𝓵𝓸𝓷𝓰 𝓼𝓽𝓸𝓻𝔂 𝓼𝓱𝓸𝓻𝓽

𝑰'𝒎 𝑵𝒐𝒕 𝑨𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒆, 𝑰 𝑮𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒔

Five

"If I get the blame for it, I promise to retaliate." I murmured to myself as I headed for the door and pressed the doorbell.

Waiting for the door to open, I let my eyes roam around from the white marble walls to the green hedges acting as the fence all around the vicinity. On the east side of the property, there was a garden filled with blooming apple trees.

Remembering who I was here for, I quickly acted to make myself look tidy enough to face another being. Because almost all of my clothes were burned, and only a few survived - which wasn't personally chosen by me, I had no choice but to wear this plain yellow jumper dress and white shirt underneath it.

Calcifer and Markl assured me I look okay, pretty was the term they used, before I left the house once I was finished helping them tidy their intensely filthy castle.

But I don't know. I'm not comfortable with this. I'm still angry, I hate every bad thing that happened yesterday.

The only perk the dress's got is that it helps displaying the sheriff badge more efficiently. Still, I despise it - the badge and what it stands for. If I wasn't anointed, I wouldn't have encountered the shadow monsters and the angry lady wouldn't hate me for ruining her house and my house would still be standing.

"Hi," A teenage boy towered over me as he opened the door between us. "Can I help you, Sheriff?"

"Henry," I acknowledged, being well aware of his identity. "I heard the Mayor wants a word with me. Is she there?"

"Yeah. She's upstairs," Henry smiled and widened the door to let me in. "I'll walk you there."

"Thanks." I said, following him up the stairs after he closed the door.

"How are you doing?" He asked, glancing over me. "I heard my moms talk about what happened. I'm sorry, by the way. I wish we could have helped."

I smiled at him. He is truly kind-hearted. His moms, Emma and Regina, surely raised him right. "I'm okay, Henry. Thanks for asking. That alone meant a lot."

"Sure," He said, facing me as we stopped before the door of the mayor's office. "If there's anything I could do, let me know. Okay?"

I nodded. "You're such a good boy."

He chuckled. "I get that a lot." He sheepishly tucked his hands in his pockets and looked at me shyly.

"Let's turn the table, Henry. Is there anything I can help you with?" I asked, sensing that there is something he wants to say but finding it hard to voice it out.

He clicked his tongue. "It's quite embarrassing since we're not close and all."

"Hey, as long as I could help, closeness doesn't matter. Tell me."

"Can I borrow your motorbike? I swear it would only be for a few hours. I just really need to practice before I get to use my own." He looks like a kid asking for his mom's permission to have candy before dinner.

"If I say yes, would that get me in trouble with your moms?"

"No, I promise they won't know of it and if they do, I'll make sure not to blame you."

"And your grandparents who are a massive fan of me?"

"Well, I-"

I smirked and took the key out of my pocket to hand it to him. "Say no more, little prince. You can borrow that from me whenever you need it, as long as you promise me to be safe."

He beamed and took the key from me. "Oh, you're the best. Thank you!" He said before giving me a hug, taking me by surprise. "This means we're friends now, right?"