink because Emma was sure she would have spit it out at that statement. Regina hadn’t said that last time. She had to know. So, throwing caution to the winds, she said, “That doesn’t make you evil. It’s not like threatening a whole town with death if you don’t get your revenge on a little girl.” She watched Regina’s eyes carefully. The Regina from back then would have glared at her and tried to get her to explain, but the Regina in front of her, her eyes widened. “Regina?” Emma asked hesitantly.
“Ms. Swan? What does the word ‘savior’ mean to you?”
“Well, it is my official title, well since today I guess.” And just like that the ice was broken. Regina leaned forward and hugged Emma tightly.
“Emma, thank god. I thought I was in this alone.”
“Nope, I got swept up too. Though I think it might have been my fault.”
“What do you mean?” Regina asked, scooting back in her chair.
“Zelena’s pendant. It fell when I was picking up one of the boxes in the vault and when I grabbed it, it let out a strong pulse of magic and I was here. I didn’t realize that you were close enough to be hit too.”
“I heard you call my name, so I was coming down to see what had happened. You sounded worried. Now I’m thinking you didn’t sound worried enough.”
Emma sighed, slumping back in her seat, the anxiety that she had felt coming up to Regina’s house was slowly being replaced with a form of relief. “So, what do we do? Can you reverse this?”
“Well in case you didn’t notice we are stuck in a time without magic. That is if that’s what happened.” The Queen stood and began to walk around the room.
“What do you mean?” Emma knew not to take the frustrated tone in her friend’s voice personally.
“Did we go back in time or are we somehow stuck in our own memories? Or something like that.”
“Sorry, to break it to you Regina, I’m not as familiar with magic as your sister. I have no idea what happened. I picked up the pendant and suddenly I was back in my apartment in Boston.” Regina huffed in frustration and squeezed the back of the couch. “I mean it is different from the last time I time travelled with Zelena’s spell, but some things feel really similarly to that experience. Should we go to Gold? That’s what Killian and I did the last time.”
“If it was our Gold then it would be worth a shot but unfortunately, I have a feeling this Gold isn’t even awake yet.”
“Damn, you’re right. It was when I ran into him at Granny’s that night, tonight? He had to hear my name to be woken.”
“I don’t know how much he would be able to help right now anyway, he doesn’t have magic here either.”
For a moment both women just looked at each other. It was Emma that broke the silence. “So, Madam Mayor what are we going to do?” She couldn’t help the teasing note in her voice, regardless of their not so great circumstances. They had gone through more extreme things in the past and survived it. She tried not to remind herself that she had had her family rallying behind her through those moments. Though she did remind herself to be grateful that Regina was here with her. She wasn’t completely alone here.
The ‘Evil” Queen rolled her eyes. “Ok, I think until we figure out what is going on, the best thing to do would be to keep playing along. If this really does affect the future, then it would be best if things stayed as close to how they went the first time. Not including the things between me and you. It would be pointless to keep up the charade with each other. And in between doing that we try to figure out what happened and maybe how we can get home.”
Emma nodded and couldn’t help but smile. “Good plan. Though if we are going to continue with our story as close to what happened the first time as possible, I probably should head out. I wasn’t here this long the first time, and Henry is too curious for his own good. If he doesn’t see me leaving her soon, he is going to come down to check why.”
“Good point.” Emma stood from the couch and headed towards the door. “Wait, where are you going to stay tonight? You need to be here in the morning.”
“True, and I can’t go to Granny’s, it’s too early. I also don’t really plan on spending the night in a jail cell again. The headache of crashing my car is also something I’d like to go without. Plus, after everything else that has happened today I think seeing Graham again would be a bit much.” It wasn’t like she still had feelings for him, she was married to Killian for gods sack, but it was still a jarring experience.
“My vault.”
“What?” Emma had gotten a little distracted thinking about Graham and Killian. Something that they would have to talk about but right now she needed to get out of this house.
“My vault. You can spend the night there. It’s modestly comfortable and it won’t be for long.”
“Really?”
“Of course, why not?” She couldn’t help but hug the older woman.
“Thank you, Regina.”
“Yeah, yeah. Now go, Henry’s probably this close to coming down to wait on the other side of the door.” They exited the parlor together, and Emma was guided out to the front porch.
“I’ll see you tomorrow.” Regina just nodded and shut the door. Too many possible ears. As Emma walked back to her car, she looked up to see Henry standing in the window. Once he had seen that she saw him, he left and the lights of his bedroom went out.
***
It was strange being in Regina’s vault, especially since it was obviously the old version. The one without magic flowing through it. Though the small room in the back was comfortable enough, it meant that she wasn’t sleeping in her car out in the rain. She was just getting up when she heard Regina come in. She held out a coffee cup. Emma smiled a thank you.
“Henry ran away again. Just like last time.” Emma couldn’t tell if Regina was amused or annoyed.
“That’s a good thing, right? Time is still moving as it should.”
“Yes, though I can’t believe I didn’t even know that he had left.”
“Well, that son of ours is crafty. I mean he stole a credit card from his teacher and tracked me down without anyone noticing.”
“Yeah, well that kinda feels like an oversight on my part, and a little bit your mom’s.”
“To be fair Mary Margret isn’t exactly that observant. I mean she’s no Snow White.”
“That was kind of the point.” Regina pointed out.
“I guess that’s true.”
“So, you ready to meet your mother, Miss Swan?” she asked teasingly.
“As ready as I’ll ever be. Though I was honestly hoping I would never have to call her Mary Margret again.”
“Well apparently that’s not what time wants.”
“Apparently.” Emma sighed. “Let’s get going.” While they were walking out to the bug Regina asked,
“He’s at his castle, huh.”
“Yep. It’s amazing what you can figure out when you actually know your kid.” Regina glared at her.
“Well, that pile of termites needs to be torn down, he could have gotten hurt.”
“He didn’t, so let’s hope that part stays the same.”
“You and your mother must get paid every time you say that word.” She grumbled, Emma smirked, and they got into the bug.
***
Emma wished that this weirdness of being in the past would just stop but walking with Regina into her mom’s classroom was a whole other kind of Deja vu. They made their way through the throng of children heading out to recess, and suddenly they were face to face with Mary Margret Blanchard.
“Ms. Mills, what are you doing here?”
“Where is my son?” Emma had to hand it to Regina, she could flip that Evil Queen switch without missing a beat.
“Henry? I assumed he was home sick with you.”
“Do you think I’d be here if he was?” Her eyes landed on Emma before Regina spoke again. “Did you give him your credit card so he could find her?”
“I’m sorry, who are you?”
It wasn’t the first time that her mom had looked at her with no recognition of who she was, but it still left an aching pit in her stomach. “I’m his…”
“The woman who gave him up for adoption.” As she said it, Regina glanced back at her. Emma’s eyebrow rose, in a ‘really’ look. Snow, however, didn’t see it, she was busy pulling out her wallet.
“You don’t know anything about this do you?”
“No, unfortunately not.” She showed them her open wallet. “Clever boy.” I should have never given him that book.”
“What is this book that I keep hearing about?” Having been there the first time, Emma knew that Regina wasn’t being as hard on Snow as she had been the first time. It probably made a huge difference that she actually knew where her son was this time around.
“Just some old stories I gave him. As you well know, Henry is a special boy. So smart. So creative. And, as you might be aware, lonely.” Snow’s eyes were almost cold as she spoke. “He needed it.” And just like that her eyes were soft again. Snow White was in there somewhere.
“This is a waste of time.” Regina snapped and began to walk out of the door. As she turned to Emma, she asked with her eyes if she still wanted her to knock the books. With a careful nod, Mayor Mills walked purposefully towards the books until they were on the floor. “Have a safe trip back to Boston.”
They had discussed in the car what their next moves would be. For now, they wanted to keep things as close as possible, just in case. They would be meeting up later, for now Emma needed to meet her mother and find her son. With Regina gone, she walked over to help her mom pick up the books. “Sorry to bother you.” She told her mom. She could practically hear her mom from her time say, You are never a bother Emma.
“No, it’s fine.” Emma watched carefully as her mom finally made full eye contact with her. Snow stumbled a little, and this time Emma felt it too. There was a warm feeling of something snapping into place. Maybe she was making it up, or maybe it was her hidden magic making an appearance. It knew who was standing in front of her. “It’s okay, I fear this is partially my fault.”
“How’s a book supposed to help?”
“What do you think stories are for? These stories are classics, there’s a reason we all know them. They’re a way for us to deal with our world. A world that doesn’t always make sense.” Together, they walked out of the classroom. “Henry hasn’t had the easiest life.”
“Yeah, she’s kind of a hard ass.” She had to focus not to let her amused smile find its way onto her face. When was the last time she had thought that and really meant it?
“No, it’s more than her.” Emma remembered where this conversation was going. “He is like any adopted child. He wrestles with that most basic question then all inevitably face. Why would anyone give me away?” Ironic much, mom, she couldn’t help but think. That comment didn’t bother her anymore, she knew the whole story. She knew that her parents loved her more than anything. Snow on the other hand did not know that, and in horror she spun around to face Emma. “I am so sorry. I am so sorry, I didn’t mean in any way to judge you.”
“It’s okay.”
“Look, I gave the book to him because I wanted Henry to have the most important thing anyone can have, hope.” Maybe Regina wasn’t that far off with the use of that word. “Believing in even the possibility of a happy ending is a very powerful thing.” Even as Mary Margret, Snow White was still there.
“You know where he is, don't you?” Emma couldn’t keep the smile off her face.
“You might want to check his castle.”
***
Emma had listened as her mom gave her the instructions to get to the “castle”, she figured it would be pretty suspicious if she already knew exactly where she was going. She then drove there. Though it had been a long time since she had come directly to this spot, she still found it with ease. She had forgotten, however, how beautiful the ocean view was from here. Henry was so much like her, to clear his mind he watched the sea. She hadn’t realized that she did it until she had started dating Killian and it suddenly gave her more than a place to clear her mind but also a reminder of the man who loved her. Her heart ached a bit at not knowing when she would see her Killian again but for now, she had a little boy to comfort.
She mindfully climbed into the “castle,” having grabbed the storybook from her passenger seat. She kept Regina’s termite comment in mind as she came to sit next to Henry. “You left this in my car.” She said, handing it back to him. When he didn’t say anything, she focused on what he was paying attention to. “It still hasn’t moved, huh?”
“I was hoping that when I brought you back things would change here. That the final battle would begin.”
“I’m not fighting any battles, kid.” Yet anyway.
“Yes, you are. You’re here because it is your destiny. You’re going to bring back the happy endings.”
“Happy endings? More book crap.” Emma sighed dramatically.
“I know you like me, I can tell. You’re just trying to push me away because I make you feel guilty. It’s okay. I know why you gave me away. You wanted to give me my best chance.”
Emma paused for a moment trying to find the right words, the first time Henry had told her that he had been right. Seeing him burned her with guilt, but now not so much. She had forgiven her parents, and she had forgiven herself. She was back in Henry’s life, and she wouldn’t want it any other way. If she hadn’t given him away, she may never have gotten her family back. But it wasn't like she could explain that to him so, she just went off of what had happened in the past. “How do you know that?”
“It’s the same reason that Snow White gave you away.”
“Listen to me kid, I am a real person, and I am not a savior.” She hated lying to him, but she could bend the truth. “You were right about one thing though. I wanted you to have your best chance and right now it’s not with me.” Emma could feel the tears in her eyes, they were different from the tears from before. Those tears had been regretful, angry, pained tears. These were tears of sadness that once again she was a stranger in her son’s life. She didn’t know if it was better or worse than being that way with her mother. “Come on, let’s go.”
“Please, don’t take me back there.” he begged as they climbed off the rickety wooden structure. “Just stay with me for one week. That’s all I ask. One week and you’ll see I’m not crazy.”
“I have to get you back to your mom.”
“You don’t know what it’s like with her! My life sucks.”
“Oh, you want to know what sucks? Being abandoned on the side of a freeway. My parents couldn’t even drop me off at a hospital. I ended up in the foster system. I had a family until I was three, but then they had their own kid, so they sent me back.” She had to take a stabilizing breath. Apparently forgiving her parents hadn’t completely taken the pain away of what she went through growing up. Though she felt like the tears this time around were longing for the life that she knew her parents had wanted for her.
“Look,” she leaned down to look him in the eyes. She hated the tears that were shining on his face, but she pressed on. “Your mom is trying her best. I know it’s hard and I know sometimes you think that she doesn’t love you. But she does and she wants you.” Emma knew that Regina had a ways to go in the parenting department in this time but she also knew that didn’t stop her from loving Henry with all of her heart.
“Your parents didn’t leave you on the side of the freeway. That’s just where you came through.”
“What?”
“The wardrobe, when you went through the wardrobe you appeared in the street.” Try the forest, where Pinocchio was waiting. She thought. “Your parents were trying to save you from the curse.”
“Of course, they were. Come on Henry.” This time she was the one who grabbed his hand first, if only to see the little smile cross his face, as they walked to the bug.
***
They drove in silence back to Regina’s. Emma had no idea what to say. She was just grateful that whatever power had sent her back here had made her instinctual phrases the ones that she had said the first time. Together they walked up to the door and when they got close it swung open. Just like the night before Henry ran straight past Regina into the house. The women waited in silence until they were sure that Henry was headed upstairs. Then Regina walked closer to Emma.
“Thank you.” She said, smiling. “He’s ok?”
“He will be. Me though, I feel a little bit like I’ve been carved open.”
“Difficult conversation?”
“I didn’t remember how difficult, but it was different this time. I wasn’t upset about what he was saying. I was more upset that he was saying it because he doesn’t know who I am.”
“Yea, that’s not the best feeling, is it?” Regina asked sympathetically.
“I can’t imagine how you dealt with that as long as you did. I’m sorry.”
“Yea, well it wasn’t that bad. I had Robin and it was around that time that my relationship with your parents was changing from annoyance to endearment. I mean of course it didn’t feel like that at the time but looking back…”
“Yea. I guess I should be lucky, we get to endure that together.”
Regina smiled, “Indeed we are.” Emma smiled back, before her smile fell again.
“I hate lying to him.”
“Yea, that part’s not much fun either. It burns me inside even thinking about making him believe that he is crazy.”
“But, to preserve the timeline we know,”
She sighed, “I know.”
“I did notice this morning.”
“Notice what?”
“You didn’t point out to my mom that he ‘needs a dose of reality’.”
“I couldn’t do it. We've already talked about this things that I regret but this is one I didn't say. One that stings the more than others is having to convince my brave, smart, adventurous little boy that everything he believes is fake.”
“It probably doesn’t sit right with you that you have to do it all over again, huh?”
“Tell me about it.”
“I guess I still have it easier though. I get to believe him and let him believe I am the Savior. To him you are still the,”
“Evil Queen.” She breathed out heavily. “Yeah, I’ve had all day to think about that.”
“I’m sorry Regina.”
She sighed, “It’ll be okay, Emma. I have a wonderful future I am preserving. If playing this part again is how I can get back there, I’m all in.”
“You’re right, and we can do it together.”
After a quick smile, Regina frowned again. “You should get going. You don’t want to miss your run in with Gold at Granny’s. And I have a storybook to maliciously take away.” Emma chuckled at Regina's jest at herself.
“Right. I’ll see you later.” And with that she walked away towards her bug.
***
Carefully Emma made her way through the heavy foliage that surrounded Granny’s. It was a bit unsettling to her to see how dusty and broken down it looked. Sure, it looked old in her time, but it was more of a cozy charm. While she was opening the door, she heard shouting.
“You’re out all night, and now you’re going out again.” Granny seethed.
“I should have moved to Boston.” Red argued back.
“I’m sorry that my heart attack interfered with your plans to sleep your way down the eastern seaboard.” They hadn’t even noticed her come in, she couldn’t help but smirk. She wondered if Red or Granny remembered this little argument. Probably not, they fought a lot back then.
“Excuse me.” The shocked look on Granny’s face was priceless. “I’d like a room.”
“Really?” When Emma didn’t jump in to say ‘just kidding’, Granny exclaimed excitedly, hurrying over to the front desk. “Would you like a forest view or a square view? Normally there’s an upgrade fee for the square, but as rent is due, I’ll waive it.
“Square is fine.” It was odd seeing Red with such dark makeup. When Granny slammed the booking book down on the desk, dust flew up.
“Now, what’s the name?”
“Swan, Emma Swan.”
“Emma.” Though she had been expecting it, she still spun around startled by the Dark One’s sudden appearance. But she kept her face neutral. He couldn’t know what was really going on. At least not yet. “What a lovely name.”
“Thanks.” Even after years of seeing it, his smile was still unsettling. Her eyes followed Granny’s hand as she passed him a rubber banded bundle of money.
“It’s all here.”
“Yes, of course it is dear. Thank you.” His eyes then found Emma’s. “You enjoy your stay. Emma.” Only because she had known Rumpelstiltskin for years did she practically see the moment his memories flooded back to him. Her name as the key.
When he was gone, she turned back to Granny. “Who’s that?”
“Mr. Gold.” Red responded, pulling the curtain aside to watch the man hobble away. “He owns this place.”
“The inn?”
“No, the town.” After a moment to shake herself back to the present Granny continued, “So, how long will you be with us?”
“A week.”
“Great,” reaching behind her Granny pulled a room key from its cubby. The Swan tag on it flashed in the Inn’s gaunt lights. “Welcome to Storybrooke.” As soon as her fingers were wrapped around the key, she could practically hear the hand on the clock tower beginning to tick away for the first time in 28 years.