[Starting from here on, I'm taking a different approach to another Once Upon a Time show; I'm sure y'all can figure out which one. Hope y'all enjoy the twists and reveals!]
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT
Mary Margaret, who had escaped her cell, ran through the woods.
---
Henry was on a bench reading his book at the station. Emma and Mr. Gold walked in.
"Henry. What are you doing here?" Emma asked.
"I came to congratulate you," he told her.
"For what?"
"Your genius plan."
"And what plan's that, Henry?" Mr. Gold wondered.
Henry didn't answer and Mr. Gold nodded. "Right."
He walked off, leaving Henry alone with Emma in the hall.
"Sorry," Henry apologized. "I thought Mr. Gold was in on it, now that he's Miss Blanchard's lawyer."
"In on what?" Emma asked.
"The escape plan."
"The what?"
Mr. Gold called from the other room. "Sheriff, could you join me, please?"
Henry walked into the room and saw Mary Margaret's empty cell.
"She's gone," Mr. Gold said.
Emma looked at her son. "Henry, what did you do?"
"Nothing," Henry answered. "She was gone when I got here."
"Her arraignment's tomorrow," Mr. Gold said. "If she's not there..."
"She's a fugitive," Emma finished. "Doesn't matter if she's convicted for Kathryn or not -- she's screwed I have to go find her before someone notices she's missing."
"Oh, you mean Regina?"
"The arraignment's tomorrow at eight A.M. I'm sure she'll be here bright and early to celebrate her victory."
"Well, you have until eight A.M., then."
"Uh, what about me?" Henry asked. "How can I help?"
"Go home," Emma said.
Henry frowned. "Emma, if she leaves Storybrooke..."
"Not now, Henry. Come on."
Mr. Gold turned to Emma. "Miss Swan, I know time is of the essence, but if Miss Blanchard doesn't return... Her future's in jeopardy. And if you're caught helping her, so is yours."
"I don't care. I'd rather lose my job than my friend."
---
Emma got in her car and drove along a deserted road near the woods. In the fog in the distance, there was a figure. Emma didn't notice him in time and narrowly avoided a man. He jumped out of the way and fell down an incline.
She got out of the car and ran to assist him as she said, "I'm so sorry! Are you okay? I didn't see you there."
"Uh, I think so," the man replied.
"Are you sure?"
"I'm fine. I'm not used to sharing the road with cars so late. You're the Sheriff, aren't you?"
"Yeah."
"What brings you out here in the middle of the night?"
"Oh, nothing to worry about. I'm just looking for a lost dog."
"Well, I hope you find it."
"Thank you."
Jefferson tried to walk, but had an obvious limp.
"Oh, you are hurt," Emma noted.
"No, I just twisted my ankle, I think," the man answered. "I live just a mile down the road. I'll make it okay."
"No, let me drive you. I insist."
"Thank you. I'm Jefferson."
"Emma."
They got into Emma's car.
ENCHANTED FOREST - PAST
Jefferson ran through the woods, seemingly trying to escape from something. He stopped to rest by a tree, but was caught by his daughter Grace and his wife Nevaeh.
"Papa, Mama and I found you," Grace said.
"You certainly did," Jefferson replied. "You must be part bloodhound, my dear Grace. My darling Nevaeh, did you use your power?"
Nevaeh shook her head. "No, my dear, I didn't. It was all Grace and her knack to find things."
"Now it's my turn to hide, and you seek," Grace said, turning to Nevaeh. "You too, Mama."
"I'm afraid playtime's over," Jefferson told her, "though, you can still use that nose of yours to hunt mushrooms. Enough to sell at market tomorrow. Do you think you can do that? Ready or not, here we come." They headed back to their house, where the Evil Queen's carriage was parked outside. "Wait."
"Whose carriage is that?"
"The Queen's," Jefferson and Nevaeh replied.
"In our house? Do you know her?"
"Of course not," Jefferson said. "Now, listen carefully. Hey. I want you to stay hidden in the woods. Like our game. Veah, go with her please. I'm going to find out what she's doing here." Jefferson entered the house, while Grace ran off into the forest. Neveah placed a gentle hand to Jefferson's cheek before following Grace. Inside, the Evil Queen was waiting.
"I'd like to say you're looking well, Jefferson, but I'd be lying," the Evil Queen said. "Poverty doesn't suit you. Why live in poverty when your precious wife possesses the power to conjure great things?"
"Nevaeh isn't that type of person. What are you doing here, Regina?"
"I have a job for you."
"I don't do that anymore."
"Yes, I heard you hung up your hat. Why? Is it because of your sweet daughter Grace and your darling wife Nevaeh?"
"Because of my work, she lost her mother. I don't want her to lose her father or her stepmother, too."
"So, now you're foraging for fungus. What kind of future do your daughter and wife have here with you? Do this one last favor for me, and you can give them the life they deserve."
"That's why I'm staying. You don't abandon family. That's... What she deserves. What they both deserve. Now, please leave."
"All I need is your special skills to get me somewhere. Somewhere you've been before. Do it, and I can change your life." She handed him a piece of paper.
"What business could you possibly have there?"
"Something of mine was taken and found its way over there. I want it back."
"Then, find someone else to get it."
"I see. Hard living has strengthened your resolve. Well, I'm sorry I couldn't convince you, but I understand. There's nothing more important than family."
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT
Eventually, they pulled up to a large house on a hill and exited the car.
"Wow," Emma commented. "This is your house? It looks more like a hotel. You must have a huge family."
"Nope. It's just me and my wife," Jefferson said.
Emma saw Jefferson struggling to get up the stairs and went to help him inside. "Here. Wait."
Emma waited in the living room when Jefferson entered with a tea tray. "Here we go. I thought you might want to warm up for your search. It's cold out there. Veah made tea."
"That is kind of you, but think I should get back to it," Emma said.
"I know. That's why I brought this. I'm a bit of an amateur cartographer -- mapping the area is a hobby. Maybe, this will help you track down your dog." He laid a map on a table.
"Wow."
"What's his name?" Nevaeh asked as she entered the room.
"Spot." Emma did a double take, seeing her. "You?"
"Cute," Jefferson commented. "I had her spy on you to get me information. And, as per usual, she did wonderfully."
Emma looked over the map as she sipped her tea, almost immediately acting drowsy. "Spying's rude. Well, Route Six runs the boundary of the forest, so... So, if I just follow that, I should... Be able to..."
"Is something wrong?"
"I'm just, uh... Feeling a little..." She began falling.
Jefferson caught her and dragged her over to the couch. "Oh. Let me help you."
"Dizzy."
"Let's just lie down here. There you go. Let me get you some air."
"Your limp..."
"Oh. That. I guess you caught me."
"Who are you?" she asked before passing out.
Nevaeh glanced at Jefferson and said, "It's just her, right?"
Jefferson nodded. "It's just her, darling."
ENCHANTED FOREST - PAST
Jefferson, Nevaeh and Grace were at an outdoor market. They came to an old woman who was selling toys.
"The toy cart!" Grace exclaimed.
"Come," a woman said.
Grace picked up a stuffed rabbit. "Wouldn't this make the perfect guest for our tea parties, Papa, Mama? Can I have him? Please?"
"Excuse me. How much for the rabbit?" Jefferson asked.
"That costs one silver," the woman replied.
"Would you take it for eight coppers? It's all she and I have."
"Oh, you are good father. Your last coppers for your little girl's happiness, ah?"
"Thank you," Jefferson and Nevaeh said.
"Oh, I did not say I accept. Alas, I cannot take less than one silver. The economy. You understand."
"It's okay, Papa, Mama," Grace told them. "Come on – people are waiting."
Nevaeh shook her head. "He and I will not take no for an answer." She frowned as though she could sense something.
"Papa, Mama please. I don't need it."
"Come on, sweetie. Come, darling," Jefferson said as the old woman walked away from the crowd to a mirror.
"Well, that was awfully cruel," the Mirror said. "You could at least let the girl have her toy."
"Where's the fun in that?" the Evil Queen replied as the old woman's face briefly morphed into the Evil Queen's.
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT
Sometime later, Emma woke up bound and gagged on the couch. Emma looked around and saw that Jefferson and Nevaeh were gone. She sat up and noticed her fallen teacup on the floor. She threw a pillow over the cup to muffle the sound and broke it with her foot. She maneuvered herself onto the floor, grabbed a shard of the broken cup, and cut through her binds. She tried to open one of the windows, but found them all locked. By the windows, there was a telescope pointed at the Sheriff's station. Emma heard a noise coming from the room across the hall. She peeked in and saw Jefferson sharpening a pair of scissors while Nevaeh stood nearby.
ENCHANTED FOREST - PAST
At their home, Jefferson finished making a stuffed rabbit. He placed it on a chair next to Grace, who was having a tea party with Nevaeh.
"I know it's not the same as what you wanted," Jefferson said.
"I love it, Papa," Grace told him. "Thank you." Grace pretended to pour tea. "Mm. This is really good. Don't you think so, Mr. Tortoise? Papa, Mama, do you like your tea?"
Nevaeh nodded and smiled. "This tea may be your best brew yet, my dear."
"Grace... I want you to go to the neighbors' for the rest of the day. Veah, you too," Jefferson said. "There's work I have to do."
"Can't Mama and I come with you?" Grace asked. "I like being with you and Mama in the forest."
"I'm not going to the forest, sweetie."
"This has to do with the Queen's visit, doesn't it? Whatever she wants you to do, don't do it."
"Grace, I have to. I want you to have what you need."
"All I need is you and Mama, Papa. Please, stay."
"Come here. I know. I'm sorry, baby. I have to go."
"Just promise me you'll come back. You have to promise."
"Of course."
"For our tea party. Promise?"
"I promise. I won't miss it for the world. Go." Grace left.
Nevaeh took Jefferson's hands and asked, "Do you have to leave us?"
Jefferson nodded. "I'm afraid so, darling. I'll return soon, all right?"
"Promise?"
"I promise." He kissed her, then rested his forehead against hers. "Take care of Grace."
"I will, my love. Come back to us."
"You know I will."
With another kiss, Nevaeh left the house to join Grace.
Jefferson opened a locked chest and pulled out a hat box.
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT
Emma slow-edged into the hallway and slowly crept down the hall, but she stepped on a creaky floorboard. She panicked and quickly entered the closest room. Mary Margaret was gagged and tied to a chair.
Emma began untying her and asked, "What is going on?"
"Emma, thank God," Mary Margaret replied.
"What are you doing here?"
"I was in the woods, trying to get away. Then, this man and woman appeared out of nowhere and grabbed me. I've seen the woman around town. Why are you here?"
"The woman is the man's wife. I've been trying to find you. You escaped, remember? How did you get out?"
"There was a key... In my cell, under my pillow. Someone put it there."
"Who?"
"I don't know. I'd like to know just as much as you."
Once Mary Margaret was free, they headed for the door. Emma checked the hall and saw it was clear. They began walking down the hall, but were stopped by Jefferson and Nevaeh, the former of whom was holding a gun.
"I see you found Spot," Jefferson and Nevaeh said.
"I've already called for backup," Emma told him. "They'll be here any second."
"You haven't called anybody," Jefferson stated. "For the same reason you didn't tell me or Veah about her. You don't want anybody to know you're here, which means, nobody does. So, now tie her back up."
Emma tied Mary Margaret to the chair.
"Emma..." Mary Margaret began.
"It's going to be okay," Emma reassured, placing the cloth back over Mary Margaret's mouth and turned to Jefferson and Nevaeh. "Your telescope -- you've both been watching me. Why?"
"We need you to do something," Jefferson replied.
ENCHANTED FOREST - PAST
Jefferson met with the Evil Queen at her castle. He entered with the hat box and was escorted by several guards.
"Jefferson," the Evil Queen called. "So good to see you looking more like yourself. I assume you're here because you've reconsidered my offer?"
"I want your guarantee," Jefferson said. "That, if I do what you ask, my daughter and wife will want for nothing."
"You have my word. Now, let's open that box of yours and see what it can do." He pulled a top hat out of the box. "I do so like a man who dresses for the occasion."
Jefferson placed the hat on the floor and spun it. It began to spin on its own. "Step back." The hat formed a purple vortex. "After you!"
"Together!" They linked arms.
"Hold on!" They both jumped into the vortex and were transported elsewhere.
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT
Jefferson and Nevaeh brought Emma to a room with several top hats lining the walls.
Emma narrowed her eyes. "I don't know what you think you two are doing, but if you hurt my friend, I swear I'll make you both regret it."
"Hurt her?" Jefferson repeated. "We're saving her life."
"How do you figure that?"
Nevaeh scoffed softly. "Don't play stupid. We each know what happens when people try to leave Storybrooke."
"What are you talking about?"
"The curse."
"What curse?"
"The one keeping us all trapped," Jefferson said. "All except you."
"Have you two been reading Henry's book?"
"Henry? You mean the Queen's father?"
"Henry, the mayor's adopted kid."
"Oh, Henry. Your Henry. Veah mentioned him. And his book of stories. The ones that you choose to ignore. Maybe, if you knew what Veah and I know, you wouldn't."
"Why have you two been spying on me?"
He moved about the room, pointing his gun at Emma's head from behind for a moment before lowering it. "Because, for the last 28 years, Veah and I've been stuck in this house. She at least able to roam about town and give me insight as to daily occurences. Day after day, always the same. Until one night, you, in your little yellow bug, roll into town, and the clock ticks, and things start to change. You see... she and I know what you refuse to acknowledge, Emma. You're special. You brought something precious to Storybrooke -- magic."
"You're insane."
"Because I speak the truth?"
"Because you're talking about magic."
"I'm talking about what Veah and I've seen. Perhaps, you're the one that's mad."
"Really?"
"What's crazier than seeing and not believing? Because that's exactly what you've been doing since you got to our little hamlet." He stood in front of Emma, inches from her face. "Open your eyes. Look around. Wake up. Isn't it about time?"
"What do you want?"
"I want you to get it to work."
Jefferson shoved Emma in a chair in front of a table of sewing supplies and materials.
Emma frowned. "You want me to get what to work?"
"You're the only one that can do this," Jefferson said. "You're going to get it to work."
ENCHANTED FOREST - PAST
Jefferson and the Evil Queen ended up inside Jefferson's hat. There were several different colored doors lining the walls.
"I forgot how magnificent you are," the Evil Queen said.
"I'm not here to relive the past," Jefferson retorted. "I'm here for my daughter and my wife." He pointed toward a door made of glass. "Here – this is the entrance. It's important that we stick together. Same amount of people that go through have to come back. No more, no less. It's the hat's rule, not mine."
"I understand." They entered through the mirrored door and arrived in Wonderland. Along the path, they encountered the Caterpillar.
"Who are you?" the Caterpillar asked. "Who? Who?" A smoke ring was blown in Jefferson's face.
"I hate Wonderland," Jefferson muttered. The sooner he could get back home to Nevaeh and Grace, the better.
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT
Jefferson dropped some cloth on the table in front of Emma and pointed to a hat on the table. "Make one like that."
"You want me to make a hat?" Emma questioned. "You don't have enough?"
"Well, none of them work, do they? Or else you wouldn't be here. Now, make a hat, and get it to work."
"I don't-"
"You have magic," Nevaeh interrupted. "You can do it."
Emma looked around briefly, focusing on Jefferson. "The hats, the tea, your psychotic behavior... You think you're the Mad Hatter." She turned to Nevaeh. "I'm not sure who you are, apart from your name." She studied Nevaeh with a small frown. "Hang on. In the books, the Mad Hatter- You're the White Queen, aren't you?"
"My name's Jefferson," Jefferson said. "This is my wife Nevaeh."
"Okay. You've both clearly glommed onto my kid Henry's thing. They're just stories. The Mad Hatter and the White Queen are in Alice in Wonderland -- a book. A book I actually read."
"Stories. Stories? What's a story? When you were in high school, did you learn about the Civil War?"
"Yeah, of course."
"How?" Nevaeh asked. "Did you read about it, perchance, in a book? How is that any less real than any other book?"
"History books are based on history."
"And storybooks are based on what?" Jefferson said. "Imagination? Where does that come from? It has to come from somewhere." He scoffed. "You know what the issue is with this world? Everyone wants some magical solution for their problem, and everyone refuses to believe in magic." He gestured with his gun. "Now, get it to work."
"Here's the thing, Jefferson -- this is it. This is the real world."
"A real world." He leaned towards Emma. "How arrogant are you to think yours is the only one? There are infinite more. You have to open your mind. They touch one another, pressing up in a long line of lands. Each just as real as the last. All have their own rules. Some have magic, some don't. And some need magic... Like this one." He handed her scissors. "And that's where you come in. You and your friend are not leaving here, until you make my hat. Until you get it to work."
"And then what?"
"Then Veah and I go home."
WONDERLAND - PAST
Jefferson and the Evil Queen came to a hedge maze.
"You want to go in there?" Jefferson asked.
"What I want is a short walk through," the Evil Queen said.
"A short walk?" Jefferson repeated, coming to a realization. "You know who this belongs to."
"The Queen of Hearts. She's not one for subtlety."
"This wasn't part of our deal. You know what she does to anyone that crosses her."
"Indeed. Better than most. You can't leave Wonderland without me. Two go through, two go back. You're not going to let the Queen of Hearts keep you from returning to your daughter and wife, are you?" Jefferson said nothing and began to follow her. "That's what I thought."
"Wait." He picked up a branch from the ground and threw it towards one of the walls. The hedge grabbed the branch and pulled it into the wall. "Stay away from the walls."
"I've got a better idea. The walls should stay away from me." The Evil Queen magically created a fireball, and blasted a path through the maze. The two of them proceeded until they reached a vault containing a wall of hearts like the Evil Queen's. She pulled a drawer open and took out the box.
"Okay? You got what you need. Shall we?" The two of them went to leave, but were suddenly ambushed by several of the Queen of Hearts' guards.
"Trespassers! Halt!" a guard ordered.
Jefferson and the Evil Queen began to run through the hedge maze. The guards followed and tried to stop them, but were thwarted by the Evil Queen's magic. They ran back to the burned path, where the Evil Queen magically caused the hedges to reform. They ended up back at the mirrored door they entered through.
"The Looking Glass!" Jefferson cried. "There it is!" Jefferson saw that the Evil Queen had stopped. "What are you doing? We can't stop now. We got to get out of here."
"There's something I need to do first," the Evil Queen told him as she broke off a piece of mushroom. "A little snack."
"Are you mad? Do you know what the food here does?"
"I'm well aware." The Evil Queen set the opened box on the ground and placed the piece of mushroom inside. Purple smoke emerged from the box and materialized into Henry I. "Oh, Daddy!"
"This is what she took from you? Your father?"
"The Queen of Hearts has always seen me as a threat. So, she wanted some leverage. I got it back."
"The Queen's soldiers – we must hurry," Henry I warned.
"You knew only two can go through the hat... Which is why you didn't tell me about your father," Jefferson said.
"It was the only way to make sure you'd help me," the Evil Queen reasoned as Jefferson tried to chase after them, but his feet were swallowed by the ground.
"Wait! Wait! Wait, please. My daughter and my wife... My Grace and my Nevaeh... They're... They're waiting for me. I promised her I'd... I'd be home for tea and told Veah I'd come back to her."
"Two promises which you now have broken. If you truly cared for your daughter and your wife, you never would've left them in the first place. You were right, Jefferson. You don't abandon family." The Evil Queen and her father went through the mirrored door.
"No! No..."
The Queen of Hearts' men finally caught up to Jefferson. Two of the guards dragged him away.
"Take him to the Queen," the Knave of Hearts ordered.
---
The guards brought Jefferson before the Queen of Hearts and several other citizens of Wonderland. Her face was covered by a veil and she used a tube to speak through.
"Her Majesty says she knows you're responsible for helping to steal from her," the Knave of Hearts said.
"The Queen, she tricked me-" Jefferson was cut off.
"That woman's name is Regina. There is only one Queen – the Queen of Hearts."
"Yes, of course. My apologies. Now, please..."
"Her Majesty wishes to know how you got to this world. How did you come to Wonderland?"
"If I tell you, will you let me go home to my daughter and my wife?"
"Off with his head," the Queen of Hearts said.
One of the guards decapitated Jefferson with an axe. However, he did not die. Another guard held up his head. Unbeknownst to him, back in the Enchanted Forest, at the same moment, Nevaeh gripped her neck suddenly sensing a throbbing pain before it suddenly ceased.
"I'm alive?" Jefferson said in a confused tone. "I'm alive!"
"If you wish your body back, then answer. How did you get here?" the Knave of Hearts asked.
"The... The... The hat. My hat. We used my hat."
"Where's the hat now?"
"She took it – Regina."
"If all you require to travel to your homeland is this magic hat, then surely, you could make another."
"I can't. A hat without magic is just a hat. It won't work."
"Then, there's your task. Get it to work."
---
In a room surrounded by hats, Jefferson kept repeating, "Get it go work."
He glanced up, seeing a woman enter. "Have you come to help me?"
"For a price," the woman replied. "I need to know how my sister is."
"You're Adeline. The Red Queen."
"I was the Red Queen. Nevaeh. How is she? Is she safe?"
Jefferson nodded slowly, not knowing if she was or not. "Yes, she's safe."
Adeline stalked up to Jefferson with a glare. "You're lying!"
"Last I knew she was okay. But now, I don't know for certain."
Adeline tilted her head and sighed. "I'll have to trust your word that you believe she okay. Now, would you like some help with your hats?"
"That would be wonderful. I have to get back to my wife and daughter."
"Then there's no time to waste. We must create a portal back. And perhaps I can join you."
STORYBROOKE - PRESENT
Emma made the hat and slammed the hat and scissors on the table before saying, "I can't make it work. What you're asking me is impossible."
"No!" Jefferson yelled. "It has to be. If it's not, Nevaeh and I are never going home. We'll be cursed to live in this house forever."
"What is so cursed about your lives? Look at this place. It's beautiful. It doesn't seem cursed to me."
"It's cursed because, like everyone else here, what Veah and I love has been ripped from us. Take a look." He gestured for Emma to look through the telescope, and she saw a happy little girl eating with her family. "Her name is Grace. Here, it's Paige. But it's Grace. Nevaeh's and my Grace. Do you have any idea what it's like to watch her day in and day out, happy, with a new family? With a new father and a new mother?"
"You two think she's your daughter?"
Nevaeh glanced at Emma. "We don't think -- we know. He and I remember. She has no idea who we are. Our life together, where we come from. Jefferson and I do. That's our curse. A cruel trick of the Queen, considering I remained in the Enchanted Forest with Grace."
"To remember."
"What good is this house, these things, if Veah and I can't share them with her?" Jefferson said.
"If you two really think she's your daughter, why don't you two reach out to her? Why don't you two tell her?"
"And destroy her reality? Neveah and I are trapped by knowledge. How cruel do you think we are? You think we'd inflict that awareness on our daughter? It's hard enough to live in a land where you don't belong. But knowing it, holding conflicting realities in your head... Will drive you mad."
"That's why you want to make the hat work, isn't it? You two just want to take Grace home -- to your world."
Nevaeh nodded. "It's the one world where we can be together... Where she'll remember who Jefferson and I are."
"I know what it's like to be separated from your kid." She looked through the telescope again.
"Yeah, you do, don't you?" Jefferson replied.
"It can make you feel like you're losing your mind."
"I'm not losing my mind. I'm not crazy. Neither is Veah. This is real."
"Maybe. Maybe it is."
"You believe?" Jefferson and Nevaeh asked.
"If what you two say is true, that woman in the other room is my mother. And I want to believe that more than anything in the world. So, maybe you're both right. Maybe, I need to open myself up more. Maybe, if I want magic, I have to start believing."
"So, you're... You're going to help us?" Jefferson questioned. "You can get it to work?"
"I can try." When Jefferson turned around to pick up the hat, Emma grabbed the telescope and hit him in the back of the head, knocking him out. She did the same to Nevaeh. "Crazy son of a bitch. Crazy lady." She took Jefferson's gun and headed to the room where Mary Margaret was tied up. She ungagged them and began untying her. "Hey, it's all right. I'm going to get you out of here. You're going to be okay. He can't hurt you anymore. Neither can she."
"Emma! Look out!" Mary Margaret cried.
Jefferson tackled Emma, who fell into Mary Margaret, causing the three of them to fall to the floor. The gun was knocked from Emma's hand, and she and Jefferson scrambled for it. The two fought while Mary Margaret tried to untie herself from the chair. Nevaeh, hearing the scuffle, ran to get the gun. Jefferson managed to wrestle the gun away and pointed it at Emma, making the scar on his neck visible.
"Off with his head," Jefferson said.
Mary Margaret freed herself and grabbed a croquet mallet, using it to hit Jefferson and Nevaeh. While they were temporarily distracted, Mary Margaret kicked them out the window.
"Are you okay?" Mary Margaret asked.
Emma nodded. "Yeah."
They looked out the window, but Jefferson and Nevaeh were gone, leaving only the hat. They headed outside.
"There's no sign of them anywhere," Emma said.
"Who was he?" Mary Margaret wondered. "What about her?"
"A very lonely man and woman. By the way, have you been taking kickboxing and not telling me about it?"
"I have no idea where that came from."
They walked around the side of the house and found Emma's car under a tarp.
"Emma, look," Mary Margaret called.
Emma removed the tarp and looked inside. She found the keys in the car.
"So, Sheriff, I guess you'll be taking me back now."
Emma tossed the keys to Mary Margaret. "Here. Go."
"You want me to run?"
"No, but it's your choice. Just know something -- running ain't easy. I've done my share of it. And once you go, there's no stopping."
"Emma, everyone thinks I killed Kathryn."
"Mary Margaret, you have to believe me. You have to trust me. I know it seems impossible, but I can get you out of this."
"Why is it so important to you what happens to me?"
"Because, when Regina framed me, and you bailed me out, I asked you why. And you said you trusted me. And then, when I wanted to leave Storybrooke 'cause I thought it was best for Henry, you told me I needed to stay because that was best for him. And I realized, all my life, I have been alone. Walls up. Nobody's ever been there for me -- except for you. And I can't lose that. I cannot lose my family."
"Family?"
"Friends. Whatever. You know what I mean, Wouldn't you rather face this together than alone?"
Mary Margaret gave the keys back to Emma. In the distance, the clock chimed.
Emma's eyes widened. "The arraignment. Regina."
---
Regina arrived at the station, surprised to see Mary Margaret in her cell reading the paper.
"Madam Mayor," Mary Margaret greeted.
"Good morning," Regina replied.
Mr. Gold appeared. "Excuse me, but my client is not having any visitors."
"Of course not."
"I'll see you out."
Mr. Gold and Regina went out into the hall.
"What is she doing here?" Regina asked.
"She came back," Mr. Gold answered.
"You said this was going to work. That she'd take the key, that she'd go."
"And she did. But, it seems that Miss Swan is rather more resourceful than we thought. Fear not, Your Majesty. Miss Blanchard is still guilty of murder. You may yet get what you want."
"Oh, I better. The only reason I made a deal with you, Gold, is because I wanted results."
"And results you shall have. See you at the arraignment."
---
Henry was sitting on a bench outside school.
Emma walked up and said, "Henry. Well, I found Mary Margaret."
"How is she?" Henry asked.
"She's okay. Other than being on trial for murder, she's fine."
A group of kids walked past and Paige waved. "Hi, Henry."
"Who is that?" Emma wondered.
"Her name is Paige," Henry said. "She goes to school with me."
"Henry, do you have your storybook with you?" He nodded. "Can I see it?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"I'm just curious about something."
Henry pulled the book from his backpack and gave it to Emma. She flipped it to the story about two specific characters and looked at the picture.
Henry frowned. "What? What is it?"
"Nothing," Emma replied.
"Emma? Emma?" Henry called as the bell rang. "I got to go."
Emma nodded. "Right. Can I hold onto this?"
Henry smiled. "Absolutely."
Emma glanced up, seeing Scarlet walking past and looked at another page in the book. Everything was slowly coming together, and the supposed truth was becoming more and more real.
But she didn't believe it. And she didn't think she ever truly would.