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CHAPTER TWO
THE THING YOU LOVE MOST
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WHEN HELEN WOKE UP, there was a chiming in the distance. She recognized it immediately as that of the clock tower and couldn't help the smile on her face as she lay in bed, knowing it was still working. As she pushed herself out of bed, she grabbed her notebook from her nightstand and crossed to her window. She pushed it open wide, letting the warm morning air into the room before swinging her legs over the sill and sitting down. Helen jotted down the dream she'd had in quick points so she had all the details she needed before going back in detail.

She sighed as she flipped the page back and looked at her notes from the day before. It was the same people in her dreams yet again. Same people who had been in her dreams for as long as she could remember. Helen shook herself from her thoughts, closing her notebook and getting up from the window.

After dressing and throwing everything she'd need in her bag, she left her room and made her way to the kitchen. From across the island, she could see her uncle passed out on the couch, a beer bottle in one hand and several more on the coffee table in front of him. She looked away as her heart clenched and started preparing her breakfast, making sure to prepare extra to leave for her uncle, hoping he would actually eat it instead of just having more beer.

He didn't stir as she cooked her scrambled eggs, and he didn't even move as she took away the bottles and left the extra eggs in their place. Helen gathered her bag and her skateboard from next to the door then left the apartment, not looking back at her uncle as she closed the door. Outside the air was warm and the sun was bright. The brunette set her skateboard down and started heading in the direction of Granny's.

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THERE WAS NOTHING SOPHIE SWANN loved more than the warm sun beating down on her with the cool ocean breeze sending her hair fluttering behind her. At the helm of the Black Ace, Sophie felt like there was nothing she couldn't do, no place she couldn't reach and nothing that could stop her from having a good time. To add to her joy was her older brother Henry, standing next to her. Oh, the adventures she would have with her brother by her side.

"Do you know where you're going, Soph?" Henry asked, looking at his compass.

"Should I?" she questioned.

"Yes," he insisted. "You could be sailing right into dangerous waters."

"I said I didn't know where I was going not that I don't know where I am," she said. "Besides, where's your sense of adventure? How can we explore mysterious new lands and magical new places if we always stick to what we know?"

"I traded my sense of adventure for my common sense since I was going to be travelling with you," Henry said.

"Ouch," she said, clutching a hand over her heart. "You know I have common sense."

"Yes, you just don't listen to it."

"Hey," she said, laughing now. "I do so! I would not be a very good captain if I didn't listen to common sense at all. I would just be a very boring one if I listened to it all the time."

"That's exactly my point."

Sophie rolled her eyes and bumped her brother's shoulder as they both laughed. It was good to be sailing with him. It always was. She turned her eyes down to her crew, watching them as they milled about doing their jobs. A smile pulled at her lips. This really was the perfect crew. The only thing she would change is the addition of her parents, they were always fun to sail with. But it was still nice to have some time away from them.

"Land ho!"

She looked up at the crow's nest. "Do you recognize it?"

"No, Captain!"

"Do we stay on course?" Annika Jensen, the First Mate, asked.

"Aye," she said. "Let's get our next adventure started."

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HELEN SKIDDED TO A STOP once she reached Granny's. Just as she picked up her skateboard, a figure poked her arm a few times and she startled, looking over to see who it was. Luckily, it was only Henry, all dressed up in his school uniform and a large smile on his face. Helen pulled out her headphones and smiled back at him.

"Scared me, kiddo," she said.

"Sorry," he said.

"What're you doing here? Shouldn't you be headed for the school bus?" she asked.

"I wanna talk to Emma," he explained. "I saw her inside."

"Ah, of course. Well, come on then."

Together, Henry and Helen went inside the bed and breakfast, sitting down at a booth. The waitress, a girl named Ruby who was around the same age as Helen came up to get their order. Ruby and Helen had gone to school together, but even then Helen had been a loner and though she'd attempted to make friends, it had never stuck. Ruby was nice but Helen wasn't the fondest of people. Henry being one of the only exceptions because he reminded her of someone, she could just never figure out who.

"What can I get you?" Ruby asked.

"Coffee to go, please," Helen requested.

"Hot chocolate with cinnamon for Emma," Henry said.

Ruby gave him a slightly confused look but wrote it down nonetheless. She went back to the kitchen and in only a moment was back with Helen's coffee. They paid then, Henry passing over a mess of crumpled bills and loose coins to pay for the hot chocolate. Ruby took the payment hesitantly but smiled when Helen gave her a ten and told her to keep the change as a tip for helping out Henry.

Helen watched with amusement as Ruby delivered the hot chocolate to Emma. The blonde then got up and walked over to Sheriff Graham, who was seated in the booth one over from Henry and Helen, clearly suspecting he was the one who had ordered the hot chocolate for her.

"Ah, so you decided to stay," Graham said.

"Observant- important for a cop," Emma said.

"It's good news for our tourist business. It's bad for our local signage," Graham said and Helen had to hide her laugh. It was all over the newspapers how Emma had crashed into the town sign. Emma was clearly not amused. "It's... it's a joke. Because you ran over our sign...?"

"Look, the cocoa was a nice gesture, and I am impressed you guessed that I like cinnamon on my chocolate, 'cause most people don't, but I am not here to flirt," Emma told him, setting down the mug. "So thank you, but no thank you."

"I didn't send it," Graham said.

"I did," Henry said, turning around to look at them. "I like cinnamon, too."

Henry got up and Helen followed suit, feeling the need to stay close in case the situation with Emma turned bad. She had decided to stay, that was a good first step, but she hadn't wanted to be in Henry's life initially and watching her leave had broken his heart. She wanted to be sure it wouldn't happen again.

"Don't you have school?" Emma asked.

"Duh, I'm ten," Henry said. "Walk me."

"Isn't that what she's doing?" Emma asked, gesturing to Helen.

"No, I'm not his nanny. Just because I'm British doesn't make me a nanny. I'm here to watch you like a hawk on his behalf," she explained.

"You should have said falcon," Graham chimed in.

"Oh!" Helen sighed. "Yes, damn it."

Emma gave Graham a confused look. "What, her last name is Falconer."

"Missed the perfect opportunity for a pun. Thank you, Sheriff, I will remember that for next time."

"Come on, or I'll be late," Henry said.

Emma sighed but conceded and the trio left Granny's and headed in the direction of Henry's school. There weren't many people on the street, but the town wasn't very big and it was still early.

"So what's the deal with you and your mom?" Emma asked Henry as they crossed the street.

"It's not about us. It's about her curse," Henry said. "We have to break it. Luckily, I have a plan. Step one: identification. I call it Operation Cobra."

"Cobra? That has nothing to do with fairy tales," Emma pointed out.

"Exactly. It's a code name to throw the queen off the trail," Henry explained.

"So everyone here is a fairy tale character, they just don't know it," Emma said.

"That's the curse. Time's been frozen until you got here," Henry explained.

Helen had to admit that Emma playing along with Henry's idea of everyone being fairy tale characters and Operation Cobra was a good step. Whatever had changed between the night she brought them back to Storybrooke and now seemed to make Emma actually want to be in Henry's life. And whether it meant she would stay for good or not, Helen couldn't say. She only hoped Henry wouldn't end up heartbroken.

"Hey!" Henry exclaimed, shaking Helen from her thoughts. "Where'd you get that?"

Henry was referring to the apple in Emma's hand. The same one she'd had in her hand since they were in Granny's. Henry, apparently, was just now noticing it and it was causing him some degree of alarm.

"Your mom," Emma answered.

"Don't eat that," Henry said, grabbing the apple and tossing it behind them.

"O-okay," Emma said as Helen snickered. "Uh, alright, what about their pasts?"

"They don't know. It's a haze to them. Ask anyone anything and you'll see."

"So for decades, people have been walking around in a haze, not ageing, with screwed-up memories, stuck in a cursed town that kept them oblivious."

"Now you got it," Helen said.

"I knew you'd get it," Henry said, excitedly. "That's why we need you. You're the only one who can stop her curse."

"Because I'm the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming."

"Yes, and right now we have the advantage," Henry said, pulling his backpack off his shoulder as they stopped. "My mom doesn't know that. I took out the end, the part with you in it."

He handed her the pages, the first one having the illustration of Prince Charming putting baby Emma into the magical tree portal thing. Helen could never remember what it was.

"See? Your mom is Snow White," Henry said.

"Oh, kid," Emma sighed.

"I know the hero never believes it at first. If they did, it wouldn't be a very good story," he said.

"He's got you there," Helen told Emma as they started walking again.

"If you need proof, take them, read them, but whatever you do, don't let her see these pages. They're dangerous. If she finds out who you are... It would be bad," Henry said.

They had finally reached the school.

"I gotta go," Henry said. "But I'll find you later and we can get started. I knew you'd believe me!"

"I never said I did!" Emma called back.

"Why else would you be here?" Henry questioned, turning and running to join his friends.

Emma sighed but Helen smiled. The boy did have a point. Mary-Margaret noticed them and walked over, a happy expression on her face.

"It's good to see his smile back," she told them.

"I didn't do anything," Emma said dismissively, causing Helen to roll her eyes.

"You stayed," Mary-Margaret pointed out. "So does the Mayor know you're still here?"

"Oh, she knows," Emma said. "What is her deal? She is not a great people person. How did she get elected?"

"She's been Mayor as long as I can remember," Mary-Margaret answered. "No one's ever been brave enough to run against her. She inspires quite a bit of... well, fear. I'm afraid I only made that worse by giving Henry that book. Now he thinks she's the Evil Queen."

"Who does he think you are?" Emma asked and Helen bit her lip, looking down, knowing what the answer would be.

"Oh, it's silly."

"I just got five minutes of silly. Lay it on me."

"Snow White."

The look of realization spreading across Emma's face was almost comical. Especially paired with how Mary-Margaret failed to realize it. The bell rang behind them as kids started running up the steps.

"Who does he think you are?" Mary-Margaret asked Emma.

"I'm not in the book," Emma answered, sounding distracted. "Can I ask you a favour? Regina mentioned the kid's in therapy. Do you know where I can find the doctor?"

"I can," Helen said. "I've got an appointment today. Probably soon."

"You've got an appointment?" Emma asked.

"Oh, don't give me that look. Some of us would rather talk through our issues instead of bottling them up."

"Okay, fine. Which way?"

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AS HER SHIP GOT CLOSER TO SHORE, Sophie gave instructions to her crew on what they were going to do. The plan was for Sophie and Henry to disembark first and they would survey the immediate area and get a read on the place before the rest of the crew could leave. Just in case they were in a dangerous place. No matter how Henry mocked her for not always being the most cautious of people, Sophie did care about her crew and their well-being. They were practically family, she wouldn't let them just walk into danger if she could help it.

Stepping onto the wooden deck, Sophie held a hand up to Annika, who was lingering near the gangway. Down on the dock, Sophie kept one hand on the rapier hanging from her hip but kept it casual so she didn't look like she was on edge or waiting for trouble. Both were true, of course, but the more at ease she appeared to those lingering around the docks and those onshore, the better. If she looked like she didn't belong, people would take notice, but if she acted as though she did, they could blend right in.

Hopefully, that is. The black sails of a pirate's ship might be a dead giveaway. Maybe her insignia would dissuade them, it wasn't the most pirate-y after all.

Sophie shook herself from her thoughts. Her brother's presence next to her was reassuring, at the very least. She didn't believe anything bad could happen while Henry was with her, he was not only protective but definitely the more sensible sibling. If they did find themselves in any sort of trouble, Henry could get them out of it without violence for sure. In the case that it did come to violence, however, Sophie would be the one to get them out of it and back to her ship.

The Swann siblings got to the largest and closest of the docks to the shore without incident. From here, they noted the large castle in the distance, visible to them from the docks but far enough away to be safe from any kind of attack from the sea. It was not as tall as most castles Sophie had seen, only a few storeys in most places, but covering more ground than most castles. There was greenery all around the castle and the brunette could only imagine the adventures she could have when wandering out into that wilderness.

Distracted as she was with her thoughts of adventure, Sophie didn't notice the group of people walking towards them until they were about to collide. Before such a thing could happen, one of the people at the front drew their sword and used it to block Sophie from moving any further forward. Her brow furrowed in confusion as she looked at the man and his stern expression.

"Have care where you walk!" the man chastised her.

"I beg your pardon?" Sophie questioned. "Perhaps you should consider a warning other than that of your weapon in the final moment."

"Sophie..." Henry said.

"It's fine, Henry. This man just needs to learn some manners. Hard to keep visitors coming back with people so rude."

"And you should know the rules of the land you walk on," he spat back.

"I've barely walked a hundred paces, I don't even know where I am yet! Perhaps if I had been allowed to know where I was before being accosted I could respect such rules!"

"Do not speak with such disrespect! Do you not know who you are in the presence of?"

"Did we not just establish that I don't know where I am?" Sophie exclaimed, turning to her brother. "We did establish that, right? It was clear?"

"Seemed pretty clear to me," Henry admitted a little sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Rorsas, it's alright," said another man in the group.

"No, sire, it is not. She should have respect in the presence of a king."

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HELEN WAITED IN A CHAIR IN THE WAITING ROOM as Emma went in to talk to Dr Hopper. Her legs bounced in anticipation of waiting for her session and wondering what exactly Emma was asking of the doctor and what he was telling her. Going to therapy was one of the things Henry and Helen had in common and she couldn't imagine someone telling all her dark secrets to another person. She couldn't imagine he would tell Emma any of Henry's confidential information but Emma was a convincing woman and she was Henry's mother. It wouldn't be all that surprising if she managed to convince him to tell her what she wanted to know.

With a sigh, she stretched out her legs to stop herself from bouncing them. It only lasted for a few moments though as she started to tap her feet. The secretary gave her a stern look and she looked down, sheepishly, as she stopped tapping her feet. Another few moments passed before the door to Archie's office opened and Emma strode out, clutching a folder in her hands as she passed out of the office without a word. Helen's eyes widened as she turned to where Archie was standing in the doorway to his office.

"Miss Falconer, come on in," he said, gesturing her into the office.

She stepped into the office and as soon as the door was closed, she turned to him, incredulously.

"You gave her Henry's file?"

"Miss Falconer-"

"Those are supposed to be confidential! How do you think Henry's going to feel when he finds out you just handed over his darkest secrets to a woman he barely knows!"

"Miss Falconer!" Archie said, getting her attention. "Those were not Henry's files. And even if they were, I do not have to explain my business practices to one of my clients."

Helen scoffed. "You might have to if it's illegal! Whatever happened to doctor-patient confidentiality?"

"You are not here to talk about Henry, Miss Falconer. We're here to talk about you, so why don't you sit down and we can talk about your most recent dream?"

"Okay..." she said, sighing.

Helen plopped down on the couch. Archie sat down in his chair and pulled out his notepad, waiting for her to start. She pulled out her journal and opened it to the pages with the most recent dream, though she knew she wouldn't need them to tell him about what had happened in them.

"I was... sailing. The one I always call my brother in the dreams, he was with me and we were... bickering. Then someone spotted land in the distance so we went for it. Soon we docked and disembarked. I... I told the crew of the ship to stay behind so I could be sure it was safe for them before they disembarked, too."

"Very noble of you," Archie commented.

"Eventually, we bumped into a group of people. One of them drew their sword on me because I'd gotten too close to who they were protecting and they didn't like that, but I didn't even know who it was I'd gotten too close to. He introduced the man as King Caspian."

"And this is the same Caspian as in the other dreams?" Archie questioned.

"Yeah," Helen answered. "I think this is when I first met him. It was so strange... We looked into each other's eyes and everything around us seemed to slow to a complete stop, like we were frozen in time, just looking at each other. And I was happy to stay in that moment. There was this feeling in my chest I couldn't identify like I'd found a part of me I hadn't even known was missing, like I found... like we were a matching pair of socks and we'd finally been put together."

"Why don't you tell me more about this... matching sock of yours," Archie suggested.

Sophie sighed and nodded. She took a deep breath and started to tell him more about the mysterious man in her dreams.

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"EXCUSE ME?" SOPHIE QUESTIONED.

"This is King Caspian X. You should show him some respect," Rorsas spat.

"He is not my king," Sophie started, turning her gaze to the man indicated.

Immediately upon meeting the dark eyes of King Caspian, her breath caught in her throat. It was like the world around her had stopped, like all that existed anymore was the two of them and the rest of the world had fallen away. It felt like an eternity they stared at each other, but Sophie was sure it was all happening in less than a second.

Then, very suddenly, the world snapped back into motion and caused Sophie to blink several times and look down as her brother's voice filtered through to her ears.

"I apologize for my sister's behaviour, sir," Henry was saying. "Sometimes she doesn't think before she acts. Spent too much time around our uncle."

"Hey!" Sophie protested, turning an offended look on her brother.

"No, no, it's quite alright," Caspian assured them, waving a hand dismissively. "Rorsas can get a bit enthusiastic. I don't think you mean me any harm, do you?"

"No," Henry insisted. "We're just travelling. We don't even know what land we're in."

"You just sailed into an unknown land?" Caspian questioned.

"Sometimes my sister lacks common sense," Henry explained.

"No need to be rude, Henry. I was looking for an adventure, as I always am. If you are the king of this land, surely you know the best places to find such a thing," Sophie said.

"I do," Caspian agreed. "Perhaps I could show them to you."

"Will your rude guard be coming along?" Sophie asked, fixing Rorsas with another glare.

"Just this once, I suppose he could stay behind," Caspian said.

"Sire!" Rorsas exclaimed.

"And, of course, you and your crew could stay in the castle with us," Caspian offered.

"I don't think that's wise, Your Highness," another more soft-spoken guard said.

"We're here for adventure, not to kill a king we didn't know was king," Sophie said. "Besides, you'd treat fellow royalty with the best accommodation, would you not?"

"Fellow royalty?"

"Sophie," Henry said in a low, warning tone.

"Our mother is the Pirate King, Elizabeth Swann. That makes us royalty of a sort, does it not?"

"If your mother is the Pirate King, then I suppose it must," Caspian agreed.

Next to her, Henry's eyes went wide and his jaw dropped.

"Sire-" Rorsas started.

"We've never had any problems with pirates here, I see no reason to treat them with such disrespect," Caspian said. "What are your names?"

"I am Sophie Swann," she introduced with a small bow.

"Sophie," he echoed in a quiet, soft tone that sent a shiver down her spine.

"And this is my brother, Henry Turner," she finished, gesturing to him as he also gave a small bow.

"Why don't you gather your crew and we can get you settled into the castle? Then we can plan the first place you'd like to go on our adventure."

"Wonderful idea, sir. Sophie, why don't you do the honour of gathering the crew?" Henry suggested.

Sending a smirk and a wink at Caspian as she turned around to face the general area her ship was docked, Sophie gave a specific whistle. Two short notes followed by a longer one. This would alert her crew that it was safe to disembark and join their captain. Sophie turned back towards Caspian and his guard, still smirking, to see the shocked look on his face.

"That's one way to gather your crew, I suppose," Caspian said.

"I have been able to venture this long without losing my crew because we can communicate wordlessly," she explained. "It's actually a system my brother came up with."

"I have a feeling this visit will be very entertaining..."

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HELEN DIDN'T KNOW HOW HENRY HAD DONE IT, she didn't know how the young boy did a lot of things. It seemed like not moments after the bell would have rung, letting Henry's school out of class for the day, he found her on the docks with her journal and her headphones, Mary Margaret trailing behind him, looking apprehensive.

So, not only had he somehow managed to find her when he had no indication of where she would be (it wasn't that hard, the docks were one of her favourite places), but he had also somehow managed to convince his teacher to bail Emma out of jail.

That was another story, one Henry was more than happy to explain on the way to the police station.

She wasn't surprised, she couldn't be. Helen had watched Emma leave Dr Hopper's office with Henry's file. And while the good doctor had told her he hadn't given it to her, well, she had left with it. Shortly after, the Sheriff had arrested had and brought her to the police station. And, very shortly after that, Regina had told Henry what happened, leading to him asking Mary Margaret to bail her out since he believed her to be innocent. Or at least framed.

Helen didn't know why he insisted on dragging her along. That was another thing she didn't know about him. Why he insisted on being her friend, trying in the first place when everyone knew she didn't like people and she didn't have friends. Why, even now that they were friends (an odd friendship, anyone could see), he insisted on dragging to things like this.

This, of course, being most things to do with Emma.

When he'd brought up finding his real mom for the first time, Helen had figured he just needed someone to talk to who wasn't going to psychoanalyze every word he said. She could understand that. And offering to go to Boston with him, well, he was a kid. She wasn't letting him go all by himself. Then he had dragged her into Granny's that morning to buy Emma a hot cocoa. And now here. She was more than happy (eager, one might say) to watch Emma and be sure she didn't hurt Henry, but the boy was going out of his way to get her involved now. And she couldn't seem to figure out why.

When they arrived at the police station, Mary Margaret held the door open for the two kids, Helen kicking her skateboard up so she could grab it and carry it inside. Graham really didn't like it when she rode it inside his police station.

Henry, of course, ran right ahead of them and they picked up their pace to keep after him. In the back, they found Graham still taking mug shots of Emma, who was also still handcuffed.

"Hey!" Henry yelled, running forward again.

"Henry!" Graham exclaimed. "Henry, what are you doing here?"

"His mother told him what happened," Mary Margaret explained.

"Of course she did," Emma said with a pointed look at Graham before turning to her son. "Henry, I don't know what she said-"

"You're a genius," Henry interrupted.

"What?" Emma questioned.

"Uh, yeah, I'll second that," Helen piped in.

"I know what you were up to," Henry continued, earning a confused look from Emma. "You were gathering intel. For Operation Cobra."

"I'm sorry, I'm a bit lost," Graham said.

"It's need to know, Sheriff," Henry told him.

"Classified information," Helen agreed, winking at Henry.

"All you need to know is that Miss Blanchard is gonna bail her out," Henry finished.

"You are?" Emma questioned. "Why?"

Mary Margaret floundered for a moment. "I trust you."

"Well, if you could uncuff me," Emma said, turning to Graham with a satisfied smile. "I have something to do."

"I feel like the tone of that implies something I would enjoy," Helen said. "Do tell."

"You don't need to know anything. Unless you can tell me where to find a chainsaw in the tiny town."

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AFTER BEING ARRANGED IN ROOMS AND GIVEN A BRIEF TOUR of the castle they were to be staying in, Sophie and Caspian ventured out to the beach just beyond the castle grounds, guards waiting and watching just where they would be in their line of sight and close enough they could arrive in the case of trouble or danger. Sophie couldn't imagine always being watched so closely. Her parents and extended family were watchful of her, of course, they were always sure that she was safe and sound, but they never watched her the way these guards watched Caspian. If Sophie said she wanted to go down to the beach or the docks, she could go alone. She supposed the rules were different for proper royalty as opposed to that of pirate royalty.

"Do they always watch you like they're waiting for you to grow a third arm?" she asked Caspian.

"Yes," Caspian said, laughing. "I've never heard it put that way, but yes."

"Isn't it unsettling? Don't you ever want to do anything on your own?"

"I... I'm allowed to do things on my own," Caspian protested.

"Oh, so they allow you to piss on your own? I thought that rude guard of yours would insist on watching that, too."

Caspian laughed again, and smiled at Sophie. It felt like triumph, hearing him laugh and seeing him smile and knowing she had been the cause. She felt the strangest urge to do it again, and never stop.

"I suppose I don't find it that strange. I was born royalty, the heir to the throne. It's always been like this." Caspian paused. "You said you were royalty, is it different for you?"

"Very. I mean, I am pirate royalty. We do everything different. My parents and family like to know I'm safe and never let me go do something dangerous on my own, but I can go to the beach or into town by myself," she explained. "I haven't been watched this much since I was a child."

"They weren't worried something would happen to you? That some enemy or someone unhappy with their rule would do something to you?"

"She may be the Pirate King, but my mother was elected to the role. If they're unhappy with her, they can call a vote and she could not be voted in again. It's never happened, of course. And besides, we're pirates, not only have I known how to fight since I could hold a dagger, but anyone I happen to come by has enough fighting ability to defend me. You can't sail under a pirate's banner without knowing how to stab a man well enough to at least make a getaway."

"That's a strange way to live," Caspian noted.

Sophie shrugged. "It's all I've ever known. I was born on a pirate ship. One going through a portal if my parents' stories are to be believed. It's more strange to me the way you live."

"You remind me of someone I once knew," Caspian told her. "A good friend who helped me secure my rule when it was threatened and sailed with me once."

"Oh, and who might this friend be? Will I get to meet them?" Sophie asked.

"No, they had to go away. I haven't seen them for quite some time," Caspian admitted.

"I'm sorry," she said. "It sucks to not be able to reach your friends."

"Thank you. I miss them dearly."

"So, what are your waters like? I think I'd like to take a dip before dinner."

━━━★━━━

EVEN THOUGH SHE FOUND THE SOUND OF THE WATER SPLASHING against the docks to be peaceful, when Helen was there that evening writing in her journal, she wasn't listening to the water. As she was most times, she was listening to music as she sat on her skateboard, rolling gently from side to side as she continued writing.

And it was for this reason when someone tapped her shoulder lightly, she jumped and whirled around, startled. When she saw it was only Henry there, she calmed down. But the calm didn't last long as she noticed not a moment after she noticed it was him that he looked like he had been crying the whole time he'd obviously run to where she was.

"What's wrong?" she immediately asked, pulling out her headphones.

"She... she thinks I'm- thinks I'm crazy," he stuttered out, sniffling as he tried to get the words out through his tears.

"Come here."

She opened her arms and adjusted herself on her skateboard so that he could sit with her. When he did, she wrapped her arms around him and let him rest his head against her shoulder as she started to gently roll her skateboard back and forth again.

"Who thinks you're crazy?" she asked him after a moment.

"Emma," he managed.

Anger knotted in her stomach. Not only had Emma let her son watch her leave him once already, but now she'd done something to make him think she thought he was crazy? And be sure enough about it that it made him cry? Oh, she was going to be having more than words with Emma next time she laid her eyes on the blonde.

"What did she say to make you think that, buddy?" Helen asked, doing her best to keep her voice steady.

"She- she said it. To my mom. She said- said she thinks I'm crazy for believing everyone in town is a fairytale character."

Spikes formed around the ball of anger in her stomach. So Emma hadn't just alluded to the fact that she thought Henry was crazy. She had actually said the words. And because of something Henry was passionate about, no less. Helen was going to have a hard time not breaking Emma's nose the next time she saw her.

"Do you think I'm crazy?" Henry asked.

"Of course I don't," Helen told him. "I think you are one of the most creative, hopeful, inspiring and optimistic people I've ever met. It takes a special kind of person to be able to chip away at my walls and become my friend."

"Really?"

"Really," she assured him, hugging him tighter. "I... I don't remember my family much. All I mostly remember is my uncle and he's... a drunk. But, I think maybe I lost a brother or sister in whatever accident it was that took them away from me and you came into my life to fill that void. I think the world of you, Henry."

The boy sniffled again and wrapped his arms around her, hugging her back tightly. Tears prickled in the corners of her eyes but she pushed them away, holding him back just as tight.

"Now, come on," she said. "I'll teach you to ride my skateboard."

"Really?" he asked, perking up immediately.

"Of course! Come on, get up."

And fifteen minutes later, when Regina found them at the docks to take Henry to his therapy session he had every Thursday evening, while Helen hadn't turned the boy's mood around totally, he had stopped crying. And that was all that mattered, in the end.

Helen and Regina shared a look as she watched the young boy get in the car. Helen had never liked Regina and she was fairly certain Regina had never liked her. She wasn't exactly the kind of role model you wanted a boy as young as Henry to start taking after. She was closed off, didn't like to talk, cold to most she talked to and, well, the list went on.

But this look... Helen couldn't be sure, of course, but it looked an awful lot like an understanding. An understanding that, even though they agreed that Helen wasn't a good influence and they didn't like each other, Henry liked her. And Regina had her battles to pick and this wasn't one of them.

Helen sat down heavily on her skateboard, planting her feet firmly as she started to roll, not caring how the way the soles dragged on the concrete could potentially ruin them. It had been one long day and if she had to go back to her uncle and that apartment, it was going to be a long night, too.

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"SO, EXPLAIN TO ME THIS," EMMA SAID AS SHE WALKED down Main Street with Henry after leaving Dr Hopper's.

"What?"

"Helen."

"What about her?" Henry asked.

"Well, who is she?" Emma asked. "You've told me who almost every other person we've come across in this town is. But you keep dragging her around and you still haven't told me who her fairytale identity is."

"Oh," Henry said, looking down.

"What do you mean, 'oh'? Who is she?"

"I... don't know."

"You haven't found her in the book yet?"

"She's not in the book."

"How could she not be in the book, Henry?"

"There are two people in this town that I've met and can't find in the book and Helen is one of them," he explained. "I've looked through the whole thing and I can't find her anywhere. She isn't in the book."

Emma stopped and looked down at Henry in confusion. The boy shrugged his shoulders, equally as confused as his mother.

"Whoever she is, she isn't in the book. And I think that means that she's not supposed to be here."

━━━★━━━

an. haha, hey there, I know it's been a while but I'm back! I had trouble with some of the flashbacks in the chapter for a while and then when I figured them out, I didn't have the energy to get onto my laptop and pull up Disney+ and put on OUaT and watch and write and all of that so it took me a while. But here we are, it's complete, I'm really happy with how it turned out and I am especially happy with how I ended it.

So, tell me then, what did you think of the ending? What did you think of the chapter overall? Do you have any questions? Theories? Idle wonderings? Comments? I'd love to hear them all, so please do drop a comment and I will most likely respond to it! I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I hope you enjoy the next one!