Henry Mills was in a store, reading a Marvel comic book, named: Wolverine vs. Hulk. "Thank you so much, Mr. Clark," a woman said. "I really appreciate it. Thank you." While the woman was talking to Mr. Clark, Henry was smirking to himself as he kept reading the comic book.
"What are you reading?" a girl asked Henry, Henry closed the comic and turned around, looking at the girl. The girl was pretty. With long wavy, blond hair and pretty ocean blue eyes.
"The Hulk vs. Wolverine," answered Henry.
"I'm Ava. I think I've seen you around school," Ava introduced herself to him. "You're in Miss Blanchard's class, right?" she asked and Henry nodded.
"Almost ready, Ava?" a boy asked.
"This is my brother, Nicholas," she nodded toward her brother.
"Hi," Nicholas said.
"Oh," Henry said with a bright smile.
"Come on. Let's go," Nicholas said to his sister.
"You wanna come hang out?" Ava asked Henry.
"Oh... Sure," Henry agreed, he grabbed his bag and put his comic book into his bag, turning around to smile at Ava. He walked with his two new friends toward the door of the store. Nicholas was opening the door and the doorbell jingled, just as they were about to leave the owner of the store put his hand on the door, slamming it shut on them.
"Where the hell do you think you're going?" he asked right before he sneezed, he took out his large white handkerchief, pointing at Henry. "Open up your bag." He demanded Henry.
"What?" Henry asked, confused.
"Don't think I didn't see you rob me. Open your bag," Mr. Clark said in a matter-of-fact voice.
"I didn't take anything," Henry said, he was telling the truth.
The owner of the story took Henry's bag off of his shoulder, sighing in annoyance as he unzipped his bag, and searched through his bag. He looked up at Henry with a knowing look on his face. He pulled out three candy bars in his hand. "And a liar too."
Henry turned to look at Ava with a sad expression on his face. "That's why you were talking to me," he said in realization. "So your brother could put that stuff in there."
Ava and Nicholas had guilt all over their faces like they were ashamed that they did it in the first place but they didn't have any money on them. All they wanted was some sweets.
"Henry, I'm shocked," Mr. Clark said to Henry then he looked at the two siblings. "And you two... Just who do you think you are?" he asked the two siblings but they looked at each other, worried.
The Woodcutter was out in the Enchanted Forest, he had an ax in his hands and he started hacking away at an enormous tree. It started cracking and it slowly fell as the Woodcutter looked up and stood back, watching the tree fall onto the ground. He sighed and sniffled as he walked over to the tree. "A fine specimen," the Woodcutter called out, he threw his ax into the dirt while a little girl with blond hair and two French braids was wearing a dress. It was nothing fancy or anything but it suited her well. She walked around the broken stomps as she lifted her dress up a bit. "The wood it provides will keep our family's hearth warm this winter."
"Can't I have an ax?" asked Gretel.
"Huh?" the Woodcutter asked, he looked over at her.
"You did say you wanted me here so I could help." She stated.
The Woodcutter cracked a smile and then looked down at the broken tree. "That I did. So here is your task. Take the cart." He pointed to it. "Go fill it with kindling. The drier the better."
She nodded with a smile. "Okay. And have your brother accompany you." He nodded toward her brother who had a fishing line in his hands.
"Okay. Come on." Gretel walked toward to get the cart for kindling.
"Wait," said the Woodcutter. She turned around to face him, setting the cart down as the Woodcutter walked over to her. He took off a necklace and put it around her neck. "Take this."
She smiled down at it and then back up to him. "Your compass?" she asked, her eyes lit up.
"So you don't get lost," he said. "A family always needs to be able to find one another."
"Yeah," she whispered.
"Okay," he whispered. "Go."
"Thank you," Gretel said, she walked back to her brother, Hansel.
"Be safe," said the Woodcutter.
The siblings picked up the cart and started walking further into the Enchanted Forest while their father went over to another tree and started cutting the tree.
Gretel has some kindling, she walks back up a small hill to her brother. "It's getting late. We should go." She sets the kindling into the cart while Hansel throws a rock and thuds against a tree.
Gretel took the fishing line away from Hansel. "Hey! Give it back," he cried. "Come on, Gretel. Give it back."
"No, Hansel. We need to get back to Father," Gretel stated firmly while wounding it back up.
"Fine," he groaned but agreed.
"Follow me," she said, taking the compass in her hands and looking at it. Hansel grabbed the handles of the cart and pushed it behind his sister as she followed the compass directions. They finally made it back to where their father was cutting the wood, she looked up and looked around the area. "This is where we left him," she said.
"So why isn't he here?" Hansel asked.
They both ran to the big opening, and they both called out, "Father!" Hoping that their father would be nearby and not have left them. "Father!" they both cried out for their father once again, they both looked around the forest once again. A man grunts in the distance, and the siblings hear the grunt. They both ran to the sound and Gretel yelled, "Father!" they ran over twigs, branches, dirt, and patches of grass. Gretel and Hansel wanted to go see their father, they were worried that he was hurt or injured. "Father!" Gretel called out, the siblings were on a road and both looked up and down it. "Father!" Hansel called out as two horses came down Hansel and Gretel both gasped and fell down to the ground, the two guards pulled the reins of the horses to make them stop, and the horses stopped in front of them as the siblings stayed down the ground, looking up. Gretel looked at the compass and was pointing North.
One guard came down from the horse and grabbed the siblings by the arms. "Get up," he grunted. He pushed them both toward the black carriage, Hansel and Gretel stood side-by-side to one another as they both looked at the carriage. The guard walked toward the carriage while Gretel put on the necklace. The guard opened the door of the carriage and popped out the Evil Queen, her face was furious. She had things to do, people to torture and make people cry.
"What are you doing in my forest?" Regina asked the siblings.
The siblings looked at Regina in shock and in fear, they didn't know what to say and Regina was waiting for one of them to answer.
"I'm sorry, Madam Mayor, but your son was shoplifting," said the owner of the store.
Regina looked down at her son with a level look on her face. "Were you?" she asked. He shook his head quickly.
"Well, look for yourself," he said as he pointed to the pile of candy that Henry "stole".
Regina looked over at the stash of candy then walked over and picked up a candy bar, examining it in her hand. "My son doesn't eat candy. And he knows better than to steal." Setting the candy bar back down zipping up Henry's back and handing it back to him, looking at the two siblings. "It was obviously those two. We're going." Regina and Henry turned as they took a few steps when the doorbell jingled.
"Henry? What happened?" Emma asked him.
Regina put her arm around Henry, looking at Emma. "Miss Swan. Must I remind you that genetics mean nothing." Emma placed her hands on her hips as Henry looked up at Regina. "You're not his mother. And it's all taken care of."
"I'm here because I'm the sheriff," Emma reminded Regina.
"Oh, that's right," Regina said. "Go on, do your job." Emma walked past the two and stood in front of the siblings and store owner. "Take care of those miscreants." She called over her shoulder, referring to the siblings. She opened the door and let Henry walk out first then herself.
"Did you call their parents?" Emma asked Mr. Clark.
"The number they gave me was disconnected," he answered, walking away from them.
"Did you guys give Mr. Clark a fake number?" Emma asked Ava and Nicholas. They both shook their heads at her question. "Then was it disconnected?" she asked.
"'Cause our parents couldn't pay the bill," Ava answered softly.
Emma walked over to the counter and picked up a box of toothpaste then looked over at them with a sad look on her face. "You guys are just trying to help out, huh?" she asked.
Ava nodded to her question, tearing up slightly. "Please. Please don't arrest us," Ava begged Emma. "It'll just make things worse for our parents." Emma looked between the two kids.
"Please forgive us," Gretel said to the Queen. "We didn't mean to bother you. We just..." she paused for a moment, sighing. "Well, we just lost our father." She explained to Regina.
"Two helpless children lost and alone. A family torn asunder. Such a sad and moving story," Regina said as she looked between the two siblings. "Guards," she called for them and walked away from the children, walking to her carriage and looking back at the kids with blank faces. "Seize them."
"Hansel, run!" Gretel said to her brother while taking out a long string with a rock attached to it and swinging it around over her head, hitting a guard with it and him flying back. Regina gasped, taking a few steps forward. Gretel ran back into the forest, just as the horses started whining. The guard took out his sword but Regina placed a hand on his chest to stop him.
Hansel and Gretel ran up the hill in the Enchanted Forest trying to get away from Regina and her guards. A cloud of black smoke came out of nowhere and Regina appeared a foot away from the siblings, Regina laughed in their faces.
"Running from me is foolish," said Regina, laughing once again.
Hansel and Gretel tried to run away again but Regina raised her arm making the roots go up and forward, toward Hansel's and Gretel's feet and wrapping around them as they fell, trying to escape the roots. They were both struggling to get free from the magical roots, grunting and groaning.
Regina laughed at them. "Foolish," she said, walking down gracefully from the hill, "but also brave." They were still trying to get out of the roots. "And that bravery may just have saved you and your family's lives." With a wave of her hand, the roots moved back and off of the two children. They stopped struggling when the roots went back under the dirt, they slowly sat up and stood up on their feet.
"You're letting us go?" Gretel asked Regina.
"Oh, I'm doing so much more than that. I'm going to find your father."
"You are?" asked Hansel.
"Why?" asked Gretel.
Regina bent down to their height. "Because you two are going to do something for me."
"And then you'll take us home?" asked Gretel.
Emma and the siblings were in the sheriff's police car, she drove Ava and Nicholas to their house. She stopped her car on the side of the street while looking at the house. "This is?" she asked them. They both looked at the light blue house with red steps and white rails. Emma put the car in park and took off her seatbelt and the kids did the same. She was about to get out of the car when Ava stopped her.
"Please. No," she said, begging her to not get out of the car. Emma turned to face the kids in the backseat. "If our parents see you, they'll be so embarrassed."
Emma closed the car door and turned around to face the kids. "Did Henry tell you about my superpower?" she asked.
"We just met him," Ava admitted, her brother looking at her.
"I have the ability to tell when anyone is lying. So tell me the truth. Money problems aside, is everything okay at home?" Emma asked.
"Yeah. We're great," Ava lied. "Can we go?"
Emma looked between the two kids, sighing softly as she nodded once. "All right," she said reluctantly.
Ava opened the car door and got out of the police car while Nicholas grabbed the bags of items, getting out of the car right behind his sister. The engine started up, Emma watched Ava and Nicholas up the stairs of the house and waved at Emma. Emma drove off as the siblings watched the car out of sight.
"She's gone. We're good," Ava said to Nicholas. They walked back down the stairs quickly, to the side of the house as they grunted over the white fence, Ava took the bags from Nicholas as she helped him over the fence as well. They descended down the wooden boxes and they ran across a back street, between old cars and big bushes. Ava opened a door to an old building, the windows were boarded up with wooden planks. Nicholas was close behind her all the way to this house, they entered the house and closed the door behind them. Ava walked further into the abandoned house took out the items and set them on an old, chipping dresser. Nicholas sat on a cot bed and Ava heard some clattering upstairs, she stopped taking the items out of the bag and turned toward the noise.
Ava opened up the hatch to the main house, and climbed up the stairs–Nicholas was right behind her. They looked around in the kitchen and rounded the corner, Emma appeared behind them.
"Why did you guys lie to me?" Emma asked them, and they both gasped in fear and shock. "Where are your parents?"
"We don't have any," Ava answered.
Emma blinked in shock when she answered that. She couldn't believe that they didn't have any, every kid has parents or at least relatives to stay with. She wanted to help the kids in any way possible, she would try to find their parents or one of their parents at least. She didn't want to see these kids being homeless and being so alone in this house without any parents.
Ava and Nicholas are at Emma and Mary Margaret's apartment, they are sitting at the table eating cereal. Emma looked at the kids and then back at her friend.
"Do you know them? Do they go to your school?" Emma asked Mary Margaret.
"I've seen them, but I had no idea. None of us did." Mary Margaret answered.
Emma opened up a folder of the two siblings, looking down at the papers and pictures of them. "Ava and Nicholas Zimmer. They said their mother was a woman named Dorrie Zimmer. She died a few years ago." Mary Margaret shook her head, not recalling the mother's name at all. "No one seems to know her to remember her."
"And the father?" Mary Margaret asked curiously.
"There isn't one. At least not one that they know," Emma answered.
"What does... What does Social Services say?" Mary Margaret asked, looking at the kids for a moment before looking over at Emma again. Emma didn't answer, she looked at the other woman as if she didn't trust her words. "You didn't report them." She stated.
"I report them, I can't help them. They go into the system," Emma whispered.
"The system that's supposed to help," Mary Margaret whispered back.
"Yeah, says the woman who wasn't in it for sixteen years," Emma shot at her bitterly. "Do you know what happened?" she asked. "They get thrown into homes where they are a meal ticket. Nothing more. These families get paid for these kids. And as soon as they're too much work, they get tossed out and it all starts over again."
"They're not all like that," Mary Margaret said, trying to give the system the benefit of the doubt.
"All the ones I was in," Emma answered.
"What?" We're just gonna adopt them?" Mary Margaret asked.
"I wanna look for their father," Emma answered. "They don't know him. He may not know they exist."
Mary Margaret drew in a breath. "And you think if he knows he'll want them?" she asked.
Emma took a moment to answer, "I don't know. But what I do know, is it's hard enough finding foster families to take one kid that isn't theirs. Let alone two. It's their best shot or..."
Ava was standing right behind Emma, tears running down her cheeks. "We're gonna be separated?" she asked while crying.
Emma turned around quickly with a shocked and sad expression. "No. That's not gonna happen."
"Please," Ava begged. "Please don't let it." Emma and Mary Margaret looked at the girl, both silent for a long moment and Ava looked back at her brother and then back at the two older women. Emma looked at Mary Margaret for a second.
A man was in a building, he was sitting down at his desk doing paperwork while eating his lunch. Emma walks into the building and stands behind a much larger wooden desk. "Excuse me, Mr. Krzyszkowski?" she mispronounces his name but he looks up and sees her.
"It's 'Krzyszkowski'," he said, correcting her. "Everyone calls me 'K'." He explained, standing up and walking toward Emma.
"Mr. K, I am Sheriff Swan," she introduces herself. "I'm hoping to look at the birth certificates of Ava and Nicholas Zimmer."
Mr. K drew in a breath and bent down to grab the papers and a pen, handing them to Emma. "All right, just fill out this form in triplicate." He took out a big metal stamp and slammed it onto the three pieces of paper that he laid out in front of Emma.
Emma took the papers and the pen, her eyes widening. "Okay," she muttered to herself. She started signing the papers in front of her.
Mr. K went over to the filing cabinet and opened up the first drawer, he looked inside it for a few seconds then back at Emma. "I'm so sorry. Those documents have been recently removed."
"By who?" she asked.
"Don't worry, Miss Swan, you can relax," Regina said, she walked around her desk and sat down in her black leather chair. Emma was standing between the two black chairs with her hands in her back pockets. "I've contacted Social Services. It turns out these kids are on their own. They need help."
"Which is exactly what I'm trying to do. I'm trying to find their father," Emma explained to her.
"Well," Regina reached over in the corner of her desk and grabbed a thick file, "he doesn't exist." She handed the file to Emma.
"He has to," Emma stated, looking Regina in the eyes as she looked down at the file and flipped through the pages of the file. When she looked down at the documents Emma saw that the father was unknown.
"Of course, biologically, he exists but there is no record of him," Regina explained. "Which means we have no choice. These children need a home. So they will be put into the foster system."
"Storybrooke has a foster system?" Emma asked, clearly confused.
"No. But I've contacted the state," Regina got up from her seat and walked around her desk. "Maine's group homes, unfortunately, are filled, but they put us in touch with two homes in Boston." She walked toward a glass mirror with a silver side table that came up to Regina's waist, she got a glass and poured her famous apple cider drink and Emma followed her. "A boys' home a girls'."
"They're separating them?" Emma asked, shocked.
"I don't like it either," Regina said, looking into the mirror as she looked at Emma. "But we've got no choice." She turned to face the other. "You need to have them in Boston tonight."
"Me?" Emma asked, startled.
"Well, you wanted to be sheriff. This is what sheriffs do," Regina stated firmly, giving her a small smirk. "Yes, you're taking them."
"No. I promised them they wouldn't be separated," Emma shot at Regina.
"Well, then perhaps you should stop making promises you can't keep." Regina took two steps forward to Emma with her drink in her hand. "These children need a home. I'm just trying to find the best one."
Hansel and Gretel were in the Enchanted Forest, Gretel was in front of her brother while holding the compass that her father had given her right before he disappeared. Regina was in front of the siblings, pushing the leaves out of her way. She looked over her shoulder at Gretel and noticed the necklace around her neck.
"What is that?" Regina asked Gretel.
"My father's compass. He gave it to me so I could find him," Gretel responded. "But now it's broken."
"When are you gonna tell us where we're going?" Hansel asked Regina.
"This is close enough," Regina responded.
"Close enough to what?" Gretel asked.
Regina turned around to face the children, a grin came to her lips. "The home of the Blind Witch."
Gretel turned her head slightly to look at her brother. "That doesn't sound good," Hansel muttered while looking into Gretel's eyes with a worried expression.
"She has something of mine. And I need you to get it back," Regina requested.
"What is it?" Gretel asked.
"Something I need to defeat a very wicked and powerful enemy," answered Regina. "It's kept in a black leather satchel inside her house."
"Why don't you get it yourself? How come you need us?" Gretel asked.
"Because the house is protected by magic," Regina said. "I can't enter. But luckily the spell doesn't work on children." She smiled at them. "You'll have to wait here until nightfall. And then, once the witch is asleep, you can sneak in."
Gretel looked her dead in the eyes before asking her a question. "And if we do this, you promise you'll find our father?" she asked gently.
"Oh," she breathed out, "indeed I will. But there's one more thing. The witch's house is...," she paused, trying to find the right word. "Unique. And because of this, you have to take special precautions once you're inside."
"Like what?" Gretel asked, wanting to get this down and over with.
"No matter what you do, no matter how you're tempted, don't eat anything." Regina turned her head back to the house that was a few hundred yards away, she fully turned away completely and started walking away from Hansel and Gretel, pushing the giant bush out of the way and revealing a gingerbread house with big different colored gumdrops all over the edges of the house, small pillars of gingerbread were in front of the house with pink and green patterning up. Regina turned around and looked at the siblings with a dark smile on her face while the siblings looked at the house then they looked at each other with worried expressions.
Emma Swan was back at the police station, she was in her office and hovering over her desk, looking at the files of Ava and Nicholas Zimmer. Henry opened the door and walked in, a book in his hand.
"Any luck?" he asked Emma.
"No," Emma said, looking up for a quick second and then looking down at the paper in her hand.
"I know who they are," he said, revealing the Once Upon A Time book, setting the book down on the desk and Emma looked over. "A brother and sister. Lost." Henry opened the book to Hansel and Gretel as he looked at Emma. "No parents." He turned the book around showing the picture of the two siblings. "Hansel and Gretel."
"Anything in there about the dad?" she asked, smiling.
"Just that he abandoned them," Henry answered.
"Great," she said bitterly, closing the book. "Sounds like a familiar story." She walked around her desk and Henry. "Whoever this guy is, he could be in Laos by now." She walked out of her office and into the bigger office space.
Henry was right behind her. "No, he's here," he stated.
Emma scoffed and looked at Henry. "And just how do you know that?" she asked, opening up a filing cabinet.
"'Cause no one leaves Storybrooke. No one comes here. No one goes. It's just the way it is." He explained.
"I came here," she said, looking over at him while looking at the files.
"Because you're special," he said. "You're the first stranger here, ever."
"Right. I forgot." She pulled out the file and closed the cabinet, looking at Henry then looked at the file in her hand. "Well, if he's around here anywhere, I'm gonna find him." She sat down at one of the desks and Henry got up on the desk, sitting down as he watched her.
"Can you tell me about him?" he asked.
"I don't know anything yet," she said, looking up at him.
"Not their father. Mine." Emma looked up, shocked. "I told you about your parents, now you're even living with your mom."
"Mary Margaret isn't... She's...," She sighed, looking down at the papers in front of her. "Never mind."
"Please," he begged.
She angled her chair to face him, looking at him for a long moment before telling him. She was debating on telling him or not but she decided to and he has the right to know the truth about his father. "I was pretty young. I had just gotten out of the foster system. And the only job I could get was at this 24-hour diner just off the interstate. And, um, your dad was training to be a fireman. He always got the worst shifts. So he'd come in and order coffee and pie, sit at the counter, and always complain that we didn't sell pumpkin pie. But he always came back the next night anyway." She explained.
"Did you get married?" he asked.
"Oh, no, nothing like that," she laughed. "We just... We hung out a few times outside of work. And life happened. He's got better and mine got worse, and I got in some trouble."
"When you went to jail?" he asked.
She inhaled, nodding. "Yeah," she whispered. "Before I went, I found out I was pregnant with you. And I tried to contact him." She leaned forward, looking up at Henry. "And I found out that he died saving a family from a burning apartment building. So, you think I'm a savior, Henry? He was. Your father was a real hero."
"Did you have anything of his? Something you can remember him by?" he asked. "Something I could see?"
"I...," She couldn't remember what she had of his that reminded him of her, then she realized that she didn't, blinking. "I don't. Henry. I'm sorry. I gotta go. I may know how to find this guy." She pushed the chair back and grabbed the file, walking out of the police building and Henry jumped off the desk, following Emma.
Nicholas and Ava were sitting at the counter, plates in front of them with cookies and two glasses of milk. Ava was sitting and nibbling on the counter. Nicholas stood up and went over to the counter to get another cookie from the plate, taking a good-sized bite.
Emma came down with a box in her hands, looking over at the two siblings and walking over to them, setting the box down on the counter. "I want to show you guys something." She pulled out a blanket that used to be white but now is cream with a purple ribbon on the edge and in the corner it says Emma, her name.
"What's that?" Nicholas asked, looking over at the blanket.
"It's my baby blanket," Emma answered. "It's something I've held on to my whole life. It's the only thing that I have from my parents. I spent a lot of time with a lot of kids in your situation, and all of them, all of us, we held on to stuff. I want to find your father, but I need your help. Is there anything of his you've held on to?"
"I might have something," Ava said. "But if I give it to you, you'll make sure we stay together, right?"
"Right," Emma said, putting the blanket back inside the box.
Ava took out the compass from her sweater pocket and handed it to Emma, she took it into her hands and looked at it.
"A compass?" Emma asked.
"Our mom kept it," Ava answered. "She said it was our dad's."
"Thank you," Emma said, looking at the siblings.
"Did you find them?" Ava asked.
"Who?" Emma asked, confused.
"Your parents," Ava answered.
"Not yet. But I'm gonna find yours," Emma promised.
It's night now, Hansel and Gretel were just outside of the Blind Witch's house, they looked around slowly and walked up to the witch's window, peering inside it. Gretel puts her compass necklace inside her dress without making any type of noise. Hansel went to stand next to his sister, he dipped his finger into the frosting, taking a big glob of it but Gretel smacked his hand and mouthed the word No to her brother. Gretel stepped on a large piece of wood and climbed onto the window sill, opening up the glass window, she slowly and carefully climbed into the house. Hansel followed her steps and got into the house as well.
"How can you be sure she's sleeping?" Hansel asked in a whisper.
"I can't," Gretel whispered back, shaking her head. "And remember what the Queen said. Not even a lick."
Gretel and Hansel walked further into the house, they walked past a table full of sweets, and the Blind Witch was sitting in her rocking chair near the fireplace, snoring away.
"You were right. Look...," Hansel said softly, pointing at the satchel.
"And there's the satchel," Gretel pointed toward the satchel that was hanging up on the hook. And it was near the fireplace.
Gretel walked toward the satchel slowly and quietly. "What do you think is inside it?" Hansel asked whispering.
Gretel stopped and turned around to face her brother. "Doesn't matter," she snapped in a hushed voice. "All that matters is getting it to the Queen so she can find Father." Turning around Hansel watched her but also eyed the sweets on the table. Gretel was now close enough to reach for the satchel, she stepped on a stool and looked at the bag. Hansel picked up a chocolate cupcake with blue icing and green sprinkles. As Gretel reached up to take the satchel it rattled and the Blind Witch snorted loudly then she continued to snore away. Gretel slowly took it down while looking at the Blind Witch while Hansel looked down at the cupcake in his hands, smiling to himself. She steps down carefully while still looking at the Blind Witch and turns around to see her brother, taking a bite of the cupcake then she rushes over to him. "No!" she whispered, but it was too late. The Blind Witch was awake, her eyes spot open when Hansel took a bite of the cupcake, he put the cupcake back on the rack with the rest. "No," Gretel mouthed.
The Blind Witch turned her head and inhaled deeply, looking past the chair as she sniffed again. The siblings gasped in surprise. The Blind Witch sighed in relief and in front of her were piles of bones and skulls in front of her and in the fire as well.
Gretel and Hansel ran to the door while the Blind Witch stood up, they were close to the front door but closed it when they were near, they both gasped and were eyes wide. They ran toward the open window and it closed on them as well, they gasped once again.
"I smell dinner," said the Blind Witch, sighing. "Mmm!"
Hansel and Gretel looked at each other scared then back at the witch. They didn't know what to do or how to call out for help. They didn't want to get eaten by the Blind Witch, all they wanted to do was to find their father and be reunited.
Emma opened the door and the doorbell jingled as she walked into Mr. Gold's shop, she looked straight at him without an expression on her face.
"Emma. How lovely to see you," Mr. Gold said to her with a chipper voice. "I'm flattered you'd take time off your busy schedule for me." He stopped cleaning a piece of item and looked up to see her. "What can I do for you, Sheriff?" he asked.
She took a few steps forward and handed the compass to Mr. Gold. "I'm looking for information on this old compass." Mr. Gold picked it up carefully. "Any idea where it could have come from?"
"Well, well," Mr. Gold muttered. "Look at the detail. You know, this is crystal. This jeweled setting. And despite the rather unfortunate shape it's in, this is actually a very unusual piece." He stated, setting it down on the counter. "The person who owned this obviously had great taste."
"And where would someone like that buy it?" Emma asked.
"Right here, of course," Mr. Gold said, tapping on the counter.
"You know it?" she asked shocked.
"Indeed. A piece like this is difficult to forget."
"Do you happen to remember who bought it?"
Mr. Gold chuckled at her question. "Well, I'm good with names, Miss Swan, but maybe not that good." He walked away from her and out from behind the counter. "However, as luck would have it," he walked to a small box full of index cards, "I do keep quite extensive records." Emma followed him and stood in front of him while looking through the small index cards. "And yes. Here we are." He held up the index card in his hands and showed it to her.
Emma was trying to hide her smirk but it came out. "What's your price?" she asked.
"Forgiveness," Mr. Gold simply said.
"How about tolerance?" Emma shot at him.
"Well, that's a start," Mr. Gold said with a smile. "The compass was purchased by a Mr. Michael Tillman."
"Anything else?"
"Just a name. But I generally find that's all one needs." Emma nodded once and then turned to leave. "Good luck with your investigation." He called out to her, she turned to look at him for a second before fully leaving the shop.
Emma was at the car shop where Michael Tillman worked, she gave him the papers of Ava and Nicholas Zimmerman, and he studied their pictures for a few minutes. He gave the papers back to Emma and shook his head, "Not possible."
"Actually, it is," Emma said firmly.
"Well, I'm sorry. Look, Dorrie, she wasn't my—it was just once," he said before walking away from her and going back into the garage.
"Sometimes that's all it takes," she called to him.
"I met her when I was camping. And we...," he started messing with his tools and shook his head. "No. It's not possible. I don't have twins."
"Yes, you do," she said firmly. "You have twins that have been homeless ever since their mother passed away. You have twins who've been living in an abandoned house because they don't wanna be separated from each other." She explained while he went to work on a car that was hovered above him. "Your twins are about to be shipped off to Boston unless you step up and take responsibility for them."
A small piece of metal hit the floor, he looked down and then looked at Emma. "Look, I can barely manage this garage. I can't manage two kids. And why are you so sure they're mine?" he asked, walking away from her again.
"Besides the timing?" she asked, taking out the compass from her red leather jacket, and holding it out in front of her. "Have you ever seen this?" she asked.
Michael turned around to see what she had in her hand, he walked closer to get a closer look at it. Emma put it into his hand and kept looking at it. "I lost this," he said.
"Let me guess, twelve years and nine months ago?" she guessed, his eyebrows creased forward. "I know it's a lot. Believe me, I know. A month ago, a kid showed up on my doorstep I gave up for adoption asking for help with something. And I ended up moving here. For him."
"I heard about that. It's the mayor's son. But staying in town is a lot different than taking him in."
"I don't have my kid because I don't have a choice. You do. Those kids did not ask to be brought into this world. You brought them into this world. You and their mother. And they need you. And if you choose not to take them, you are gonna have to answer for that every day of your life. And sooner or later, when they find you, because believe me, they will find you, you're gonna have to answer to them."
Michael looked down at the compass for a long time before answering Emma, he couldn't look at her after that speech. "I'm really sorry. I am." He set it back into her hand as she looked down at it with sad eyes. "I don't know anything about being a dad." He started walking away. "If it's a good home you're looking for, it's not with me." He muttered, opening the door and closing it behind him.
Emma closed her hand around the compass tightly while closing her eyes, she couldn't believe that their father wouldn't take them. She felt bad for the twins because they needed their father. They needed someone to depend on, they were kids.
The phone started ringing at Mary Margaret's and Emma's place, the twins were still there, sitting at the counter. Mary Margaret walked away from the kitchen with the phone in her hand and into the living room. She answered the phone, "Hello?"
"Hey, it's me. I need you to come outside right away," Emma told Mary Margaret.
"Is everything okay?" Mary Margaret asked.
"Don't say anything in front of the kids, but no, it's not," Emma admitted. Mary Margaret looked back at the kids, Henry had joined them and they were all giggling and having a good time. She walked down to meet Emma outside. "He doesn't want the kids."
"And you don't want to tell them," Mary Margaret matter-of-factly.
"I can't," Emma muttered. "Because all I'll be telling them is that the false hope I gave them was exactly that."
"The truth can be painful, Emma, but it can also be cathartic," Mary Margaret tried to get her to tell the twins the truth.
"I agree on the painful part."
"Hey, look. You told Henry the truth, that his father is dead, and he's handling it great."
"I didn't tell him the truth," Emma blurted out.
Mary Margaret was taken aback by what she said. "What?" she asked confused.
"Henry's father was no hero. And trust me, he does not need to know the real story. Maybe we can hide the kids. Just until we can find a family for them, someone to take care of them," Emma suggested.
"Yes, hiding the twelve-year-olds is a good plan," Mary Margaret snapped.
"You have a better idea?" Emma asked.
"Maybe there isn't an idea. Maybe you just have to...,"
A familiar voice came to Emma and Mary Margaret's attention. "Sheriff? Shouldn't you be on the Interstate?" Regina asked as Emma turned around.
"What are you doing here?" Emma asked.
"Seeing to it that you do your job."
"You know you don't have to check up on me. I know what I have to do."
"Really? Because those kids are supposed to be in Boston tonight."
The Blind Witch put the siblings into cages, she slammed the metal cage and locked the door. She slipped her arm between the bars, trying to get a feel of them or one of them. "Where are you?" the Blind Witch sing-song. Then she felt Hansel's arm, chuckling to herself. "Oh!" she breathed out, squeezing his arm. "Yes! Nice and tender. A succulent roast you'll make." She giggled to herself as she pulled her hand away and sighed in delight. She walked away from the cage and to the furnace and the fire was blazing underneath the metal slab, the twins pressed against the bars to watch the Blind Witch. She opened the door to the fire and stuck her hand into it, feeling how warm it was and seeing if it was ready.
Hansel turned to Gretel. "Gretel, she's gonna cook me," he whispered. "We gotta do something, quick!"
"Stay calm. When she opens the cage to get you, don't try to fight. Then while she's carrying you to the oven, grab the key that's in her pocket and toss it to me through the bars," Gretel explained in a hushed whisper.
Hansel saw the Blind Witch in the kitchen with a big knife, setting the knife down, and looked over at the children in the cage, "Hmm," said the Blind Witch.
"She's coming. She's coming. I can't do it. I'm gonna die!" Hansel whispered he was panicking and he was afraid that he was going to die.
Gretel pushed Hansel out of the way when the Blind Witch walked over to the cage, she held her breath when the Blind Witch came closer to the cage and sighed in relief. "Gravy or butter?" she asked, biting her lip to stop drooling. "What shall it be?" she placed her hand on Gretel's cheek and pinched and Gretel stomped on Hansel's foot. "Ow!" he yelped. The Blind Witch gasped and chuckled at the pain, the lock clicked open and grabbed around. "Come with me, little boy," she sing-songed, chuckling while humming and grabbing Gretel instead. Gretel ducked down so she wouldn't hit her head on the bars. The Blind Witch closed the cage, locking Hansel inside the cage alone.
Gretel grabbed the key from the Blind Witch's pocket and tossed it to Hansel quickly and quietly. The Blind Witch was dragging Gretel to the furnace while Hansel quickly unlocked the cage and Gretel was grunting when the Blind Witch was tossing her to the side when Hansel finally got out of the cage, he looked around for a quick second before going up the stairs and grabbed a candy cane in the corner, he went back down the few stairs and he tripped and fell onto the floor as he grunted. While he was doing all of that, the Blind Witch was tying up Gretel's wrists, so she wouldn't get away.
The Blind Witch turned around in the direction of Hansel. "Gravy or butter?" she asked. "Gravy or butter?" she asked once more but harshly, she threw Gretel onto the floor in front of her but just then Hansel stood up with the candy cane in hand, lifting it up over his head. "How shall I baste you?" she waved her hand the candy cane out of Hansel's hands and flew back up the stairs. Hansel whimpered out of fear, he was backed up against the wall as he looked at the Blind Witch. "Butter it is," said the Blind Witch, walking closer to Hansel. "Time to cook." She grabbed Hansel and pushed him toward the furnace, Gretel finally out of the ropes and got up, pushing her onto the slab. They pushed the slab into the furnace with the Blind Witch on it, she was screaming. Hansel and Gretel pushed the door close quickly and locked the door.
"Quickly, Gretel, lock her in!" Hansel said in a panic, Gretel locked the door and Hansel grabbed the satchel next to the furnace.
"Let me out!" said the Blind Witch, she placed her hands and hands in the glass window, peering out. Hansel and Gretel ran out of the Blind Witch's house while she was yelling. "Let me out! You come back right now! Let me out!" Hansel and Gretel quickly went down the stairs. "You'll pay for this!" the Blind Witch screamed out. "Let me out!"
Regina was watching all of this happen through her magic mirror, she was smirking. She liked what she saw. A fireball appeared on Regina's hand and threw it into the mirror as it lit up the furnace and the screams of the Blind Witch echoed. "I would've gone gravy," she said to the mirror with a wicked grin.
Footsteps were approaching, Regina stood in the middle of the room and the twins stood by the entrance Regina turned to face the twins with her hands on her hips. "My dear children," she said, walking toward them as the guard's hands were on the back of their necks. "Were you successful in your task?" she asked.
"Yes, Your Majesty. Though we were almost made into dinner," Gretel said.
"Oh, how barbaric," said Regina with no sympathy in her voice, she raised her hand to tell the guard to leave them alone. He bowed his head and walked away. "Now, if I could have my satchel." Gretel looked down at the satchel in her hands then up at Regina, handing it to her. "I've waited a very long time for this. Let's hope you didn't let me down." She opened the satchel and peered inside, Regina gasped. She couldn't believe it, she finally had it. "You did it," she whispered with a smile on her lips.
It was a red apple that was in the satchel. It was a special type of apple.
"Yeah, we did," Gretel said, nodding her head once.
Regina looked at Gretel, eyeing her for a moment. "You've got a strong heart, girl. You remind me of myself at your age."
"We did all that for an apple?" Hansel asked.
"Trust me, dear boy, this is not just an apple," Regina lowered herself to look into his eyes. "It's a weapon," she whispered, standing back up fully. "A weapon for a very particular and devious enemy," she explained while walking away from the siblings. "One who's still under the illusion," she walked over to her vanity and opened up a box, placing the magical apple inside of the box. "That she's safe."
"Whatever your plan is, we did what you asked," Gretel said, Regina turned to look at her. "Now you have to keep your promise and find our father."
"Of course," Regina said, walking over to them. "To reunite your family. So you can live happily ever after. You were left alone in the woods. You deserve better than a father who would abandon you."
Gretel didn't look Regina in the eyes, tears forming in both of the siblings' eyes. "But he's all we have," Gretel said, her voice breaking.
Regina kneeled down in front of her. "Perhaps he doesn't have to be," she whispered.
"What do you mean?" Gretel asked.
"You and your brother have impressed me. You aren't the first boy or girl that I've sent into that sticky sweet house. But you are the first to emerge." Regina smiled at both of them. "And as a reward," she walked away from them, "I've decided to invite the two of you to live with me here." She bowed slightly with a huge grin on her lips, looking at the twins.
"You mean we get to live in a castle?" asked Hansel.
"Yes," Regina asked, laughing. "You would have your own rooms, of course," she walked closer to them. "Personal carriages, and valets, too. All of your dreams could come true."
"No," Gretel said, firmly. "We want our father back. He would never abandon us. And even if he did, we would never want to live with someone as terrible as you."
"Is that so?" Regina asked, bitterly.
"Yes. We're going to find him, with or without your help," Gretel said firmly, Regina walked away from them. "And when we do, we're going to prove you wrong."
"We'll see about that," said Regina, turning to face them. She lifted her hand and made a circle and purple smoke went around the twins.
"Gretel? What's happening?" asked Hansel.
The purple smoke grew bigger and thicker, the twins were circling around inside the smoke. They were confused and scared. All they wanted to do was to find their father and be with him again. And Regina has promised to help find their father. But promises were broken.
Ava and Nicholas were standing outside of a car, looking at their reflection of themselves in the dark window. They didn't want to go and be separated from each other. They needed each other, they would do anything to be together again.
Emma opened the car door for the twins to get in the car, sighing heavily. "Come on," she said. "It's gonna be...," she looked between the twins. "Here." She handed her back the compass. "I'm sorry. But we gotta go." The twins got into the car with tears in their eyes, Emma shut the door once they got in.
"Let's go, Henry," Regina said, wrapping her arm around his shoulders.
Henry shrugged her off and ran to Emma, who was in the car. "No. You can't take them." He said urgently. "They can't leave Storybrooke, Emma. They can't. Something bad will happen."
"Something bad has already happened," Emma said, the engine started. Henry took a step back and Emma drove off, Regina was smirking to herself. Regina and Henry were standing in the road watching Emma and the twins drive away.
Emma and the twins—Ava and Nicholas Zimmer—were far from the town of Storybrooke now. Emma looked at the twins through the rearview mirror. Ava looked at her brother Nicholas with sad knowing eyes. Emma hated seeing the twins look so sad, she didn't want them to go to different homes.
All of sudden the engine started sputtering, Emma pulled over to the side of the road and the engine stopped completely. "Are you kidding me?" Emma asked herself.
"What happened? What's wrong?" Ava asked Emma.
"Engine stalled," Emma answered, she pulled out her cell phone and started dialing.
"Who are you calling?" Ava asked.
"Help," Emma simply answered.
Regina was standing in one of the rooms with the Red Apple in her hand, she was looking in the mirror. She could see Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Snow White was crying and the Dwarfs were comforting her.
"Now she's cavorting with dwarves?" Regina asked herself. "When did that happen?"
"Your Majesty, the prisoner you requested is here," said one of the guards.
"Bring him in," Regina said loudly, waving her hand to make the image of Snow White and the Dwarfs vanish.
The guards gripped the man, the chains started clinking loudly. "I demand to be released," said the man. Regina was putting the red apple away into the box. "My children are in that forest that you took me from, alone. They could be in great danger."
And you'll never guess who the prisoner was; it was Hansel and Gretel's father. Regina took him, making the twins think that he abandoned them in the Enchanted Forest. But it was Regina's doing.
Regina turned around and faced the Woodcutter. "Yes. I know all about your children." She walked closer to him. "That compass you gave sweet little Gretel... Well, I'm afraid it didn't help her find you, though, now, did it?"
"What have you done with them? Tell me where they are!" The Woodcutter demanded, he tried to get closer to Regina but the guard pulled him back.
"Fine. I told them you abandoned them, leaving nothing but a compass to find their way. But I didn't bring you here to answer your questions. You're here to answer mine," she explained while walking closer to him, getting in his face. "I offered your children everything, whatever their hearts desired. And they still chose uncertainly because of their blind faith in you. Tell me why. Hmm? Why did your children refuse me?"
"Because we're a family," the Woodcutter simply answered. "And family always finds one another."
"No," Regina whispered, looking away from the man, blinking back tears. "Release him." She ordered, walking away from the man.
"You're letting me go?" the Woodcutter asked, watching Regina.
"You can all be together, as a family, as soon as you all find one another," said Regina. The guard was undoing the chains of the Woodcutter.
Gretel and Hansel were lying on the dirt ground, Gretel was blinking to focus, she was confused about where she was and how she got there. She sat up slowly, looking down as she shook Hansel. "Hansel, wake up. Hansel." Gretel said softly, they slowly got up off the dirt and onto their feet. They both looked around to see where they were and they were back in the Enchanted Forest again. "She let us go," Gretel said.
"I'm scared," Hansel said.
"Don't be. Everything will be fine," Gretel reassured her brother, she looked down at the compass for a second. She smiled at her brother and Hansel returned the smile. They held each other hands and walked into the forest, trying to find their way out and maybe find their father along the way as well.
Emma was standing outside of the car, leaning against the trunk as she waited for the mechanic to arrive. She had her phone out while Ava and Nicholas were still in the backseat of the police car.
Ava looked down at the compass. "Nicholas, look," she pointed at the compass. The compass started spinning around and around, they were both confused because they didn't know what it meant. They turned and found that the mechanic was a few yards away, he parked on the side of the road, near Emma's car.
Emma walked over to the moving car when it fully stopped in front of her, Michael came out of the car and stopped in his tracks. Realized that it was Emma who called for the repair. He closed the door and walked over to her slowly.
"Those are them?" Michael asked.
"Those are them," Emma repeated.
Michael walked closer to her. "And your car? It's fine."
"I just wanted you to see them. Just once. I didn't think I could do it either. I gave up Henry 'cause I wanted to give him his best shot. And when I saw that he didn't have it, I couldn't leave. I was just as scared. More, probably. But once I saw him, I got to know him, I couldn't go back," Emma explained, trying to give it one last shot.
Michael looked at the twins for a long moment before he started walking toward them, they were watching him as well. He turned to look at Emma. "And you're taking them? To Boston?" he asked.
"I don't have to," she said.
Michael looked at Emma and then back at the twins, he knew in his heart that those were his kids. He felt it in his heart. "No. You don't," he said, shaking his head. Emma smiled and a single tear came out of her eye. He walked to the car and Ava turned the window down, he kneeled down to their level.
Emma came walking into the apartment while Mary Margaret was in her room, doing laundry. She was folding a blue shirt when she looked up and saw Emma.
"Hey. What happened?" Mary Margaret asked.
Emma sighed. "Their dad," she sat down on the bed. "He showed up. Changed his mind." She lay down on the bed with a smile on her lips.
A smile came to Mary Margaret's lips. "Change his mind." Emma nodded. "Just like that?" she asked.
"He might have had a little nudge," Emma admitted.
"They found their father. That's great." Mary Margaret smiled even wider, still folding her clothes.
Emma sat up on her elbows. "I wonder what that would be like," she thought out loud.
"Maybe you'll find out. You can't give up," Mary Margaret said, encouraging her.
"I don't know," Emma said, sighing. "I kind of think giving up might be the best plan. I think I need to let go."
"No, you don't."
"Really? If they wanted to know me, they wouldn't make it so hard to look."
They both stared at each other for a moment, Mary Margaret pausing on folding her laundry. "Maybe," Mary Margaret said, nodding and going back to folding. "But maybe there's other reasons. Maybe there is an explanation."
Emma sighed heavily. "If there is, it's something crazy. Something even crazier than Henry's theory."
"Yeah, what's Henry's theory?" Mary Margaret asked.
"Well, my parents put me in a magical wardrobe and sent me to this world to save them," Emma explained.
"Oh!" Mary Margaret chuckled at the theory. "And who does he think they are?"
"Well, for one, you." Emma sat up fully, looking at Mary Margaret.
"Me," Mary Margaret said, clearly in shock.
"Well, Snow White."
"Snow White has a kid."
"Apparently that book you gave him, not exactly in the most traditional sense."
Mary Margaret chuckled to herself. "I have a kid. You'd think I'd remember that."
"Yeah, you'd think," Emma said bitterly.
"You do kind of have my chin," Mary Margaret commented, they both chuckled at the comment.
"I think I need to go get some air," Emma said, she pushed off the bed and stood on her feet. "I'm gonna go think." She grabbed a vanilla envelope from the counter.
"If you're gonna be back late, I can't wait to eat with you." Mary Margaret said while holding a pile of folded clothes.
"No, don't do that," Emma said.
"I'll leave you leftovers," Mary Margaret called to her. Emma bent down to grab her jacket off the floor. "What a pretty blanket."
Emma turned her head. "Thanks. Good night." She opened the door and walked out of the apartment.
Mary Margaret kept looking down at the blanket, she grabbed it out of the box. It looked familiar to her like she had seen it before. She leaned down and sniffed the blanket, even the scent was familiar. She blinked and shook her head, putting the blanket back into the box. She probably thought she was going crazy or something. She walked away from the blanket and put the folded clothes away.
Emma was sitting in her car, she had a whole bunch of newspaper articles and a picture of a little blonde girl and it was Emma Swan, and also a few pieces of paper. One news article said: Still No Leads On Deadbeat Parents, and the other one said: 7-Year-Old Boy Finds Baby On Side of Road. She started lifting up the photo but then Henry came over to the side of her car with a box of food.
"What's that?" Henry asked.
"Just an old file. What's up?" Emma said.
"Pumpkin pie. I thought you'd like some," Henry said with a smile, holding up the pie. "It was pumpkin, right?"
"Right," Emma said with a soft smile. She got out of the car and met Henry in front of her car. "Henry, about your father...," she started, wanting to tell him the truth about his father.
"Yeah?" Henry encouraged, with a smile.
Emma smiled down at him. "I'm glad I told you," she said. But she couldn't tell him the truth about who his father was and what he had done. Aside from what she has done with him.
"Me too," Henry agreed, he wrapped his arms around her and hugged Emma, and Emma hugged him in return.
"Give me that," Emma grabbed the pumpkin pie from Henry and opened up the box.
"What you did, with Ava and Nicholas. You really are changing things," Henry said with a smile.
Then they both heard an engine roaring down the road, they both looked up and saw a guy around the corner and down the road, they were on. And on the back of his motorcycle was a leather brown box with a leather handle with two brown straps to hold it down on the motorcycle. He parked his motorcycle across from Emma and Henry, he took off his helmet and looked over at the two. He got off his bike and walked over to them with a smile on his face. "Hey," said the stranger.
"Hey," Emma answered.
"Is this Storybrooke?" he asked.
Henry nodded, but Emma answered. "Yeah," she blinked.
"Any place to get a room around here?" he asked.
"You're staying? Henry asked, tilting his head.
"That's the plan. Just looking for a bed." He answered.
"Granny's Bed & Breakfast is just up the road. Another two blocks," Emma answered his question.
"Thank you," he said, turning around and walking back to his motorcycle.
"Hey, I didn't catch your name," Emma called to him.
"That's cause I didn't give it," he said, turning to face Emma. He got back on his motorcycle, started his engine, and drove off to Granny's Bed & Breakfast.
Emma looked down at Henry, confused. "I thought you said strangers don't come to Storybrooke," she said.
"They don't," Henry said, looking up at her.