Dark Red|| Rumpelstiltskin

Chapter 4

Ouat
Season 1 Episode 5
That Still Small Voice

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There had been a tremor, sending the whole town into panic. Never had there ever been anything like what had just happened in Storybrooke before. Everyone had gathered at what seemed to be a large sinkhole in the old mines, trying to get information on what happened.

"Everyone step back please," the mayor shouted, gaining control of the situation. Ian sighed, he would rather have been in his bed. The bakery didn't open on Friday's and he had things he wanted to do all planned out, including the grocery shopping.

"Be careful, step back." Ian overheard Regina say she approaches Graham and Emma. He could have gone back to bed at this point, not wanting to be up in the first place; but he decided that he would stay just a little while longer in case anything important happened. At least then he might get something out of being awake at

"Sheriff, set up a police perimeter. Marco, why don't you help with the fire department? Miss Swan, this is now official town business. You're free to go." Regina continued, stopping in front of the two. Emma seemed smug when she answered Regina with "Well, actually I work for the town now."

"She's my new deputy." Regina gives Graham a look, she was very disappointed in his choice. However, she continued on. "They say the mayor's always the last to know." She commented, trying to keep her dislike of the situation out of her voice. She would be having a chat with Graham later about changes in the police force.

"It's in my budget." He tried to appeal to her, he could practically see the lecture on her face. It didn't even matter if he had chosen someone who worked at the docks to be the deputy, Regina would have been satisfied with anyone other than Emma Swan. "Indeed," she says, giving Graham another look before addressing Emma.

"Deputy, why don't you make yourself useful and help with crowd control?" Alert she speaks to Emma, she starts to speak to the crowd. "People of Storybrooke, don't be alarmed. We've always known this area was honeycombed with old mining tunnels but fear not. I'm going to undertake a project to make this area safe, to rehabilitate it for city use. We will bulldoze it, collapse it, pave it."

As Regina speaks, Henry and Archie arrive at the sinkhole. When Regina is done speaking, Henry makes his way through the crowd and toward his mother. "Pave it? What if there's something down there?" The young boy questions. What if there's something down there from the Enchanted Forest? He thought. He didn't dare make his concerns known to his mother though, as she surely would discredit his theory more.

Ian was lingering around the site, just finishing a conversation with Ruby when he heard Henry whisper shouting. "Hey, Archie, Peter. Over here." As Archie and Ian approach him and Emma, he continues talking to them. "This requires all of Operation Cobra... the three of you." He says, looking the adults in their eyes. Ian leans down a little while saying "I'm afraid you've got Ian today bud, hope you don't mind."

Henry smiles, telling Ian "No I don't mind, perhaps it's even better." Archie moves as he speaks, looking at Henry. "I didn't realize I was in Operation Cobra." He says. This was important to Henry, the very fact that Archie was being included in this was heartwarming. "Of course you are, you know everything," he says to Archie. Archie was his most faithful companion, even if he was being paid to talk to him. Henry likes to think that Archie would be his friend even if he didn't go to him for therapy sessions.

"We can't let her do this. What if there's something down there?" Henry looks to Emma as if she would have the answers to all his questions. "They probably would check the mines for anything that could be repurposed before they bulldoze over anything first, Hen," Ian says. He didn't encourage the boy's theory as much as Katrine did, preferring to show the boy when realistic things were more likely to be the solution before going with his answer of magic.