Book 2: The Darkness

Jess • Joey

Jess

It was a ten minute drive from the library to her house. Audrey adopted Jess and Crystal two years after Joey was taken away and that's then Audrey told them both the truth. She still had her memories and that's when Jess started calling her "mom".

She rang the doorbell.

Audrey answered. "Jess!" Audrey said, giving her a hug. "Where have you been?" A flood of memories came back in Jess' head. Audrey let go.

"Mom! I remember!" said Natalie. They hugged for a long time. Natalie started sobbing. Her memories had returned because Henry was awake and Joey was free.

"Noah!" Natalie said, remembering him. "I have to get back to Storybrooke. Can you come with me?"

"I'd love to," Audrey said. Natalie gave her the keys. They both got into the car and sped off to Storybrooke.

* * *

Joey:

Joey snuck into the hospital with the help of Jack. He helped sneak him to the asylum door. Jack punched Charlie's birthdate into the keypad and opened the door. (10/06)

"Thank you so much, Jack!" he said before closing the door.

"Anytime!" he said.

Joey ran down the stairs and saw a nurse sitting at a desk.

"Prince Noah," Nurse Ratched Norrice said. "I just called Jonathan, he's going to be here any minute. He's going to lock you back up himself," she said.

"I'm not Prince Noah... not yet," he said, interrupting. "I need you to let my family out. And I'm not scared of Jonathan anymore," he said.

"Of course!" she said getting the keys. He followed her down the hall. They went down to the farthest cells. She opened the first two doors and then the next two.

"Joey!" said Rose and Andrew coming out of the cell. Next to them was Mary Margret and David.

"Mom! Dad!" he said, hugging them. He was crying. "I thought you were dead!" he said sobbing.

"I'm sorry, Joe!" Rose said. "But it's okay."

"Aunt Mary Margret, Uncle David!" he said hugging them.

"Noah," they said happily.

"Joey!" Emma and Rogers said, coming down the hall. He ran to them.

"How's Crystal?" Emma asked.

"She's big and healthy. Jess and I told her stories about you two," he said.

"Joey!" said five voices from ahead.

"Auntie Heather! Uncle Duke! Iain!" he said, hugging them. "You must be Regina, Henry's mother."

"Noah!" she said, hugging him. Yes, I am. We still have our memories, even though we are illusions."

"Joey," said Rose. "You look a bit disappointed,"

"When I touch you and Dad, my memories were supposed to return," he said. "Maybe Jess can help," They ran back up the stairs and out of the hospital. They came to the streets near the clock tower.

"Noah!" screamed Natalie when she saw him. She hopped to him.

"Jess, I don't --" he said before she hugged him. A flood of memories came back.

"I remember!" he said, letting go! "Natalie! Dream!" he sobbed, hugging them both tightly.

She let go seeing Jess and Joey with new eyes. "Noah! Natalie!" Dream said, hugging them.

"Mom! Dad!" Natalie said, when she saw her parents. She started crying and she ran to their arms.

Dream had reunited with her parents. Emma was crying endlessly.

"Noah!" said James, Rebecca, Kayla and the triplets running to them.

"Annie's gone!" said Rebecca hugging him.

"What's going on?" Kayla asked after hugging him. "Is The Darkness finished?"

"No, not even close. We have our memories back, but Storybrooke is still cursed and Annie is under a sleeping curse."

"She's gone," James said.

"She disappeared in a puff of black smoke right when you got your memories back," Bella said.

"The forest!" he said running towards it.

"Noah, wait!" Natalie and Dream called after him, knowing what danger he was going to run into. He didn't slow down. They all ran after him. Andrew carried Natalie.

Noah ran to the edge of the forest. He paused for a moment to think about what he was doing. Then he kept going. He ran past the tall trees and ducked under hanging branches and leaped over fallen logs.

A hollowed out, fallen log with a glass coffin soon came in sight. Noah ran to it. When he got closer, he slowed down. When he was no more than a hundred yards, Natalie and Dream appeared before him. Natalie held onto Dream

"What is going on? Can't I just break the curse?" he asked, whining.

Natalie turned around and waved her hand. A protection spell was in view.

"Oh," he said, seeing what they were trying to tell him.

"Jonathan knew you would know where Annie was so he made it no-so-easy," Dream said.

"How do we break it?" Henry asked when they caught up.

Noah waved his hand across the spell studying it. "My heart," he said.

"What!?" asked Rose in shock.

"I have to use my heart. He wants me to feel pain. He wants to see how strong my heart is," He ripped it out. He sighed and looked at his family. "Will any of our real family members remember any of this?" he asked, looking at his illousional family.

"I don't know," Regina said.

He nodded his head, understanding. "We still have two more phases to go through once I break the curse. It could be years before The Darkness is finished."

"We will be waiting at home for you," Audrey said. She hugged Natalie.

Noah looked at Natalie and Dream.

"Are you ready?"

"Noah, I don't--" Natalie started. He ripped his heart through the spell and screamed in pain. Natalie and Dream blasted their magic.

The protection spell slowly lowered. When it came down a few minutes later, Noah was very weak from the pain. He collapsed. Natalie took his heart from him knowing that he was too weak to put it back in himself. She used her magic to poof him to Annie. She gently lifted the coffin glass.

Snow and David watched thinking of when that happened to them.

Rose and Andrew smiled thinking of how proud they were of Noah.

Emma thought of when she fought the Final Battle and now how brave Noah was.

Noah leaned over Annie's face. "I love you!" he whispered. He kissed her awake. A bright flash went through all of Storybrooke taking everyone who did not belong there, back to where they really do and whipping everyone's memories except for Henry, Noah, Natalie and Dream.