The next day, everyone gathered early in the morning to pay our respects to Archie. Everyone was dressed in black. My friends and I were all clad in black leather, our outfits reminiscent of our old Isle clothes, whereas Ben was in a sharp black suit. "Some of us knew him as Archie, others as Jiminy." Mary Margaret was saying. Ben had his arm wrapped around me as we listened to the eulogy. "But we all knew him as a true friend. And though he may now be gone, he will always live on inside of us, reminding us to be our best selves, to do the right thing, to always fight for what we believe in." Mary Margaret wiped a tear, "So we shouldn't think of today as goodbye, just as a way of saying, 'Archie, we'll be listening'." I lifted my hand up and wiped a tear that fell down my cheek. I barely knew him and his death still hurt. Marco placed an umbrella on Archie's gravestone.
"I miss you so much, my friend." He said, "You're at least in a better place."
"I may not have known Archie as well as most people here." I spoke up, my voice shaky, "But I know that he influenced everyone." I bowed my head in respect, "May the Gods guide his journey to Elysium, and allow him to live peacefully."
"May the Gods guide his journey to Elysium, and allow him to live peacefully." The Auradonian's at the funeral echoed my sentiment.
"Hey, Em." I said softly as she passed the kitchen, "Ask if Henry wants this." I pushed a plate towards her. On it, was a serving of something called baked ziti, according to the cookbook. "He needs to eat something."
"Thanks, Hadley." Emma said gratefully, taking the plate from the counter and walking over to where Henry was sat on Mary Margaret's bed. I watched Emma approach her son, "You hungry?" She asked, "Hadley made a mean baked ziti."
"No thanks." Henry replied. I felt a hand on my shoulder and Mary Margaret appeared beside me. We watched Emma set the plate next to him before approaching us.
"Well, that went well." Emma muttered.
"Emma, you're doing all you can do." Mary Margaret said, using her other hand to rub Emma's arm.
"That's what makes me feel awful."
"Ladies." Leroy said, causing us to turn to him. "The Dwarves have been thinking...we have to ask. When do we go back?"
"Back? Back where?"
"To the Enchanted Forest?" I asked.
"Our home." Leroy agreed.
"You wanna go back?" Mary Margaret questioned.
"We fought really hard to get here." Emma stated.
"But with what Regina did to Archie, Storybrooke ain't as safe as we thought." Leroy reasoned.
"We're gonna find her, there's only so many places she can hide."
"We've dealt with her before, we'll do it again." Mary Margaret added.
"But it's not just her." Leroy insisted, "The Curse is broken. There's a whole world full of people beyond the Town Line that don't know who or what we are. Ever think of what might happen if one of them were to come pay us a visit?"
"He's right." Ruby spoke up, "What if they see, you know, Magic? Like a girl turning into a wolf, for example? Folks weren't exactly understanding back in our world.
"Hadley and I are only starting to get a handle on our magic." Mal stated, "We don't know the limits of what we can do."
"Let's not worry about 'what if's'." Emma said, "No one is here."
"Yet." Leroy argued. "Maybe they come, maybe they don't. But that doesn't change the fact that while we might enjoy things like penicillin, we're a bit homesick." I felt a hand slip into mine. I looked up and saw Ben beside me. I know he was feeling it too, away from Auradon, his Kingdom, his parents. I squeezed his hand, leaning into him for reassurance.
I sang softly as I washed the dishes. My friends had returned to their rooms in Granny's to settle.
A million thoughts in my head
Should I let my heart keep listening
'Cause up 'til now I've walked the line
Nothing lost but something missing
I can't decide
What's wrong, what's right
Which way should I go?
If only I knew what my heart was telling me
Don't know what I'm feeling
Is this just a dream?
Ah oh, yeah
"Where's that from?" Mary Margaret asked, causing me to jump. In one hand, she held a dish towel to dry with, and the other she was offering to me. I handed her the wet plate in my hand.
"Before I arrived in the Enchanted Forest, I was having an um..." I trailed off with a frown, trying to remember the word, "Identity Crisis? I believe the term is. My head was telling me one thing while my heart was luring me in the opposite direction."
"What happened?" David asked, appearing on my other side.
"Well...the person I was raised by wanted me to...retrieve something for them, but when I went to do it, I met Ben." I smiled softly, "He showed me another way, he showed me I could be better. And he did." I looked past Mary Margaret and David and saw Henry on the phone. "Who's Henry calling?" David put down the plate and towel he was holding and eyed the phone on the counter. He picked it up and held it up for all of us to hear.
"You've reached the office of Archibald Hopper. I'm sorry I can't take you're call right now. I'm either with a patient..."
"Or dead." Henry cut in from the other room. David walked over to him and sat on the bed next to my nephew.
"So..." Mary Margaret trailed off, causing me to eye her, "What's up with you and Ben?" I scoffed,
"There's nothing to it." I told her, continuing to wash the dishes in the sink, handing them to Mary Margaret once they were done. "I met Ben, we hung out, and then he took me on a date and asked me to be his girlfriend, and...I said yes." Mary Margaret squealed, pulling me into a tight hug. There was a creak and a bark sounded through the apartment. I yelped as Pongo rushed over to Henry.
"How did he get in here?" Mary Margaret asked.
"I brought him." Emma said, walking in after the dog and closing the door behind her, "Marco and I had a chat. Archie knew how much Henry loves this dog, we decided he should have him." Emma turned her attention to Henry, "That is if you're up for taking care of him Henry?"
"Yeah, I am!" Henry declared.
"If you need any tips just ask Carlos." I spoke up, "He took care of the Campus Mutt back in Auradon, he knows a few things about them." I looked down and cringed at the dirt paw prints covering the floor.
"Henry, why don't you take Pongo outside and clean him up." Emma suggested.
"Ok. Come on." Henry said, leading Pongo out of the loft.
"I know that there's a lot to work out logistically, but-"
"No, no, no!" Mary Margaret exclaimed. "I think giving Pongo to Henry is a great idea. It's just...five people and a dalmatian in this loft...things might get a little..." David stepped up beside us.
"Cramped. I know, we'll get creative."
"Or...we could get our own place."
"You wanna do what?" David asked.
"You wanna move out?" Emma added.
"Woah! I-It's just a suggestion." Mary Margaret told us.
"You've been waiting for the curse to break for twenty-eight years." I said softly. "After I found out about you all, all I've wanted is for us to be together under the same roof." My eyes started to sting, "Don't you want that too?"
"Yes, I just...imagined a bigger roof...with turrets. Being here in Storybrooke, we have a chance at a fresh start. Let's take it." I smiled. Wiping the stray tear that formed in the corner of my eye.
Everyone had decided to spend some time together after the initial bout of sadness when burying Archie. We all met up at the park after dark. Jay and Carlos had found something called a football and we're learning it's uses. Mal and Evie were sitting across from Ben and I on a park bench. "How's Henry?" Evie asked.
"He...he's coping." I said, wringing my hands together. "Emma thought that it would help him if he looked after Pongo."
"Is that Pongo like the one in Auradon?" Mal asked, leaning forward in his seat, "Other than the fact they're both dalmatians."
"Not really. This Pongo is more like a dog."
"He won't hurt me though, will he?" Carlos called.
"No, I'm sure he's like Dude." Ben assured, "But...much bigger." The sweet moment was cut by my phone ringing. I took it out of my pocket and answered it, setting it on the table in front of me.
"Hello?" I greeted.
"Hadley." Emma's voice sounded through the speaker. "You need to get to the hospital."
"O-ok. What happened?"
"An Outsider got into town lines, Belle is hurt and Hook's here." I looked to my friends who were all staring at me.
"We'll be there as soon as we can." I hung up the phone and put it back into my pocket.