In the forest, the deer were eating the grass while a man on a carriage was on a dirt road. "Hyah!" the man said, whipping the horse, to make the horse go faster. This carriage was white, three guards were behind the carriage while two guards were riding the carriage.
Prince Charming was looking out the carriage window with a smile on his face as he looked at Princess Abigail who sat across from him. "What do you think of the view, my dear?" he asked.
Princess Abigail wasn't too thrilled. She had blonde hair and blue eyes, wearing a light blue dress with white fur across the trim along with silver beading. She brought a green and white fan out to cool herself while answering Charming's question. "I've seen better," she said, not impressed with the view at all. "This is taking forever. I told you the Troll Road would've been quicker," she complained. She closed her eyes as they went over a bump. "And far less bumpy," still complaining.
Charming looked down as he got a small brown leather bag out of his shirt. The woman looked over at him, clearly annoyed.
"Are you even listening to me?" she asked, eyeing him.
"Yes, of course, I am," he said, only half paying attention to her.
"Whoa! Whoa!" said the driver.
"Now what?" she asked herself, she wanted to get back to the castle as soon as possible.
Charming got out of the carriage, leaving the brown leather bag behind on the seat. He looked at her and then sighed, walking to where the guards were on the path.
"Worry not, it's but a fallen tree," Charming called out to his bride-to-be. "Fellows, shall we?" All of the guards helped Charming by picking up the tree.
While a hooded person fell on top of the carriage with Princess Abigail still in the carriage. Charming was feeling the tree, examining it. He knew that this was foul play. He knew that something about to happen.
"My Lord, what is it?" asked one of the guards.
"Look at these markings," he muttered. "This tree didn't fall. It's been cut." He soon realized that it was an ambush, and he looked up and over the other guards. "It's an ambush."
The hooded figure got off the carriage quietly and carefully, the stranger went in and snatched Charming's satchel from inside the carriage. Princess Abigail screamed when this happened. Charming and the guards pulled out their swords and ran toward the stranger.
"Guards! Stop, thief!" Princess Abigail called out, the hooded figure got onto their horse and rode off on it, and fast. "Please, help me!"
Prince Charming got on one of the horses and rode after the person in the hood. He was catching up to the hooded figure, he was on this person's tail. Charming whipped the horse to go faster. They were side by side now and Charming grabbed the thief and pushed the person off the horse and onto the ground.
Charming walked over to the stranger, turning them over. "Snow your face, you coward," he said, lifting up his first, ready-to-punch.
This hooded person was none other than—Snow White.
"You're a—" he paused, the shock was all over his face, "girl."
"Woman," Snow stated with a smile on her face. Grabbing a rock and hitting Charming in the chin with it. He fell off of her, got up, and started running toward the horse and mounting it while Charming got up and placed his fingers on the now bleeding cut.
"You can't hide from me!" he yelled angrily at her. "Wherever you are, I will find you!"
Snow rose off on the horse, looking back over her shoulder with a proud smile on her face. Charming was watching her while wiping the blood off.
Mary Margaret was sitting at Granny's Diner, taking sips from her coffee as she stared across at her date.
"Where were we? Something about you wanting fifteen kids?" asked Dr. Whale—he has sandy brown hair, blue eyes, a five o'clock shadow, and wearing a black suit.
"Oh, good Lord, no," she said, panicking quickly. "I meant in my glass. Where I teach. You'll meet them tomorrow. They're coming to the hospital as part of the volunteer outreach program," she explained.
"Oh, yeah, that is a great program," he said while checking out Ruby—who is wearing red short shorts and a white polo shirt with red heels.
"I mean, obviously I don't want fifteen kids of my own. I mean not that I don't want kids, I do. I want kids, marriage, and true love. I want it all. But that, of course, is—" Mary Margaret stopped talking, realizing that he wasn't paying attention at all. She looked over at Ruby who was picking up the leftovers from the other people. "Wildly inappropriate for me to discuss on a first date."
"Hmm?" he asked, finally taking his eyes off Ruby.
"Ruby!" she called for her, wanting this date to be over with.
"Yes, Mary Margaret?" she asked, turning around.
"Check, please," she said, sadly.
Mary Margaret walked down the street, her arms crossed with her bag on her shoulder while she looked down. She was disappointed and naive that she could date someone like him. She stopped for a moment, noticing Emma's car then walked over to her car and saw Emma in it with a newspaper and pen in her hands.
"Hey," she said, Emma, looking up from the paper. "You okay?"
"Oh, in the word of right spots I've been in," Emma answered, looking down at the paper for a second and then looking back up. "Crashing in my car doesn't even rank in my top ten."
"You're sleeping here?" she asked, surprised.
"Till I find a place," Emma answered.
"You decided to say. For Henry." Mary Margaret realized.
"Yeah, I guess," she looked away, getting out of her car. "This town doesn't seem to have many vacancies. None, actually." Shutting the car door behind her. "Is that normal?" she asked.
"Must be the curse," she joked to Emma with a smile.
Emma sighed, leaning against the car and looking over at her friend. "Why are you out so late?" she asked.
"Well, I'm a teacher, not a nun. I had a date," she looked down, ashamed.
"From the look of things, it went well."
"As well as they ever do."
"Tell me he at least paid."
"Mmm-mmm," Mary Margaret shook her head. "Well, I guess if true love was easy, we'd all have it."
Emma looked at her for a second, thinking about her how she thought she found true love but it wasn't. She really loved this guy and she thought he loved her back just as much as she did—but it was all a lie, he never did.
"You know, if things get cramped, I do have a spare room," she offered Emma.
"Thanks," Emma said, totally forgetting that she was one of the nicest people in this town. "I'm not really the roommate type. It's just not my thing. I do better on my own."
Mary Margaret simply nodded her head, listening and understanding her. "Well, good night. Good luck with Henry."
"Yeah," she smiled.
Mary Margaret walked away with a smile on her face while Emma was staring at the other walking away.
The next day, Miss Blanchard and her students were at the hospital and they were volunteering for the patients. They were giving them their artwork, telling them stories, and just talking to them and knowing who they were. Miss Blanchard was walking down the aisle and looking around to see what they were doing and set a small vase with white flowers on a tray. While doing so, she looked ahead and tilted her head slightly narrowing her eyebrows as she saw Henry in the room with the coma patient.
"Henry, we could really use your help with the decorations," Miss Blanchard said, walking through the door.
"Is Mr. Doe going to be okay, Miss Blanchard?" he asked, curiously.
"His name is not John Doe, honey. That's just what they call people when they don't know who they are."
"Do you know who he is?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at his teacher. Knowing full well what he was asking, he was hoping that she knew the answer.
Shaking her head, "No," she answered, walking fully into the room. "I just bring him flowers on my rounds."
"What's wrong with him?" he asked, looking at John Doe.
"I don't know. He's been like this as long as I've been volunteering."
"Does he have any family or friends?"
"No one's claimed him."
"So, he's all alone?"
"Yeah," Miss Blanchard said softly, nodding her head, and looking at Henry with a sad smile. "It's quite sad."
They both looked at John Doe, sadly. They both wished that there was someone who had claimed him, didn't matter if it was a friend or family. They just wanted him to not be alone.
"You sure you don't know him?" he asked again, hoping for a different answer.
"Of course I'm sure," Miss Blanchard said taken aback. "Come on. You shouldn't be in here."
Henry walked around the bed as they both walked out of the room, closing the door behind them, but not before Henry took one last glance over at the coma patient.
"I found your father," Henry said to Emma, opening up the page in his book and showing her the picture of Prince Charming. "Prince Charming."
They were at his special castle, sitting down on the wooden castle as they both took a look at the book. Emma scoffed and shook her head in disbelief.
"Henry...," Emma started to say.
"He's in the hospital in a coma. See this scar?" he pointed to it in the picture. "He has one, too."
"So? Lots of people have scars," Emma stated.
"In the same place. Don't you see what this means?" he asked. Emma just gave him a look. "The curse is keeping them apart with the coma. Now they're stuck without each other. We have to tell Miss Blanchard we found her Prince Charming."
"Okay, kid. Telling someone there—" she started, trying to think of the right words for Henry to understand. "Soul mate is in a coma is probably not helpful. Not having a happy ending is painful enough, but giving someone unrealistic hope is far worse."
"But what if I'm right?" he asked.
"We know who they are, not they have to know."
"And how do you intend to make that happen?"
"By reminding him," he said simply. "We have to get her to read their story to John Doe. Then maybe he'll remember who he is."
Emma sat up straighter and leaned forward, taking a moment to ponder the thought of all of what he said. "Okay," she finally said.
"Okay?" he repeated.
"Yeah. We'll do it, but we'll do it my way. Let me ask her."
Mary Margaret made two hot cocoa with whipped cream and cinnamon on top for Emma and herself. Emma had already asked her to read to that coma patient. "You want me to read to a coma patient?" she asked in shock, carrying two cups over to the table and handing one to Emma.
"Henry thinks it will help him remember who he was," she explained, taking the cup from the other woman.
"And who does he think he was?" she asked, curious about what Emma's answer might be.
"Prince Charming," Emma replied.
"And if I'm Snow White, he thinks me and him...," Mary Margaret realized what Emma was getting at, Emma smiled tightly and nodded.
"He has a very active imagination. Which is the point. I can't talk him out of his beliefs. So we need to show him." Emma started explaining as Mary Margaret tilted her head to the side. "Play along, do what he says, and then maybe, just maybe..."
"He'll see that fairy tales are just that. That there's no such thing as love at first sight. Or first kiss. He'll see reality," Mary Margaret finished her sentence and then took a sip of the hot cocoa.
"Something like that." Emma nodded and looked at the other, watching her carefully.
Mary Margaret sighed, looking down at her countertop. "Sadly, this plan is rather genius," she said, looking up at Emma. "We get him to the truth without hurting him."
Setting the cup down on the island she turned to her side and took a deep breath before speaking. "I told him that we will all meet tomorrow for breakfast at Granny's," she grabbed the book from a bag that was in the chair and showed her the book, "and you will give a full report," Emma said smiling as she set it on top of the island.
"Well, I suppose I'll get ready for my date. I guess I'll have to do all the talking," Mary Margaret said, making a joke.
"Look, I know this is odd, but I'm doing it for a friend," Mary Margaret explained to John Doe. She was sitting in the hospital chair next to the coma patient. "So please just bear with me." She opened the book and started reading from the beginning of the book. "As the prince chased the thief on horseback through the treacherous forest, his betrothal crossed her arms and pouted, wondering how many dreadful, boring minutes it would take until they could resume their journey again. The thief vaulted over a fallen juniper... and stared into each other's eyes. They didn't need words to express what they felt in their hearts. For it was here, in the shadow of the Troll Bridge, that their love was born. For they knew, no matter how they were separated, they would always..."
Just then John Doe's hand flew up and landed right on top of Mary Margaret's hand, she stopped reading immediately and looked over at John Doe to see if he was awake. But unfortunately, he was still in his coma state. She looked down at their hands then back over at John Doe.
Mary Margaret went and got the doctor, telling him that he was coming out of his coma. "No, I'm sure he's waking up," she told the doctor—which was also her date from a few nights ago. "He...," She walked a bit faster to prove that he was waking up. "He grabbed my hand." She looked at the coma patient, smiling, hoping that he would move again now that the doctor was there.
The doctor moved to the other side with machines that were hooked up. He was checking the pulse on his wrist then pulling his hand away and looking at the monitor. "Everything's steady. Same as it's always been," he said, explaining to her. "What were you doing in here?" he asked, looking at her.
"Oh, I was just reading him a story," she answered.
"Oh," he simply said, nodding. "Well, perhaps you dozed off. Perhaps you imagined it."
"No, I didn't imagine anything," she said, shaking her head as she looked at the patient.
"Miss Blanchard, I can only tell you what I see which is nothing. Sometimes there are minor fluctuations in readings. Perhaps you heard the machine register something and misunderstood." Dr. Whale said, trying to explain to her. "Look, why don't you go home?" he suggested. "Get some rest. If anything changes, I'll call you. Okay?"
Mary Margaret simply nodded, looking down at the patient. Takes the book off the attachable tray from the hospital bed and walks out rather quickly.
Dr. Whale placed his hands on his waist and looked at one of his patients, sighing heavily. He took out his cell phone from his pocket and dialed a number, it started ringing.
"Yes?" Regina answered.
"It's Dr. Whale. You told me to call you if there was ever a change in our John Doe. Something's happened."
Regina got out of her office chair and walked around her marble desk. "What?" she asked.
"One of our volunteers said he grabbed her," Dr. Whale said over the phone. "There was a slight fluctuation in brain activity."
"And who is this volunteer?"
"Mary Margaret Blanchard."
Regina looked off as she squeezed the phone tightly around her hand, her face was angry. She couldn't believe that this was happening. She was living her perfect life until that woman. That blonde hair bitch came here. Ruining her perfect life.
Mary Margaret was at her apartment building, she was in her bed and she opened the book that Emma let her borrow. Opening up to the page that she left off at the hospital, she turned the pages gently and carefully. Landing on a picture of herself, well, Snow White holding up a lantern going through a small dirt cave.
Snow White was carrying a lantern in a small tree trunk, she had items that she stole from various people. She quickly put all of the stolen goodies into a bag, she grabbed a heart-shaped necklace, it had black dust on the glass heart. Putting around her neck as carefully but quickly as possible, she lifted her hood up grabbed the bag and the lantern, and walked out of the small tree trunk.
Once she was out of the tree trunk, it was a bright beautiful sunny day, the forest was beautiful as always. She had always loved the outdoors, it was her favorite thing to see. She looked up at the tree and stood there for a long moment before she turned around and started walking away from the tree.
Not long after she left, she stepped into a trap that she didn't see. It pulled her up quickly, she was hanging mid-air, and she was screaming at the surprise trap. Struggling to get out of the trap, she pulled at the thick ropes trying to budge but didn't work out.
Prince Charming's laugh could be heard when he slowly walked in front of Snow White, he finally caught her. "I told you I'd find you," he said matter-of-factly. "No matter what you do, I will always find you." He said with a smile, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Is this the only way you can catch a woman?" Snow shot at the male. "By entrapping her?"
"It's the only way to catch thieving scum." He shot back at her.
Snow laughed bitterly as she looked at him. "Aren't you a real Prince Charming," she said, bitterly.
"I have a name, you know."
"Don't care. Charming suits you." He smiled at her. "Now cut me down, Charming."
He laughed softly to himself. "I'll release you when you return the leather pouch you stole with my jewels."
Snow thought for a moment then shook her head, smiling. "Not the jewelry type."
"Indeed. I noticed."
"What is that supposed to mean? Are you insulting me?" she asked offendedly.
"Quite right. My apologies. How dare I cast aspersions at the person who robbed me! Where are my jewels?" he asked.
"I sold them," she simply said.
"What?" he asked, stunned.
"What do you care? Don't you have a palace full of treasures somewhere?"
"These were special. Among them was a ring that belonged to my mother. A ring I was about to give to..."
"The nag with the bad attitude?" she interrupted him. "That's what this is about?"
"She's my fiancee," he defended his fiancee.
Snow tried not to laugh, waving her hand. "Good luck with that. You must be getting something impressive to have agreed to that union."
"Excuse me?" he asked angrily.
"I know how this works. True love? It doesn't exist. It's all arranged marriages and business transactions. There's no such thing as love at first sight. Or first kiss," Snow explained to Charming. "Let me guess. Her kingdom wants to take over yours. And this is, what, a last-ditch effort to avoid war?" she guessed, she knew that she was right.
"This is not a take over," he said sternly. "It's a merger. And quite frankly, it's none of your business. Now, this is what's going to happen."
"Mmm-mmm."
"I'm going to cut you down, and you will take me to whoever has my jewels, and then you're going to get my ring back."
Snow shook her head. "Mmm-mm. Why would I do that?" she asked, there was nothing in it for her, so why would she do it, right?
Charming stood there with a smirk on his face, standing straighter when he spoke these words to Snow who was in his trap. "Because you don't want me to tell anyone who you really are," he took out a piece of paper from the inside of his shirt with Snow White's face on it and a said that said Wanted, and under it, it said, For crimes against the Queen: Murder, Treason, Thief. He showed it to her with a smirk on his lips. "Snow White," he said. She looked at him, knowing that she should do what he said before he turned her in. "Help me get my ring back or I turn you over to the Queen's forces," he threatens and lowers the wanted poster of her down. "And I have a feeling that Queen's not as charming as I am."
Snow closed her eyes, she knew that he was right, and she didn't want to be turned in and have the Queen torture her or end up killing her. "Well, I wouldn't want to stand in the way of your getting true love."
Charming took out his sword and cut the rope with a single swing of his sword, letting Snow White fall. She screamed as she landed on the hard ground, groaning from the pain.
The next morning, Emma was at Granny's, she was walking out of the bathroom as she tucked her silky dark blue button-up shirt. She walked to the booth where Henry was sitting. "Thanks for the shirt," Emma said, sitting down, across from him. "Hey, is this your mother's?" she asked.
"She'll never notice," Henry said simply.
"Where does she think you are anyway?" she asked.
"Playing Whack-A-Mole."
"And she bought that?" she asked, sounding impressed.
"She wants to believe it. So she does."
"Oh, imagine that," she said sarcastically.
Henry nodded and smiled at her, hearing the bell from the door opening, he looked over to see Miss Blanchard entering Granny's. "She's here!" he said, excitedly.
"Hey, don't get your hopes up. We're just getting started, okay?" Emma said to Henry gently. Miss Blanchard looked around and spotted Emma and Henry, she walked over to them and sat next to Henry.
Emma looked at Miss Blanchard with a knowing look, but when she heard her say three little words, her face was full of shock.
"He woke up," Mary Margaret said.
"What?" Emma asked.
"I knew it," Henry said, leaning in.
"I mean, he didn't wake up—wake up. But he grabbed my hand," she explained to them.
"He's remembering," Henry said, with hope in his voice.
"What did the doctor say?" Emma asked.
"That I imagined it. But I'm not crazy, I know it happened." Miss Blanchard said, she knew that she wasn't crazy, she was positive.
"We have to go back. You have to read to him again," Henry told Miss Blanchard.
Miss Blanchard thought for a half-second then nodded, grabbing Henry's arm and getting out of the booth. "Let's go."
Emma stared at the both of them, trying to understand what was going on. "Wait. Wait... What?" she asked, standing up quickly to face the both of them.
"If I got through to him, if we made a connection...," Mary Margaret started.
"You don't believe...," Emma interrupted her.
"That he's Prince Charming? Of course not. Somehow, someway, I touched him," Mary Margaret said to Emma, turning back around and walking out of Granny's.
Emma was staring at her in disbelief, she couldn't believe that this was happening. She thought she would be on her side about all of this. She followed them out of the door, keeping an eye on them and also to see if what she was saying was true or not.
"You're right! He's wake up." Henry said to Miss Blanchard. They were in the hospital and he noticed something was going on right away.
"Henry, you should stay back," Sheriff Graham said to him, walking toward him.
"What's going on?" Mary Margaret asked. "Is it John Doe? Is he okay?"
Sheriff Graham looked at Mary Margaret and then at Emma. "He's missing," he said. All three of them were shocked by the news. He looked back at the doctor, the two nurses, and Regina, and the three of them looked at Regina.
Regina walked out of the room and toward Emma, Mary Margaret, and Henry. "What the hell are you doing here?" she asked with a tight smile on her lips. "And you." She grabbed Henry by the wrist and pulled him close to her. "I thought you were at the arcade. Now you're lying to me?"
"What happened to John Doe? Did someone take him?" Mary Margaret asked, trying to relieve some of the tension.
"We don't know yet," said the Sheriff, his hands on his hips. "His IVs were ripped out, but there's no sign for sure there was a struggle."
"What did you do?" Henry asked his mother.
Regina looked down at her son, furrowing her eyebrows slightly. "You think I had something to do with this?" she asked, offended.
"It is curious that the Mayor is here," Emma butted in.
"I'm here because I'm his emergency contact." She shot at Emma.
"You know him?" Miss Blanchard asked, shocked.
"I found him on the side of the road years ago with no ID," Regina explained. "I brought him here."
"Mayor Mills saved his life," Dr. Whales came in and said.
"Will he be okay?" Mary Margaret asked him.
"Okay? The man's been on feeding tubes for years, under constant supervision. He needs to get back here right away, or, quite honestly, 'Okay' might be a pipe dream." Dr. Whale said urgently.
"Well then let's quit yappin' and start looking," Emma said, as she started walking away.
"That's what we're doing," Regina said to her. "Just stay out of this, dear. And since I clearly can't keep you away from my son, I guess I'm just going to have to keep my son away from you." She said, threatening her as she pulled Henry's hand and started walking away from the small group. "Enjoy my shirt, because that's all you're getting." She said to Emma then turned to look at the Sheriff. "Sheriff, find John Doe. You heard Dr. Whale, time is precious." She turned her back to them as she walked out of the hospital with her son beside her.
The Sheriff looked at Regina then looked at Emma then at Dr. Whale, turning to face him. "Doctor, how long between your rounds since you last saw him?" he asked.
"Twelve hours or so," Dr. Whale answered.
"Then that's what we need to account for," said the Sheriff.
Emma, Mary Margaret, and Sheriff Graham were all in the security room with a guard and a janitor. "You two were the only employees on the floor last night. And you saw nothing?" Sheriff Graham asked the two, and the guard yawned.
"Not a thing," said the guard.
"Did anyone walk by?" Emma asked.
"I didn't see nothing," Leroy answered, shrugging.
"Miss Blanchard, was there anything unusual you saw during your trip with your class?" asked Sheriff Graham.
"I don't think so," she answered, looking at the screens.
Emma walked over to take a better look at the screens. "We're looking at the wrong tape. This is the ward where Henry's class put up decorations. If this was really the tape from last night, we'd see the banners the kids hung."
Leroy scoffed and looked at the guard. "You fell asleep again," he said, pointing at him.
The guard looked at Leroy with a blank face. "You selling me out?" he asked.
"I ain't getting fired for this," Leroy said.
"Least I don't drink on the job!" the guard fired back.
"Gentlemen, enough!" Sheriff Graham said, cutting between them. "Where's the real tape?" he asked.
The tape started whirling a bit, all of them looked at the tape and they could see that John Doe was roaming around the hospital, he finally noticed the exit door and walked out of the hospital, unharmed.
"He walked out alone," Mary Margaret sighed in relief. "He's okay."
"Four hours ago," Emma said, pointing to the timestamp that was on the screen. "Where does this door lead?"
"The woods," Leroy answered Emma. Emma, Mary Margaret, and the Sheriff all looked at Leroy.
Snow White led the way with Charming trailing behind her, they were going to the people Snow had sold the jewels to. They were walking for hours through the forest, Snow was turning that heart-shaped necklace between her fingers. Charming looked at it with curious eyes, he wanted to know what that powder was inside of the necklace.
"I thought you weren't the jewelry type," Charming stated to Snow. "What's that around your neck?"
Snow looked down at her necklace then looked up and away from Charming. "Don't worry about it," she answered. Charming took the necklace off of her held it up high and dangled it. "Careful! It's a weapon."
"What, dust? What kind of weapon is dust?" he asked, not impressed by the dust in her necklace.
"Fairy dust," she said while trying to grab it out of his hand.
"I thought that was a good thing."
"When it comes from a good fairy. This stuff is deadly. It transforms the most fearsome of adversaries into a form that's easily squashed." She explained and tried grabbing at it once again.
"Then why didn't you use it on me?" he asked, curiously.
"'Cause you're not worth it," she said harshly. Charming started chuckling at her response as they kept walking. "It's very hard to come by," she said, turning to look at him. "I'm saving it for a special someone."
"Ah! The Queen," Charming stated. "Got a lot of anger there, don't you, Snow?"
Snow didn't answer right away, she looked down at the ground while walking beside him. "The charges on her posters are lies. Didn't stop her from sending her huntsman to rip out my heart."
There was a pause, before asking her a question. "What happened?"
"Well, not everyone is a soulless royal," Snow said, stopping to face him. "He took pity on me and let me go. I've been hiding in the forest ever since. Trying to amass enough fortune to leave this place. Escape to another realm. Somewhere isolated. Where I can never be hurt."
"Sounds lonely," Charming said, sighing.
"No lonelier than an arranged marriage," she shot at Charming.
"At least I don't prey on the innocent," he shot back.
"Up until now, I've only ever stolen from the Queen. I thought your carriage was one of hers. No one else uses that road."
"We took the scenic route."
"Well, lucky for me. All I'm doing, Charming, is what it takes to survive. She wants me dead." They both looked at each other for a second before Snow started walking off.
"So what did you do to incur that much wrath?" he asked.
She stopped walking and looked off into the distance. "She blames me for ruining her life."
"Did you?" he asked, staring at Snow.
"Yes," she admitted, she started walking off once again and Charming sighed and followed her.
Snow pushed back some tree branches, there was a river streaming by, she looked at Charming for a moment. "I'm thirsty. May I?" she asked.
Charming looked out and nodded his head. "Sure. Make it quick." They both walked to the river, Snow bent down and cupped the water into her hands, taking a drink and then looking over her shoulder to look at Charming. He bent down as well, cupping some water in his hands and drinking it as well.
Snow stood up, she looked down at him and when he finally stood up, she kneed him in the stomach and Charming grunted in pain. She pushed him into the river and making a big splash, bent down and started rummaging through his things. When she found it, Charming was floating down the river. She fled away from the river and back into the forest. She kept running and found the dirt path, she looked back ways quickly and then started running once again.
Then not long before she started running, three black knights on horses came in front of her and stopped her in her tracks.
"Look who we found," said one of the black knights.
One of Snow's hands reached up, trying to find her fairy dust but remembered that Charming took it from her. She was defenseless. The other two black knights circled around her while the first black knight who spoke to her was looking down at her, getting off his horse. "There's nowhere to hide," he said. "The Queen wants your heart," he walked up to her slowly while pulling out a dagger from his belt. "And we're not going to disappoint her."
It was night, Emma, Mary Margaret, and the Sheriff were in the woods trying to find John Doe, but no such luck. Sheriff Graham was leading them down a path, when he noticed something on the dirt path. It was a footprint.
"What is it?" Mary Margaret asked.
"The trail runs out here," he answered.
"You sure? 'Cause I thought tracking was one of your skills," Emma said she was getting a bit annoyed.
"Just give me a second. This is my world," he mumbled. "I got it."
"Right. Sorry," she said Sheriff Graham walked away from both of the women.
"What does he mean 'his world'? Isn't finding people your thing, too?" Mary Margaret asked Emma.
"Sure. Just, people, I find usually run to places like Vegas," Emma explained.
"Oh!"
"Not a lot hit the woods."
"It's an interesting job, finding people. How'd you fall into it?" she asked.
"Looking for people is just what I've done for as long as I can remember," Emma looked around the woods.
"What made you start?" she asked. "Your parents?" Emma whipped her head to look at Mary Margaret. "Henry told me that you're... That you were from a similar situation to his own. Did you ever find them?"
"Depends who you ask," she muttered, looking out and away from her friend's face. There was a twig spanning close by them and they both turned around to find Henry walking toward them.
"Henry!" Mary Margaret exclaimed.
"Did you find him yet?" he asked.
"No, not yet," Emma answered. "You shouldn't be here."
"I can help," he said, looking at her. "I know where he's going."
Mary Margaret looked taken aback. "And where's that?" she asked.
"He's looking for you," Henry said, simply.
Snow White grunted when one of the black knights grabbed her by the hair and pushed her against a tree. She was squirming, she didn't want to die, not like this anyway. The first black knight came over to Snow with the dagger in his hand.
"Hold her still," he said to the other black knight, he held up the dagger just above his head as he was ready to plunge into her heart. Then, all of a sudden, Charming came and threw his knife at the back of the black knight's back. He died instantly, falling forward in front of Snow's feet.
Charming got out his sword and started charging at the other two black knights, Snow looked over at the dead black knight then the other way, and then at Charming. The black knight and Charming started fighting while the third black knight was on the horse trying to keep it calm while Snow was watching the whole thing.
Snow got up and ran to one of the free horses but one of the horses ran to her picked her up by the back of her neck and laid her across the horse in front of her. "No!" Snow yelled out.
Charming swung his sword at the black knight's feet and knocked him to the ground, he looked up and saw Snow struggling to get off of the horse. He put his sword back, looking at the bow-and-arrow that was on the horse and he grabbed it and ran. He tried to look for a spot to shoot at the last black knight and he finally did, he put the arrow in the bow and aimed it at the black knight.
Once he found the perfect shot, he released it, hitting the knight off the horse. Snow finally got on the horse fully while Charming raced after her, trying to catch her. She slowed the horse down, trying to catch her breath. Getting off the horse and down the dirt path, Charming walked over to her with a concerned look on his face.
"Are you all right?" he asked.
"You...," she said, panting. "You saved me."
"It seemed like the honorable thing to do." They both looked at each other for what seemed forever but it was only a few seconds. "Are you ready?"
"For what?" she asked, confused.
"My jewels," he answered.
She blinked back to reality. "Right. You've got a wedding to get to. The trolls I sold them to are just beyond the next ridge. We need to be careful." She explained to Charming.
He looked at her, thinking of a different kind of fairy tale creature. "What, of trolls?" he asked.
"You've clearly never met one."
"Aren't they just little people?" he asked, even more confused.
Snow chuckled softly. "You're thinking of dwarves," she corrected him. "Show a little respect. They'll cut your hand off sooner than they'll shake it." She warned him.
Sighing heavily, he looked at the horse. "Well, then let's get this over with."
"Yes, we've both got places to be. So let's go," she said in a hurry.
"You have your lonely little corner of solitude to find," he said, walking with Snow and the horse.
"And you have a ringless fiancee to appease," she said, tugging the horse along.
Sheriff Graham and Emma had flashlights in their hands while Mary Margaret and Henry trailed them along with dirt path, they were pointing in different directions.
"You're the one who woke him up. You're the last one he saw," Henry said to Mary Margaret. "He wants to find you!"
Mary Margaret turned around to face Henry. "Henry, it's not about me. I just... I think he's lost and confused. He's been in a coma a long time." She explained, looking at Emma for a moment and then back at Henry.
"But he loves you!" Henry exclaimed. "You need to stop chasing him and let him find you."
"Kid, you need to go home! Where's your mom?" Emma said to Henry. "She's going to kill me. And then you. And then me again."
"She dropped me at the house, then went right out."
"Well, we need to get you back immediately."
"No!" He yelled.
"Guys?" Graham called out to them.
The three of them ran to find Sheriff Graham, his voice sounded panicked and urgent. Sheriff Graham was bent down and spotted John Doe's hospital band with some blood on it on a leaf.
"Is that..." Mary Margaret started saying.
"Blood," Emma finished for her.
Charming and Snow were on the horse, slowly riding down the same dirt path in the forest, they were at the Troll Bridge. It was deserted, there was fog beyond the entrance of the Troll Bridge. They stopped a few yards away from it, Snow got down off the horse and Charming followed her lead, pulling the horse toward the forest as he looked over his shoulder, Snow smacked the horse behind and made the horse run down the forest path.
Snow stood next to Charming, he was about to ask the question but Snow beat him to it. "Trolls don't like horses," she said, looking at him and then back at the Troll Bridge, taking a deep breath and exhaling. "We walk from here. Follow me. And keep quiet." She said, looking at him as she walked toward the bridge.
"She dropped me at the house, then went right out."
"Well, we need to get you back immediately."
"No!" He yelled.
"Guys?" Graham called out to them.
The three of them ran to find Sheriff Graham, his voice sounded panicked and urgent. Sheriff Graham was bent down and spotted John Doe's hospital band with some blood on it on a leaf.
"Is that..." Mary Margaret started saying.
"Blood," Emma finished for her.
Charming and Snow were on the horse, slowly riding down the same dirt path in the forest, they were at the Troll Bridge. It was deserted, there was fog beyond the entrance of the Troll Bridge. They stopped a few yards away from it, Snow got down off the horse and Charming followed her lead, pulling the horse toward the forest as he looked over his shoulder, Snow smacked the horse behind and made the horse run down the forest path.
Snow stood next to Charming, he was about to ask the question but Snow beat him to it. "Trolls don't like horses," she said, looking at him and then back at the Troll Bridge, taking a deep breath and exhaling. "We walk from here. Follow me. And keep quiet." She said, looking at him as she walked toward the bridge.
"No, he's with me," she said, looking at Charming and then back at the Troll.
"That's good. With you. Well, that makes it all fine," said the Troll, sarcastically.
"He's no one," Snow said, trying to get him back on the topic. "Look, I want to buy back the jewels I sold you."
"Who is he?" the Troll demanded Snow.
"I said don't worry about it," Snow got in between the Troll and Charming. "Look, I'll give you back all of your money. You just give me the ring. You can keep everything else." She said, trying to negotiate with the Troll.
The other Trolls were snarling at both of them, they didn't want to give the jewels back or the ring back to them. The Troll with the dreads looked at one of the other Trolls that were behind Charming and was communicating through their eyes, and the Troll with the dreads nodded at him. The Troll grabbed the leather pouch from inside his dirty coat and backed away from Prince Charming while handing the bag to him.
"Thank you. We appreciate the help." Charming said to the Trolls.
"He's too eager," said the Troll, the other Troll yanked the bag from his hand. "This is a setup."
"It's not!" Snow shouted at him.
"He's a Royal!" the Troll shouted back, he grabbed Snow around the neck with the sword in his hand still. "Hold him," he instructed the other Trolls.
Charming got out his own sword and pointed it at the leader of the Troll group, yelling, "Let her go!" The Troll knocked the sword off his hands and Charming yelled out in pain the troll pinned him to the stone wall.
"No! You can trust me. Look, you can trust me. If I wanted to set you up, I would have. Don't hurt him," Snow pleaded with the trolls.
"The time for dealing is done," he said in her ear. "Search him," he demanded the other trolls.
The trolls patted him down all over his body, dumping out the bags that he brought with him on the trip. The troll that was searching for him, found the fairy dust that Charming took from Snow. He held it between his fingers and showed it to the other trolls. He tossed it on the ground-thankfully not breaking it-Snow looked at the Fairy dust on the ground then he pushed Snow off him and near Charming.
The other trolls found the wanted poster that Charming kept, they started getting excited, they were laughing and he showed it to the Troll with the dreads. His sword was pointing at Snow while examining the poster in his hand, Charming looked at Snow and then back at the other trolls.
"Snow White," said the troll with the dreads. "Quite a reward," he said, holding up the poster. "Take her!" He instructed the other trolls.
Charming noticed the sword on the ground and he quickly picked it up off the ground and hit the troll's arm with the hilt of his sword, the troll backed away and then Charming hit the other troll making him get off of Snow White so she could escape. The trolls fought back against Charming's blows. Charming sliced the back of one of the trolls while he ducked at the troll's attempts at hitting him.
"Go! I'm right behind you," Charming said to Snow while he still fought against them.
Snow grabbed the leather bag and the fairy dust, ducking so she wouldn't get hit as she ran off the Troll Bridge. Charming still fighting, he got one of the Trolls alone and pushed him off where the pile of long two-fours of wood, the troll fell into an open space. Charming looked down at the opening, watching him off to the ground. He was making it over to the other side but another troll came out of nowhere and made him fall onto the wood, almost making him fall.
The other trolls pulled him to the stone bridge by the feet, he was trying to hold onto the woods of the unfinished bridge but couldn't. They were too strong.
Snow was running from the Troll Bridge, she thought he would be right behind her like he said he would be but he wasn't, he was getting attacked by them. "Follow me!" she yelled over her shoulder. "They don't know the forest like I do," she was witnessing the trolls about to kill Charming, she couldn't let that happen, she had to think of something.
She looked around the forest to find something to use as a weapon but she didn't know what then she looked down at what was in her hands, and she knew what she had to do.
The Trolls were pinning Charming down on the stone floor of the bridge, he was grunting and trying to get out of their grips but it was no luck. The trolls got the sword away from Charming and made him get up to face their leader.
"Royal blood is the sweetest of all," said the troll with the dreads, he lifted up the sword and roared loudly. But before he could hurt Charming with the sword, a gray cloud came and turned the troll with the dreads into a small bug. The sword clattered against the ground and the bug was on its back, struggling to upright itself.
The other trolls looked up and saw Snow White standing there, looking at the bug. Then she looked at the trolls and Charming. One of the trolls took a step forward, Snow quickly got the black fairy dust into her hand and threw it at him, turning the troll into a bug as well. And she did the same thing to the other troll, throwing the black fairy dust at the troll.
Charming had ducked just in case he got hit with the dark fairy dust, after a few minutes, he looked back up and saw that they were gone. He picked up his sword and slowly got up, taking a step back.
"You...," he started to say, panting heavily. "You saved me."
"It was the honorable thing to do," she said, using those exact words to him, chuckling softly.
"What about your special someone?" he asked.
Snow took off the necklace that had contained the black fairy dust, shrugging lightly. "I'll think of something else," she answered, tossing the necklace onto the ground.
"Thank you," he said, looking at her and then putting the sword back into his belt.
"Anyways," Snow said, while they picked up the stuff the trolls dumped out. "How could I let Prince Charming die?" she said, giving him back the leather pouch with a smile on her face.
"I told you, I have a name," he said, putting the things back into the larger bag that he was carrying around. "It's James."
It's nice to meet you, James," Snow said, smiling wider than normal. "We should go. There may be more of them coming."
They both walked off the Troll Bridge, they definitely didn't want to run into any more trolls on this bridge. They were such a pain in the ass to defeat. Charming took the coins back off the bridge and into his pocket.
A wolf howled in the distance, Emma, Mary Margaret, Henry, and Sheriff Graham were now nearing a small metal bridge with a small river bank. The bridge is called a Toll Bridge. They looked in all different directions to look for John Doe but they couldn't see him at first.
"Where is he? Can you see him?" asked Mary Margaret.
"The trail dies at the water line," Graham said, flashing his flashlight at the water.
They all stood for a moment, flashing their flashlight and then walking around a bit to find him better. Mary Margaret shone a light in the water trying to look for John Doe, then she saw him lying in the water on the rocks.
"Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Oh, my God!" Mary Margaret cried out as she rushed over to John Doe. The rest of the group followed her over to the body.
"I need an ambulance at the old toll bridge as soon as possible," Sheriff Graham spoke into his walkie-talkie, walking over to the man lying down on the rocks.
"Hang on. Hang on. Hang on." Emma said they lifted his body off of the large rocks and onto the dirt path.
"I'm falling, falling, falling. I'm falling," said Mary Margaret. They kept walking as they held him up until they were up. "Hold on. I feel we need to slow down. Slow down. Slow down." They set him down gently where Henry was at.
Mary Margaret was on her knees, frantic. "No, no, no, no, no. I found you!" she said to the unconscious man. "It's gonna be okay."
Emma stood up and took a few steps back away from the whole situation.
"Help's coming," Sheriff Graham said urgently.
"Is he okay? Is he gonna be okay?" Henry asked the three of them.
Emma ran over to Henry to shield him from the body. "Henry, don't look, okay? Don't look." She said to him quietly.
Mary Margaret bent down her head, listening to his breathing. "Come back to us," she said loudly. "Come back to me," she whispered to herself and him. Then she pulled back and started doing CPR on John Doe, she placed her hands on his chest and started pressing down on his chest.
"It's okay. It's okay," Emma mumbled to Henry.
Then she stopped, bent down pinching his nose, and opened his mouth as she breathed into his mouth. John Doe started sputtering out river water, Mary Margaret jumped slightly when he sputtered out the water. He was gasping for air as Mary Margaret placed her hands on the back of his head. They both stared at each other for the longest moment.
"You saved me," said John Doe in a raspy voice. She smiled weakly at him, laughing lightly as she nodded.
"She did it. She did it." Henry said with the biggest smile on his face. "She woke him up."
"Yeah, kid, she did," Emma agreed with him.
"Thank you," he said in a whispering voice.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"I don't know," he answered.
"It's okay. You're going to be okay," she reassured him, the sirens were approaching them.
The hospital, Dr. Whale, and two nurses brought John Doe into the hospital. "Watch your backs. Coming through," said Dr. Whale. "Thanks, guys. We got it from here." He said when they got through the second double door. Dr. Whale hooked him up with the IVs and other tubes that he might need.
Emma, Mary Margaret, Henry, and Sheriff Graham stood out the doors for his room, watching the nurses and Dr. Whale checking on the male.
"David?" some blonde woman called out for John Doe, pushing through the door and walking to his side. "David, is that you?" she asked.
"Excuse me, ma'am," Dr. Whale looked over at her.
"Oh, my God," she whispered, putting her hand over her mouth as tears went down her cheeks.
"Ma'am, you can't be in here. Please, you can't be here right now." Dr. Whale said, trying to get her out of the room. "You can't be here, ma'am. Can you wait over here for a second?" he dragged her away from John Doe to the corner of the room.
"Who is that?" Mary Margaret asked. Emma and Henry shrugged at her question, watching the whole ordeal.
"His wife," Regina said, answering her question. They all looked over at her when she spoke, a small smile on her lips. They were all shocked because they all remembered that Regina told them that no one had claimed John Doe when he was admitted to the hospital.
Prince Charming and Snow White are walking through the forest, Charming turns around to see Snow and she looks like she is upset about something, so he stops in his tracks. Snow chuckled as she turned to look behind her and then looked around to not see his face.
"So...," Charming said. "You probably want this." He took out a pouch and handed it to her with a smile.
"Right, the gold. Thank you." She said, looking at it and taking it out of his hand. Wrapping the string around her belt he watched her carefully. "And you can't get married without this," she said, giving him back his leather pouch.
He opened it and he jingled out some of the jewels and the ring that his mother gave him for his soon-to-be bride. The ring was silver and the diamond was a light green, it was gorgeous. "I know. Not your style." He said, looking at the ring and then back at Snow.
Snow looked at the ring for a moment then took it out of his hand. "Well, there's only one way to find out," she said, putting it on her left ring finger and holding it up to examine it. Charming looked at her like he was in love and he was in love with Snow but he wasn't going to admit it to her and she wasn't going to admit it to him either. "Yeah, not me at all," she said, shaking her head as she took off the ring and handed it back to him. "I'm sure your fiancee will love it."
Charming looked at her for the longest time then chuckled, taking the ring back and putting it in the leather pouch. "You know, if you need more, you can have the rest. The ring is all I require."
"No, I'm good. Thanks." She shook her head, smiling at him. "We both got what we wanted." She looked down and patted at the gold around her waist.
Charming smiled to himself and nodded once. "Well, wherever you're going, be careful," he said to her. "If you need anything..."
"You'll find me," she finished the sentence.
"Always," he promised.
"I almost believe that," Snow said, smiling. She bent down and took the bag off the ground and put it over her shoulder.
"Well, goodbye, Snow White," he said, bowing his head slightly.
"Goodbye, Prince Charming," she said, bowing her head.
"I told you. It's James," he reminded her once again.
"No, still like Charming better," she told him, smiling as they both chuckled. Snow walked away first, Charming looking after her.
Snow stopped in her tracks and turned her body slightly as she looked at Charming as he walked away. She smiled sadly at him leaving then she turned and walked away again.
Dr. Whale was checking up on John Doe, making sure his heart was doing fine. Regina, Emma, and Mary Margaret were on the other side of John Doe. Mary Margaret was shocked that his wife came into the hospital, she didn't even know that he was married.
"His name is David Nolan," Regina told Mary Margaret and Emma. "And that's his wife, Kathryn. And the joy on her face? Well, it's put me in quite a forgiving mood." She said that directly at Emma, who was sitting down in a chair. "We'll talk about your insubordination later," she said to Henry. "Do you know what insubordination means?" she asked, Henry, shook his head. "It means you're grounded."
Mary Margaret looked behind her as Kathryn walked out of the room with a smile on her face. "Thank you," she said to them. "Thank you for finding my David."
"Um, I don't understand," Mary Margaret said, looking down as she shook her head. "You didn't... You didn't know that he was here in a coma?" she asked in a confused voice.
"A few years ago, David and I were not getting along. It was my fault. I know that now. I was difficult and unsupportive. I told him if he didn't like things, he could leave. And he did." Kathryn explained. "And I didn't stop him. It was the worst mistake I ever made."
Emma leaned forward as she still sat in her chair. "You didn't go looking for him?" she asked.
"I assumed he left town all this time," she answered, truthfully. "Now I know why I never heard from him. Now I get to do what I've wanted to do forever. Say, I'm sorry." She smiled, thinking about her second chance with her husband. "Now we get a second chance."
"That's wonderful," Mary Margaret whispered with a smile.
Dr. Whale came out of the room and stood with the group of women, Kathryn turned to look at Dr. Whale. "Well, it's something of a miracle," he announced.
"He's okay?" Kathryn asked.
"Physically, he's on the mend. His memory is another issue," Dr. Whale explained to her. "It may take time, if at all."
"What brought him back?" Mary Margaret asked, stunned.
"That's the thing, there's no explanation. Something just clicked in him," he said.
"He just got up and decided to go for a stroll?" Emma asked, concerned.
"He woke up and he was delirious," Dr. Whale answered. "And his first instinct was to go find something, I guess."
"Someone," Henry said.
"Can I see him?" Kathryn asked.
"Yeah, of course," Dr. Whale muttered to her, he opened the door for her and she walked into the room. They were all quiet when she walked into the room.
"Henry, let's go," Regina demanded, she turned and walked off while Henry got out of the chair.
"Wait, my backpack," he said, turning around and grabbing his backpack off the floor. "Don't believe them. You're the one he was looking for," he whispered to Mary Margaret.
"Henry...," Mary Margaret said softly, closing her eyes for a second.
"He was going to the Troll Bridge. It's like the end of the story," he explained.
"Henry, he was going there because it's the last thing I read to him," she tried to let him down gently.
"No, it's because you belong together," he insisted, he wasn't giving up, not just yet.
"Henry," Regina called out for him. He walked off to his mother as they both left the hospital. Mary Margaret watched Kathryn and David through the glass window.
Emma was running down the hall of the hospital, catching up to Regina and Henry. "Madam Mayor?" she called out.
"Wait by the car," Regina told Henry, turning around to face Emma. "Miss Swan, I let you off the hook back there. Don't press it."
"I'm sorry, but Mrs. Nolan?" she questioned. "Kind of feels like her story could be a load of crap. All this time there's a John Doe lying around in a coma and nobody puts it in the news? Nobody goes looking? Something's not right here."
Regina tilted her head to the side slightly, looking at Emma. "Well, what else would make sense to you?" she asked. "Why would Miss Nolan lie? Oh, do you think I cast a spell on her?"
"I think it's rather strange you've been his emergency contact all these years, and you only found her now," Emma said to Regina, she was finding it hard to believe that now she found his wife.
"Well, this town is bigger than you know," Regina said, crossing her arms. "It's entirely possible to get lost here. It's entirely possible for bad things to happen."
"Just when it's convenient, you manage to solve the mystery."
"Thanks to you," she smiled on Emma's face. "That tape you found was a stroke of genius. So we went back and looked at past tapes. Turns out Mr. Doe's been talking in his sleep. He's been calling out for a 'Kathryn.' After that, it wasn't hard to put the pieces together." Emma rolled her eyes. "And here I thought you and Mary Margaret would be pleased. True love won out. So bask at the moment, dear. Were it not for you two, they would have lived their lives completely alone. That's why I'm willing to forgive your incessant rudeness. Because all this has reminded me of something oh so very important. How grateful I am to have Henry. Because not having someone? Well, that's the worst curse imaginable."
Kathryn was sitting on David's hospital bed, she leaned in and hugged him tightly. Mary Margaret watched them, David looked over his wife's shoulder to see her. She smiled weakly at him. She was falling in love with a man who had a wife and she knew that she couldn't do that to Kathryn, she seemed the sweetest person on this earth.
Mary Margaret closed her eyes for a few seconds before she looked down at the ring that was on her middle finger, she was twirling it.
Now, Mary Margaret was at her apartment building, sitting on her stairs just staring off into space, thinking about everything that had happened today, still playing with the ring between her fingers. Someone knocked on the door, breaking her thoughts and bringing her back to reality.
She stood up and walked down the stairs and toward the door, opening up door. Emma was standing on the other side of it.
"Emma," Mary Margaret said.
"Sorry to bother you so late," she said, crossing her arms over her chest. "Is that spare room still available?" she asked.
A smile spread across her face, nodding her head as she let Emma into the apartment room. Walking in and closing the door behind them. She was happy to see Emma finally trusting other people, it made her heart swell.