(Collaboration Post Featuring Major Ursa as Knox and YoshiSkittlez as Ruby & Mr Gold)

Ruby and Knox had practically made it to Granny's Diner when Ruby stopped suddenly in her tracks. She had been so immersed in the thought of sharing a bed of cheese fries and a coke that she almost didn't hear it; but with those notions allowed to leave her mind due to the distraction, it couldn't have been clearer.

"Wait..." Ruby said softly to Knox and turned around in a small semi-circle, her eyes wide and bright in an effort to try and see through the darkness, hoping that they would take her to the source of the noise. "Do you hear that?"

Knox turned to look back over his shoulder at Ruby, an eyebrow rising ever so slightly, but his mouth drawn into a firm line. Seemed like nothing this night was going to plan…first his damned security footage and sign-in logs, then his drinks, now his cheesy fries. The side of his mouth twitched irritably in the darkness, and the man didn’t bother to try and figure out Ruby. “We’ve had problems with raccoons in the past, don’t concern yourself with them.”

"No..." Ruby let the word trail off as she continued to look around her black surroundings, seeming to be lost in thought before suddenly saying, "its Mr. Gold...something's wrong." She turned quickly to face Knox with a worried look on her face that gradually turned into confusion, realizing that Knox wasn't hearing what she was. "You can't hear him?" She didn’t give time for Knox to answer though as her feet began to carry her away from Granny's Diner and instead began down a smaller set of streets that eventually connected into an alleyway.

Knox rolled his eyes, though this action was largely unseen in the darkness, especially since Ruby was now actively searching for this phantom sound of hers. Letting out a small but unmistakably annoyed sigh, he followed her down this way and that easily, sure this was either some sort of game to her or…maybe she had her drinks already, and was currently inebriated? At some point, he was just going to have to just give up and just leave, like he had intended a little while ago…when he glanced over and actually noticed where Mr Gold was leaning in the darkness, moments before Ruby herself did. Only momentarily caught off guard by this, he hurried on over.

The area was pitch black, not even a street lamp lit her way but Ruby could see Mr. Gold's dark silhouette hunkered down near the ground with his arm keeping himself braced against the wall. Her nose immediately picked up on the strong odour of sweat coming from him, and he seemed to be mumbling incoherently to himself before being launched into a coughing fit coming from deep within his throat. He was too busy trying to keep from falling over and maintain some sort of breathing (though incredible staggered) to even notice Ruby there. "Knox! Over here I found him!"

Without a moment of hesitation, Knox hefted Mr. Gold up onto his feet. He was curious as to what exactly happened before they had come to the scene...but he did turn to give Ruby a rather…pleased look? “What a sharp sense of hearing you have…” Pausing for a moment, thinking about where they were exactly, and who exactly he was helping keep on his feet.

Ruby stooped down and picked up Mr. Gold's cane that had been lying on the ground where, holding it with the uttermost caution, not wanting Mr. Gold to have any reason to want to 'get her back' if something had happened to it. The older gentleman was shaking somewhat violently, causing Ruby to furrow her eyebrows and tilt her head to the side but the dazed look he once held in his eyes seemed to slowly recede, bringing back his mind from wherever it had been.

"Wh-wha-" He tried to speak but was forced into another coughing fit, making Ruby shake her head, feeling her heart-rate quicken to the intensity of the situation. As much as she loathed Mr. Gold for everything he had done to the people of Storybrooke; to Granny, he was still a man...and he needed their help.

"I'll call Robert." She offered, fishing her fingers into her extremely tight shorts pockets to pull out her phone, beginning to dial the number for Storybrooke's Sheriff Department.

"Give...me...*cough*...that!" Mr. Gold outstretched his free arm, snatching his cane back from Ruby, initially startling her and making her jump causing the phone to fall from her hands and crash down onto the asphalt beneath them. Mr. Gold, coming out of his coughing fit attempted to stand tall once more and used his cane to hold himself up, trying to push Knox away. "I don't need your help."

Ignoring the actions and weak resistance of the older man, he turned to Ruby and gestured for her to collect her phone, “A panic attack is a strong possibility. The hospital shouldn’t be too far off, we should bring him over as soon as possible.”

"Yes-" Ruby shook her head again as she bent over to collect her phone, ignoring Mr. Gold rolling his eyes and turning his face away from them, though was forced to bring his fist to his mouth to cover a few more, less strenuous coughs. Ruby bent down to pick up her phone and wiped it off, frowning at the hairline crack across the screen but now wasn't exactly the time to bitch about it. She got back up and stuffed the phone into the extremely small pocket in her red shorts and got onto Mr. Gold's right side. Sure he had the cane to help him there, but she was more of an 'emergency backup' if for some reason both Knox and the cane failed to aid him.

"Panic attack...that would be equally likely as your friend here keeping her legs closed." Mr. Gold scoffed under his breath, of course referring to Ruby, and again tried to jerk his shoulder away from Knox before speaking with his normal voice to Ruby, "It was more than likely that over-priced lasagne your Granny makes; come back to kill me off..."

"...a panic attack is nothing to be ashamed of, Mr Gold...sir. At your age, a heart attack would be equally likely, bad diet or no." Knox's expression didn't change, after all...this man was having some sort of attack only moments ago, "Just stay calm, the hospital is only 'hop and a skip' away..." The man, holding up this older man, actually cringed at that saying. His father said that a lot, in relation to short walks to here or there, but it just seemed so awkward and misplaced coming from Knox's own lips.

Mr. Gold, again rolled his eyes and used his tongue to wet his dry lips before letting out an agitated sigh, taking the phrase 'hop and skip' to heart just a bit more than he should have given the condition of his leg.

"You hop...I'll watch." He replied bitterly but agreed without even saying anything about it to go to the hospital with them.

Henry stormed out from the bed & breakfast silently, his face seemingly frozen into a single expression: anger. The cold breeze swept against him, as if attempting to push him away from his task, but he pressed on through.

The pawn shop was a short walk away from the inn, the sign dimmed and the sign in front of the door labeled "closed" to signify the shop was empty...or was it?

Henry snuck around the side of the building, trying to duck under any window in his way to avoid being caught in case Mr. Gold was still inside. He reflexively clenched his fist in anticipation. He knew never to underestimate or challenge Rumpelstiltskin: but this was Mr. Gold. He was sure he could take the pawnbroker in a fight; a kick to that bad leg could take him down with relative ease.

The back door of the building came into view as Henry turned a corner, feeling a small smile curl at the edge of his lips; now was his chance.

He stepped up to the door, trying the knob to check if the door was locked or not. He backed away about 6 feet from the door before jutting his shoulder out and attempting to ram the door in. The first attempt elicited a loud *clang* and a wounded shoulder.

Henry couldn't mask a wince as the precognitive tingling transformed into a sharp ache in his shoulder. He swallowed the pain for the time being and backed away slightly further before charging again.

The door burst open with a *crack*, revealing what was hidden behind the austere curtain behind the counter.

Henry slowly tried to close the door, but it hung ajar; unable to close properly again from the damage. He shook his head and continued on with his search.

He remembered hearing the rumors of the Snow Queen, Elsa, and that she was somehow associated with Rumpelstiltskin. It was said she became so powerful that even He feared her wrath. So he trapped her inside a snowglobe where she would pose no threat to him anymore.

Henry figured that, if he could free Elsa, he could also bring back magic. For surely someone as powerful-sounding as her would bring some form of magic back with her. He scuttled throughout the back of the shop, looking through shelf after shelf for any sign of a snowglobe and finding none.

He let his eyes roam to the upper shelves of the shop, stopping abruptly as he could of sworn he saw a refulgent, if not somewhat dim light. He pulled out a box from some random corner of the room and stood upon it, just able to let his fingers brush lightly against the glass orb of the snowglobe.

Pushing himself up on the tips of his toes he was able to get enough of a grasp to pull the snowglobe off the shelf, where it rested gently in the palm of his hand. He looked about to make sure no one had followed him and hastily rushed out the door.

He continued running under cover of darkness until he found himself entering the woodsy region of Storybrooke, the sound of grass crunching underneath his feet until he couldn't run anymore.

Panting, he sat down atop a tree stump, looking closely at the snowglobe. Standing, he let his eyes shut and hoped beyond hope that this would work. He lifted his arm up above his head and threw it down with as much force as he could muster, the snowglobe shattering upon he ground; jagged shards of glass spread about the area.

Henry stared at the destroyed remains, chest heaving as he continued to regain a hold of his breath from his mini-marathon before. Seconds turned to minutes, and it had been over 10 minutes before Henry finally realized that Elsa would *not* be coming through.

He let himself sink down to his knees, fresh tears falling down his cheeks as he could only stare at the remains of the snowglobe: shattered apart like the little hope he had held onto.

Too tired to cry anymore, he stood silently and walked away...

Collaboration between Yoshiskittlez, Major Ursa, and I

*~*~*

The very moment Ruby, Knox and Mr. Gold stepped into the hospital entrance, it seemed as if time had just...stopped. All the nurses moving back and forth between rooms, all the visitors waiting to be helped...hell even the newborn baby being held tightly in her mother's arms as they were heading outside...they all stopped, and stared. Ruby didn't take it personally, she knew it had nothing to do with her and Knox; knowing it had to be quite the sight that Mr. Gold...the most powerful man in Storybrooke...was there on an occasion that didn't involve collecting rent.

Long before the three's arrival, Dr. Whale had called Dr. Stevenson back for an emergency in regards to a different patient. Dr. Stevenson was about to head home from the hospital, but stopped when Mr. Gold entered with Knox and Ruby acting as support. She blinked in surprise, and she asked Ruby and Knox, knowing full well there's no way Gold would come here unless it was an emergency, "Ruby, Mr. Kowalski, what happened?"

Again, Mr. Gold shrugged himself from Knox, this time managing to get free from his supportive hold. He rolled his shoulders, placing both hands on the top of his cane and kept his back to both Knox and Ruby, doing what he could to keep his pride, power and position.

"There, I'm here, and now you can go." He said coldly to Ruby and Knox, still keeping his back to them. "Any questions Dr. Stevenson might have, I am perfectly capable of answering myself."

Knox gave Dr Stevenson a respective nod, "Mr Gold was having a small panic attack. While he seemed fine for the trip on his own, Ruby and I were insistant on escorting him here to the hospital..." With this, he gave the older man a sort of pointed look, before finally turning to Ruby, "You should head home now, your assistance is no longer necessary."

"It wasn't a panic attack!" Mr. Gold hissed through his tightly clenched teeth, his grip only getting tighter on the top of his cane. Ruby made a point to ignore him.

"Raincheck then." Ruby said to Knox with an understanding look, speaking of course of grabbing a drink with him later. It would be better...later...tonight seemed to just be spiraling more and more out of control.

Dr. Stevenson noticed how Mr. Gold trying to keep his pride, and she subtly rolled her eyes. She listened to Knox as he answered her question, and she questioned silently "A panic attack?" From what she could tell, Mr. Gold was definitely not the type to go through a panic attack, he was too collected and was never anxious. She nodded as she gained an idea as to what may have happened to Mr. Gold.

She said to Knox and Ruby with respect "Thank you, Mr. Kowalski, Ruby. Mr. Gold, if you would please, come with me. I would like to have Dr. Whale administer some diagnostic tests,"

With yet another respective nod, Knox went into professional mode, “Let me escort you back to the lobby.” Firmly taking Ruby's shoulder, he led her on out of there without another word.

Mr. Gold remained unmoved until Ruby and Knox had completely left before putting his brown eyes on Dr. Stevenson with such a look of intensity, it could very well make a small child burst into tears.

"This is all quite unnecessary." Mr. Gold began, subconsiously twisting his cane around. "I know what happened, and it has passed. I'm fine."

Dr. Stevenson narrowed her blue eyed gaze in an icy way, matching his look of intensity. After he spoke, she answered calmly, but firmly and with authority as the Head Doctor, "With all due respect, Mr. Gold, you just stated earlier, and I quote, 'It wasn't a panic attack,'. If what you just experienced wasn't a panic attack, then it could be something much more serious. It would be beneficial to you, if we did the diagnostics and figured out what is wrong,"

Mr. Gold's eyes began to ache from having to roll them in his annoyance so much.
"And if I...went along with this then...would that buy your silence?" He questioned. Of course everything had to come at a price with him, and this was no different.

Dr. Stevenson answered him, "Yes. But I still have to inform you of the results afterwards," After she stated that, she moved her hand as if she zipped her mouth shut and tossed away the zipper tag.

Mr. Gold was not at all amused by her gesture, but he did remove one hand from the top of his cane and walked with her to a carefully assigned hospital room where the tests could be conducted in private.

After Dr. Stevenson led him to the room, she walked out and sent in Dr. Whale to perform the tests.

An hour later, Dr. Whale brought Dr. Stevenson the test results and X-rays, and after double checking to make sure they were accurate, she sighed and headed for the room that Mr. Gold was in. She opened the door and walked in. She sighed through her nose as she looked at Mr. Gold gravely and with a bit of pity.

Mr. Gold looked up from his position of sitting on the edge of the hospital, spinning his cane around vertically, keeping his palm resting heavily on it to keep the bottom of the cane firmly on the floor, almost like a child that had grown bored of waiting and created a simple game to keep entertained.

She closed the door behind her and she said to Mr. Gold, and knowing the kind of person he is, she wasted no time and got straight to the point in a grave tone, "You have lung cancer, Mr. Gold,"

His brown eyes tore into Dr. Stevenson, his salt-and-peppered hair covering half of his face as he looked up at her and remained silent for a good while before simply stating in a quiet voice,

"I know."

Dr. Stevenson did a double take after she heard his comment, and she asked in a disbelieving and surprised tone, "You knew...? You. Knew? And you didn't say or do anything?" It baffled Dr. Stevenson that he knew earlier than she did, and yet didn't do anything to help himself! He could've left Storybrooke and get himself Chemotherapy, or could've asked the doctors here in Storybrooke Hospital for help.

He waited a moment before answering, licking his lips in a physical notion that he was thinking his words over carefully.

"When you have as much life experience as I do, Doctor, you just know things."

Dr. Stevenson gave him a skeptical look and she retorted skeptically "So you think that not saying anything about this, to anyone, is the wise way to go?"

"Ya." Mr. Gold said simply. The old nokia flip-phone in his pocket buzzed once, and Mr. Gold fished it out from his dress pants and flipped it open, seeming to now be tuning out whatever Dr. Stevenson had left to say.

She shook her head to show her disagreement, and to keep herself calm. She then said "Mr. Gold. I highly recommend that you stay in the hospital and get treatment,"

"Oh no, that won't be possible." Mr. Gold laughed. He closed his phone back up and used his can to help him back up to his feet, then putting his phone back into his pocket. "As it turns out, I have more pressing matters to attend to, so if you'll excuse me..." Taking a good hold on his cane, Mr. Gold began to head towards the door.

Dr. Stevenson followed and she asked as she followed "What about your family and friends? Aren't you at least going to get help for them? For their sake?"

At the drop of a pin, Mr. Gold turned to face Faye immediately, his grip tightening on his cane until his knuckles turned white.

"As I said...I have more pressing matters to attend to." He repeated, though this time through his clenched teeth. "You would be a smart woman to stay out of this Dr. Stevenson, and stop asking questions...a very smart woman." He softly threatened.

Dr. Stevenson stopped and clenched her fists tighter when he threatened her. She did feel fear from Mr. Gold's threat, but she ignored it and continued her own teeth clenched, "Oh, I'm not questioning your affairs. I'm asking you to help yourself for your sake. I'm asking you to not be a coward!"

Mr. Gold let out a mixture between a laugh and an outward gasp, making an 'O' shape with his mouth at the mention of his cowardice.

"Really dearie?"

He was done. Done talking to her, and done wasting time with something that, under his own understanding, he could manage on his own. He tossed his cane up, grabbing it by the lower base and pulled his arm back only to strike the golden handle of the cane across Faye's head without a single regard for what he had just done.

Faye fell to the ground after she was struck to the head. Mr. Gold was apparently stronger than he appeared. Her head throbbed in pain from where she was hit, and she looked at Mr. Gold, with a seething glare. She ignored the feeling of blood dripping down from her wound.

Mr. Gold stood above her, returning his cane to the floor and placing both hands upon the bloodied handle with what almost looked like a pleased smirk crossing his lips.

"Don't fret about the bill, doctor, it would be in you're best interest to just burn it." He advised

As Faye wiped off the blood from the side of her head, she told him with a bitter tone, "You're making a mistake. But fine. I won't stop you,"

She then stood up and she glared at him and said coldly, "Go,"

"With pleasure." Mr. Gold nodded twice, flashed Faye a golden smile and limped heavily out of the hospital room. He had a break-in to investigate; courtesy of the alarm system that triggered the text message on his phone while he had been talking with Dr. Stevenson.

After Faye was gone, she stared at the floor. She didn't know why, but she felt so angry. She just wanted to throw something or hit something. She shook her head and told herself that violence isn't the answer. And yet, it felt as though trying to bottle that anger up was empowering her other persona.

"God! I need a drink!"

Now she knew for sure that she was mentally breaking. She normally abstains from drinking alcohol, but now...now she felt like she needed it. It was miserable. Since there were no other emergencies to be taken care of, she headed to her home, where she had her own stash of alcohol waiting, courtesy of her other persona.

Perhaps this would be something she would bring up in her session with Dr. Hopper tomorrow.

A few more patrons walked through the door and shouted across the room, "Ay Jake, how you doing tonight?"

"Doing great Rocky, you havin' the usual tonight?" Jake replied while throwing a damp towel over his shoulder.

"You know it, my man. Gotta few friends with me too, they'll have the same."

"Comin' right up." Jake then grabbed a few glasses, put them on the bartop and grabbed a mix of bottles. He began mixing the drinks and creating one of his own unique drinks. Bottles were flipped and thrown all around, giving everyone a good show. After a few more seconds of bottle-twirling, Jake was finished. He slid the drinks down to the end of the bar where Rocky and his friends had taken their seats. "There you go, friend. Enjoy." Jake grabbed the towel from his shoulder and started cleaning the bartop off. He took a look around the place and saw that business was a little slow tonight. Maybe someone'll come in and liven the place up.

"You put that away a bit prematurely." Ruby said sliding into one of the bar stools in front of Jake and gave him a half-hearted smile. After she had parted ways with Knox at the hospital, it was hard to just...forget about him. She could have gone back home and got in an early night...but who was she kidding? There was still plenty of night-life left in Storybrooke, and she was determined to go out with a bang, even if she had to fake being happy at first.

Ruby tilted her head to the side slightly, causing her long, red and brown pigtails to swing to the same side.

"Can I get a green apple tini?"

"Of course, but just to let you know, my specialities are unique drinks. I can make anything. Hell, I'll even surprise you." He said returning a genuine smile.He pulled out a glass and started pouring up the ordered drink.

"God knows I could use a surprise right about now." Ruby mumbled to herself, letting her head rest in her hand with her elbow keeping it propped up on the table.

It only took a few seconds before he was finished. "And there we go, one green apple tini. Hope you like." Jake took a second to look at the woman in front of him. He knew who she was, and probably vice versa, but he can't remember the last time they actually met. Guess now was as good a time as any. "Everything going alright? Besides alcohol, I can't really help you out with surprises. Don't know when your birthday is, so we can't do that."

Ruby chuckled, but only slightly and grabbed the martini from him and took a small sip, and nodded in approval almost immediately. Setting the martini glass down on the bar, she reached into her open shirt and then her bra and pulled out the five, one-dollar bills that she had stored away, her winnings she had swindled from the guys earlier and handed it over to him.

"Oh yeah - everything's...great..!" She answered smartly with a harsh edge of sarcasm and took up the martini once more to give her something to do and took another drink. "You ever have one of those days where everything seems like it's working out great, and then it all just collapses in on itself before you even have time to blink?" She asked him curiously.

Jake let out a slight chuckle, "You've never been a bartender. Ya, I've had my fair share of days like that. I'de feel shitty all day, but the next day, I'm back to feeling fine. Just gotta push through 'em. They suck ass, but hey, what can you do?"

"I work at Granny's." Ruby reminded him. "I've done my fair share of being a bartender."

"You know what, keep your money. That drink's on the house. You seem like you needed it."

Ruby seemed to be nice and all, he's obviously heard the stories, but so far, she seems cool. Still plenty of night left, no telling where it'll end up.

Ruby's red lips turned up into a soft smile, seeming to lighten up her entire complexion.

"Hey, you should be my bartender more often. Jake...isn't it?" She asked. She could have just looked at the name-tag, but where was the fun with that? She had seen him enough around town to have learned his name beforehand and therefore didn't really need to second-guess herself.

"Always willing to help out a troubled soul, . . . Ruby isn't it?" He said shooting a tease. "Besides we get plenty of business around here. They won't notice it. All I ask is that you feel better with that drink, and that'll be payment enough, deal?" He began placing the bottles back too their original positions, still having his attention focused on Ruby.

Ruby tilted her head once more, looking upon Jake thoughtfully.

"When's your next break?" She asked almost out of the blue.

Jake looked at his watch, "In about five minutes. May I ask why you ask?"

Ruby's smile returned to her lips.

"I'm going to tell you something." She began and then pointed to her left where the pool tables were. "I'm going to be over there, waiting for your break. And when you come over to me, you're going to show me around the supply closet, and then you can see just how much better you can make me feel."

Ruby picked up what was left of her martini and drank the rest of the contents with a single gulp before returning the empty martini glass to the bar table and without another word, she hopped off of the stool and did exactly what she said she was going to do and went over to the pool tables.

Jake kept his composure the whole time, but his mind was obviously racing. The next five minutes flew by fast, and he quickly clocked out. He calmly made his way to where she was waiting, "Now I can give you the full tour." He grabbed her hand and guided her through the back of the building and into the supply closet, careful to keep anyway from seeing them. He shut the door behind them, and pulled her close. "So, how do you like the supply closet. Nice and roomie?"

Ruby just raised an eyebrow, resting her hands on his chest as he pulled her close, the look of a preditor gleaming in her eye.

"Just shut up and kiss me." She replied with a smirk, and too impatient to even wait for that, crashed her lips against his.

***

Mr. Gold ran his fingers over the splintered wood of the door jam of his shop. It wasn't hard at all to find where his pest had broken into; the back door was the very first place he looked. With a frown, Mr. Gold went back into his shop, taking careful inventory to try to figure out just what had been taken. He had barely even began to understand the path that the burglar had taken when there was an urgent knock on the front door. With a collected sigh, Mr. Gold pushed through his office to the front of the shop, seeing Regina on the other side of the glass, peering into his shop and trying to spot him. Again Mr. Gold sighed. He really didn't have time for this, but avoiding the mayor was just as successful as avoiding him; it wasn't.

He unlocked the door, and Regina pushed herself inside, walking directly to the counter that Mr. Gold usually stood behind and assumed he'd follow. He did, but he took his time, letting his shoes fill the surrounding air around them as he limped heavily. Neither of them said a word until Mr. Gold took up his usual post behind the counter while Regina reached over to turn on one of the many lamps in his shop to give them a bit of light. The two of them just stared at the other for a prolonged period of time, almost as if they were trying to out-wait the other into being the first to speak.

"So..." Regina broke the silence. She wasn't exactly known for her patience.

"You realize that the shop is closed." Mr. Gold interrupted, now having the satisfaction of winning their little game.

"And you realize that you opted to open the door." Regina replied curtly. "I'm here to ask you a question." She then said, getting right to the point.

"And what makes you think I'm willing to answer?" Mr. Gold asked, resting the palms of his hands on the counter top. Regina just smirked.

"Because I know who broke in, and what they took."

This piqued Mr. Gold's interest. He had a pretty good idea himself, but with how many people he had angered over the years in Storybrooke, he couldn't be too sure.

"Ask away." He said to Regina with a nod.

"Whats your name?"

Her question caused Mr. Gold to smile ever so slowly.

"It's just...Mr. Gold..." He replied, keeping his smirk. Regina lowered her head a bit, glaring up at him with the shadows now intensifying her glare.

"Your real name." She demanded.

"Every moment I've spent on this Earth...that's been my name."

"But what about moments spent elsewhere?" Regina questioned, making Mr. Gold take another moment to pause.

"What are you asking?" He asked quietly. Despite them being the only two in the shop, he had a certain paranoia of being overheard.

"I think you know." Regina said with a smile, although her voice remained firm. "If you want me to tell you what's missing and who took it...tell me your name!"

Mr. Gold leaned himself over the counter, putting his face directly in Regina's path though he never let his eyes off of hers. He breathed a sort of laugh out through his nose, and his grin widened just a bit more.

"Rumpelstiltskin." He said barely above a whisper.

Regina's eyes went wide in shock. How? How was this possible? She was the one who cast the curse, everyone was supposed to be stripped of their memories! And yet...and yet she knew...somehow...the entire time. Mr. Gold's mannerisms at certain points had given it away many, many times; she was just too blind to see it.

"How?" Regina practically barked, her face giving way to the fact that she was not only confused; but terrified. What did this mean for everyone else in Storybrooke? Had she messed up in conjuring the curse somewhere? Did anyone else have their memories?

Mr. Gold remained completely calm, even almost looking like he was enjoying watching Regina squirm.

"You built it to keep me from interfering; what you didn't realize that not only could magic not be used on the inside, but on the outside as well. Your curse...couldn't touch me."

It all suddenly made sense. Everything Rumpelstiltskin had said from inside his cell finally made sense. That's why he went along with being held prisoner, he knew the whole time!

"Now give me what I want!" Mr. Gold hissed at Regina, pulling her from her thoughts.

"Such hostility!" She shook her head in a mocking manner, bringing herself to smile once more. Mr. Gold just glared daggers at her and nodded his head.

"Oh yeah." He sneered and Regina's blood felt like it had suddenly frozen over. If he was untouched by the curse...that meant- "Not to fear your majesty. As it turns out, I still need you alive...for now. But rest assured, I will kill you for what you did to Belle."

Regina swallowed, however her face remained placid. She instead pulled out her cell phone and flipped through a few screens before resting the phone onto the counter, spinning it so that Mr. Gold could see a clear picture of a man walking away from Mr. Gold's shop with a snow globe tucked tightly into his arm. It was dark outside, but the streetlamp that lit the street made the male's features stand out as if the picture were taken during the day.

"Henry..."

"But why would he take a snow globe of all things? What does this mean?" Regina queried. Mr. Gold kept his eyes on the picture on Regina's phone, taking in the detail of the snow globe that had been stolen.

"It means..." Mr. Gold began. "We are all in very grave danger."

Collaboration between YoshiSkittlez and Tanderbolt

"Robert, I got your message. I need you at my office ten minutes ago."
Regina hung up her phone and climbed into her Mercedes and gunned the car to life, driving hastily away from Mr. Gold's Pawn Shop to the Mayor's office. Aside from her own home, it was the only place in Storybrooke where she knew they could speak privately.

Robert had just finished paying his bill when his cellphone rang, still set on a generic bell sound. He picked up immediately, and heard what Regina said. Her voice was extremely serious and she left no time for him to answer, which told him that it was very important. Perhaps tonight wasn't the best night to go out for a drink, but he hadn't had enough to seriously impair his driving. He hurried to his patrol car and started it up. Though he was tempted to, Robert did not use the siren because it was not technically an emergency.

He'd made good time, the roads weren't crowded and he even exceeded the speed limit a little bit. As he walked into the building he took a moment to comb his hair and to straighten his collar, it was important to keep a professional appearence even for business after hours. He spotted Regina's car outside, so he knew that she was waiting for him. Robert opened the door to the lobby and walked up to Regina's office, knocking sharply on it twice.

Regina was already in her office by the time that Robert showed up. She was sitting in the large roller office chair in front of her desk which upon first looks, looked like an absolute mess; short of a tornado rolling through her office. This was unusual, as Regina always kept her office nice and neat. Her head snapped up from looking through pictures on her phone when he had arrived. Her eyes were dark and glaring, not at him though as he was close enough to Regina to know when he was mad at him or mad at something else entirely.
"
Our visitor...I need you to check him out." Regina demanded.
"His name is Henry, right? Don't know that much about him, saw him around town, and he's staying at-"
"ROBERT!" Regina interrupted him hotly, clearly on her last fuse. "I...don't..care...about all of that." She added on, making a slight attempt to control her temper. She then opened her arms wide, gesturing to the condition her office was in. "Clearly...I've been robbed." She stated and then pushed herself up from her chair, walking over to Robert.
"There was an envelope on my desk containing ten-thousand dollars of Storybrooke's tax money...and it's gone. Look into Henry, follow him, learn everything you can about him and search his car. I'm confident you will find what you are looking for."

Her rage-induced tone gradually eased into something more...pleasant, and by the time she had suggested that Robert check Henry's car, she was even smiling...clearly knowing something that no one else did.

Robert kept calm, though it was unusual to see Regina with demeanor that was anything less than saccharine. "Should I tail him a bit first, maybe even arrest him? We can hold him for 72 hours before charging him, that'd buy us some time. I saw his car parked at Granny's last, if I see something suspicious I could open it without a warrant. What was the envelope labeled? If I don't find it, I could always search it on a traffic stop." Robert always made sure to stick to the book, even if his policework was guided by local politics as much as pursuit of the truth.

Regina just stared at Robert blankly, however it could have easily been translated into a look of over-the-top annoyance.
"Robert..." She said again, eerily calmly this time. "All I need you to do is check his car. Back seat, right side. I want his ass in jail tonight.!"
He nodded, and said "Understood, I will be on my way immediately."
"Good." Regina approved and watched him turn to leave. "Oh and Robert..." She called. "Feel free to stop by my place once you've done your job. I just bought a bottle of wine I'm dying to try out." Robert smiled, and left without another word. He drove back to Granny's, this time using his siren, making the trip even faster.

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--
Meanwhile, when Stevenson made it back to her home, her other persona took over. After a quick wardrobe change, the mysterious woman headed over to Granny's. That was where Henry was staying after all. She smirked to herself when she saw the building and she was about to walk in when she spotted something curious in a nearby car.

There was an envelope just lying in the car. She tilted her head in curiosity as she stared at the envelope as though she'll be able to see through the envelope and see what was in it.

Henry continued walking, his legs like heavy weights that he dragged along - but he did it without complaint or sign of pain.

As Granny's came closer and closer into view, he noticed something strange - someone...staring at his car? He narrowed his eyes and quickened his pace just enough not to alert anyone.

As he got closer he recognized the observer, the same mysterious woman from the bar the other night...stil just as enticingly attractive as before. Henry found himself shaking his head to clear away muddled thoughts before approaching at a more casual pace, the bitter wind seeming to bite at him.

"Well, back so soon, are we? I knew you couldn't resist me for long." He said cheekily, masking the emotional pain he had suffered just minutes before.

The mysterious woman snapped her head towards him when he spoke, and she gave him a smile as she cleverly retorted while leaning away from the car window, "I just have nothing better to do. You are a little foxy, I'll give you that,"

She then asked after looking towards the car window once again, "You said you loved to read, yes? Tell me, do you write as well?"

Henry couldn't help but grin at her 'foxy' comment, seeing it fit to run a hand through his hair whilst making the action look natural and obscure. "Well...I've done a little writing, nothing substantial. I prefer the already-written word more often than not." He answered with a small shrug of his shoulders.

"You never told me what you liked to do, Ms..." At that moment, Henry realized he didn't even know this woman's name, anything about her - time to rectify that.

The mysterious woman shrugged at his comment, and she commented "I don't really get out much,"

She then got off of the topic about her and said "But never mind little ol' me. There's something that strikes me as odd. You don't write very much...and yet," She looked into the car again and she stated "It appears as though you have a rough draft for an encyclopedia sized book in an envelope in your car. Strange,"

She then smirked at him and she asked mischeivously, "Is it your own version of Fifty Shades of Gray? You can tell me,"

Henry's expression turned to one of perplexion as he turned to look in his car, noting an admittedly large envelope inside. "No...this isn't mine - and for your information, were I even *considering* a rewrite of Fifty Shades of Grey, you'd be the first to know about it!" He added in a sultry manner, masking it with a shade of amusement as he opened the car door, procuring the envelope from its place on the seat.

The woman chuckled at his retort to her joke, as she waggled her eyebrows jokingly.

"Best look inside, shouldn't we?" He asked rhetorically.

She nodded and she answered "Of course. Let's open 'er up," She did the honors and she moved her head to peek into the envelope. After she got a good look, she looked at Henry in a slight gape, and she said to him "Either that's yours, someone was very generous to you, or someone wants to get you in legal trouble,"

"What?" Henry simply exclaimed as the woman turned to him. He took a moment to glance into the envelope himself, his face turning to one of complete disbeief. "What??" He repeated, planting both hands on either side of his head as he paced about. "What?!?" He repeated a third time, completely lost for words.

"Wha-who-...What?" He said (again?!), taking a second look into the envelope for confirmation. "Oh, what in the bloody hell!?" He exclaimed, finally finding a word other than 'what'.

The woman watched his reaction with slight amusement. She waited for him to finish repeating the question. After he finished his last question, which was a longer version of the question he was repeating, and she said "Yeeeaaahhh...we can eliminate the first possibility. I highly doubt people would be this generous, so...in conclusion, someone's trying to frame you,"

She then asked "Who got close to your car, that you know of?"

Henry continued to pace about, thinking hard as to whoever got close to his car that he knew of. There were a few minutes of his senseless mumbling before finally landing on someone. "Regina." He said coolly, a polar opposite from his cheeky, seductive tone he adopted earlier.

"She spoke to me just earlier, leaned against the door!" He proclaimed, though not too loudly.

The mysterious woman let out an "Ah," in understanding and said "Of course, the Queen of all Bitches herself,"

The woman thought to herself and as she did, a grin grew on her face. She said to him out loud, "Your presence here must've ticked her off somehow," Her grin grew wider as she finished "And I LIKE it!" It was clear that the woman didn't seem to care for the mayor at all.

She then said "Having said that, I have a proposal for you then,"

"A proposal, eh? Let's hear it." He responded in a sweetly devilish tone, noticing how her wild grin seemed so similar to his when he was a four-legged creature.

The woman continued, her own voice becoming devilish "It's quite simple really. I take the fall for you for having this money. There'll be no doubt that she'll send her dog after you. But in return, you bail me out before Four o clock in the afternoon. And, make sure that you provide Dr. Stevenson with any alibi you can come up with for the time period it takes you to bail me out,"

Henry paid full attention as the woman gave her plan, nodding when she was done. "As long as you're alri- wait...how do you know Dr. Stevenson?" He asked, face turning to one of almost...wary suspicion.

The woman remained unfazed and she answered his question, "It's complicated, but I guess the simplest answer would be that Dr. Stevenson and I....are roommates!"

Henry nodded slowly, "Uh-huh..." He noised in reply. He knew something more was going on than a simple 'roommate' excuse, but decided to let that pass for the time being under more pressing circumstances. "I'll ensure you're free. I can't thank you enough for your help." He said in deep gratitude.

"But..." He started, his tone turning to one of confusion, maybe even worry. "Why? You only just met me! Why endanger yourself to the..." he thought for a moment, "second most dangerous person in town?" He asked.

The woman smirked and she repeated his question with amusement, "Why?" She then chuckled and said "Because...Mayor Whore expects to see you in jail. Imagine her shock and surprise when she sees a different stranger in the jail instead. Besides, no one would be surprised that the town harlot would end up in jail," She then finished "In short, because it's fun,"

The woman smiled at him sweetly and she said "Anyways, think nothing of the deed. But, just know that if you double cross me..." She then leaned forwards and whispered in his ear in a seductive way, but her voice implied something much more dangerous "You're dinner"

After she whispered in his ear she slipped the envelope out of his hand and held it in her own.

Henry still looked confused, but it was more confused at her *motivation* as opposed to her actions. "Well, you're brave, I'll give you that."

When she leaned in to whisper in his ear, he felt a certain tingling feeling rush through him in a moment, goosebumps appearing on his arms until she spoke - in which case he shuffled nervously. "Don't worry about me cheating you. I honor my debts." He reassured, still keeping his composure.

The woman's grin widened at the comment about how she was brave. She leaned away from him as he said that he wouldn't cheat her, and she said in a cheerful voice, "Good,"

Henry took a single step back to get a better view of the surrounding area to ensure no one was listening to their scheme. It was at this time he let himself look the woman up and down a few times, seriously studying her for the first time. The slender, yet well-built frame, curvaceous assets, the predatory eyes that seemed as likely to slit someone's throat as they were to seduce someone.

She too looked around her surroundings in case anyone overheard, and she looked back at Henry to see he was looking at her. She graced him with a slight twirl (pretending to turn around to look around her surroundings some more) so he could get the whole picture, and as a way to silently say that she knew what he was doing.

"Well..." He began, hands seeming to instinvtively go to his coat pockets. "I believe it's the first time I've said this, but you're..." he seemed to search for a proper word to use. "Ravishing." He finally settled on, letting the word roll off his tongue with a cheeky smirk.

She smirked and ran a hand through her hair as she said "Thank you, sweetie," She then said "As much as I would love to stick around, I should go, before you get caught red-handed with me,"
She then walked past him and she said smoothly "I'll see you around, Foxy,"

As she walked off, she sang the lyrics to the song at a normal volume "Stray Cat Strut"

"I don't bother,
chasing mice around...

Oh, I've got cat class,
and I've got cat style,"

Henry raised his eyebrows at his new title as she walked off. "Foxy, eh? I could get used to that." He decided with a shrug of his shoulders, turning to get one last glimpse of the woman before heading inside the inn. He had a long day ahead of him...

The mysterious woman on the other hand, headed for the place a criminal would most likely go with this much moolah: the bank. Of course, she wasn't planning on cashing in. She knew very well that the sheriff will see her with it and arrest her, and the mayor will have her plan foiled.

Robert breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the visitor's car was still in parked outside of Granny's. To stop the man from getting away, Robert double parked behind Henry's car, even though there was plenty of open spaces. It was technically illegal, but Robert had left all of the wheel clamps at the station for the night, and he couldn't let this opportunity slip away. It's not like anyone would give him parking ticket, and with luck he wouldn't even have to be there long.

He found a thick envelope sitting on the right side of the back seat, just like Regina had said. It was thick but otherwise nondescript, there was nothing to mark it as tax money. He didn't bother to photograph it, because figured there'd be plenty of time for that after he'd arrested Henry. Not wanting to waste time, he went to interrogate the innkeeper and request a key to Henry's room. On his way in, he saw a female figure arrive in the parking lot, but he could not identify her in the darkness at this distance.

The conversation had taken longer than he hoped, but by the time it was over he'd gotten some valuable information about Henry, all of which he'd made sure to write down in his notes. The person behind the counter had also been kind enough to allow him to access Henry's room, there would be no need for a search warrant. Robert felt slightly satisfied with himself as he walked outside the hotel, hoping to secure the envelope and arrest Henry as soon as possible.

Collaboration between Tanderbolt and Guardian Angel Haruki

A good sheriff always has to be aware of his surroundings, and Robert was no exception. While he waited for the clerk to look through the records, he peered out of the window in the hotel, and saw two people conversing next to the car he parked behind. Although he could harldy be described as a people person, he at least bothered to make eye contact when talking, causing him to get only glimpses of what was happening outside. When he looked out later, he only saw one person, who was holding something in their hands and walking away at a rapid pace.

Although he was not sure where Henry was, Robert was not particularly worried about him getting away, and he would like to deal with more pressing matters before searching his room. He followed after the person who he had seen walking away, and noticed that they were holding an envelope in their hands. While in pursuit, he passed Henry's car and noticed that the envelope had disappeared from the back seat, a fact which made him even more concerned about this stranger. As he grew closer, he could tell that he was not following Henry, but someone else, who had a more feminine appearance.

The mysterious woman was also aware of her surroundings. She had noticed that someone had left the building and was tailing her. She smirked as she kept on walking at a fast pace, getting the feeling that someone was coming closer. She thought to herself in complete silence as he drew near, with her back towards the man pursuing her, "Come and get me, big guy,"

Robert raised his voice and said. "Ma'am, could you please stop a moment? I'm the town sheriff, I'd just like to ask you a question or two. It'll only take a minute, and you could really help me out here."

The mysterious woman stopped after he spoke up, and she turned quickly to face him. She greeted Robert smoothly, "Hello, Sheriff. What is it you'd like to ask me?"
He hadn't seen this woman in town before, which was worrying. Visitors were exceptionally rare, and it was unheard of to have two in the same day. Robert had a feeling that something strange was going on in town. When the woman stopped, he continued to walk closer, and got a good glimpse of the envelope in her hands. It was thick and roughly the same size as the one in the car, raising further suspicions. "I was just looking into a matter tonight when I happened to notice you out here. I haven't seen you around here before, and it's awful late, do you need any help with directions? Also, would you happen to know anything about a man named Henry who just came to town? I need to find him, and I had a hunch you may have traveled here with him."

The woman answered calmly "No, but thank you for your offer, Sheriff. I've been in Storybrooke for as looong as I can remember, so I know my way around. As for this Henry person..." she shrugged, and answered, "I only just met him tonight,"

Her answers only made him more suspicious. He knew everyone that lived in Storybrooke, and there was no way that she was a long time resident. Robert walked closer, stopping only an arms reach away, and said "One more thing, ma'am. I'm going to need to do a brief search of your belongings, primarily that envelope in your hands." His tone of voice was firm and unfriendly, he was now acting as an officer investigating a crime, rather than a kindly sherriff looking to help a stranger.
The woman noticed how he looked suspicious, but she didn't say anything and listened as his tone switched to an unfriendly one. She wasn't the least bit intimidated, she simply handed the envelope to the officer and she commented "You can ask the people who go to the Rabbit Hole about me. I usually can be seen there,"
A brief glimpse inside the envelope confirmed his suspicion that it was the one from the car. Robert dropped it on the ground afterwards, so that he could have both hand free if he needed them. He said "I'm sorry, but I have to place you under arrest. This will all go peacefully and smoothly if you just go along with it." Robert kept one hand free and the other on his taser, just in case.

The mysterious woman pretended to be shock (with expert acting) and asked "What?! Why?!" When he placed his other hand on a taser, she raised her hands to show that she wasn't going to struggle against him, and she said "OK. OK..." She knew that she could fight him, but not if he had a taser. She said to him, "Aren't you at least going to tell me what the charge is and read my rights?"

Without hesitation, Robert got out his handcuffs and began to say "
“You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. Do you understand the rights I have just read to you? With these rights in mind, do you wish to speak to me?” " He wanted everything to be admissable, so it was important to get that out of the way. After he finished reading the warning and handcuffing the woman, he said "A large amount of tax money has gone missing recently, last seen in the car owned by our visitor, Henry. I saw the envelope vanish when you had a conversation next to the car, and now I see that you have a very similar envelope" While he talked with her, he walked back to his patrol car.

The mysterious woman was silent as he read the Miranda Rights, and stated what he was charging her for. She commented as she walked to the patrol car with him, "That all seems circumstantial, doesn't it Sheriff?"

Robert made sure to bring the envelope with him, putting on the front seat after sitting the woman down in the back. He started the car, and said "Don't worry, I'll look into other possibilities later. For now, I just want to get to the station" At the station, he stored the envelope in the locker, and went through the usual booking procedures with the woman. She had no ID and refused to give a name, leaving Robert to simply fill it in as Jane Poe, because there was already a Jane Doe in the hospital. Her fingerprints turned up nothing, but at least they would have something if they needed it in the future. This was the first time months he'd actually had to arrest someone, usually the stations cell sat empty. He left her with the deputy on duty, instructing him to let her make a phonecall to get her attorney if needed. It had been a long day, but he had finally finished his duties for now. He sent Regina a copy of the arrest report, making it clear that the unidentified woman was not the same one in the hospital, and that he would still investigate Henry. Because he didn't have much better to do, Robert made his way to Regina's house.

Regina pulled open the large door to her mansion, leaving it's double closed. She was still wearing her black business suit, however she had done away with the jacket long ago leaving her in tight fighting slacks that left little to the imagination from behind, only to be accentuated with the black, four-inch heels she still wore and a white dress shirt that had full length sleeves, but scooped down her neck to show off a great amount of cleavage.
She found Robert standing on her porch, as she had greatly anticipated, however the look on his face told her everything she needed to know and her once warm, welcoming smile fell into that of disappointment. Even her dark brown eyes, now black from the shadows of the night seemed to even look...softer.

"You didn't get him." She observed, realizing now that maybe she should have stayed at her office just a little bit longer to receive Robert's quick report on Henry's case.

When he was on his way, Robert thought about how strange the whole day had been, having two visitors and a major robbery in just a few hours. He was a little sullen, worried that he had let such a major crime happen and that he had learned little about either of the strangers. Regina's tone of voice didn't make him feel any better, and he said "Someone else took the money out of his car, I arrested her on the way to the bank. She was also new in town, but didn't have any ID and wouldn't tell me who she was."

Regina's dark eyebrows furrowed dangerously.

"Someone...else..?" She asked slowly, not wanting to believe what her ears were relaying to her. She took just a brief moment to closer her eyes and rub her forehead to keep from exploding in anger. Henry on his own was a major problem, and now with yet another stranger AND whatever it was that Henry stole from Mr. Gold's shop that put the idea of the devil himself on edge it was hard to do so, and that bottle of wine sitting in an ice bucket in the living room was suddenly starting to sound like it wouldn't be strong enough.

"You may go, Sheriff." Regina said suddenly, opening her eyes and moved her arms to cross them over her chest. "It's quite obvious now that I'm going to have to take matters into my own hands. These...strangers aren't welcome here in Storybrooke. If the female is working with Henry, then perhaps an alternate method is required." Regina paused to hold out one of her hands, palm facing up as if expecting something. "Your keys, Sheriff. To the office and cells." She explained, her voice now hard and demanding once again.

Robert frowned, and dug around in his pocket. He found three keys, dropping two into Regina's outstretched palm, and holding up the third one. He said "This is the key to Henry's room at Granny's, I can search it as soon as you want, or I can give it to you. I can continue to trail Henry, or even arrest him if you want, I hope we can solve this issue as soon as possible." His tone of voice was cold, formal but sincere, Robert meant every word he said and genuinely wanted to help. What Regina said worried him a little bit, but there was nothing about her statements that he opposed on principle.

"There's no need." She said flatly and palmed the two keys in her hand, not having any pockets to put them into at the moment. "At least, not tonight. Henry has already agreed to join me for dinner tomorrow. You may search his room then when I have him otherwise...occupied. We don't want to let on too early what we are about; he might run...and if he does then I will never know what made him come here in the first place. How long will you need at Granny's to find me something useful?"

"It's a small room, shouldn't take me more than an hour. I will be sure to make time in my schedule for that. Anything else you need from me?"

"Yes..." Regina said, dragging out the latter part of the word as if thinking of something. "See...see if you can find a snow globe while you are there in his room. I did a quick inventory of my office after you left, and mine is missing." She lied. Regina didn't want to quite give Robert the information of Mr. Gold's break-in, not until she understood just what was going on herself. This was the exact reason she chose not to share the pictures of Henry breaking into Mr. Gold's office with Robert; especially since she knew Mr. Gold himself wouldn't report the robbery...it was just too risky.

"I'll keep an eye out for it." Robert said before he turned around and began to walk out the door. He was not satisfied with how many problems he was leaving unresolved, but at least the mysterious lady was behind bars. He left Regina's estate and drove home, hoping to get a good nights sleep.

Regina shut the door tightly and locked it before looking at the two keys in her hands, her mind racing on what her next move should and would be. Whatever it was, though, it could wait until morning. She had a bottle of wine to drink.

Ruby rolled over onto her side with a loud groan. She squinted her closed eyes even tighter to keep her vision completely black which was starting to seem impossible given the light streaming in through the windows.

With another agitated groan, Ruby rolled back over onto her back, pulling the covers over her naked body and feeling the soft, warm pulses from a body next to her on the bed.

Wait...body?

Ruby sat up quickly, cursing under her breath as she opened her eyes and the light hit her hangover straight-on, swaying her first priority of finding out who she had been sleeping with the night before.

Jake slowly opened his eyes and sat up in bed. He stretched his arms out, thankfully not hitting his guest. He rubbed his hair and looked towards Ruby, "Good morning, hope you slept well. That was a damn good night we had. Maybe we should do it again sometime."

Jake then got up and headed towards the bathroom to take care of some business."If you want anything to eat or drink, you can go ahead and get it." He said through the door.

Ruby blinked a couple times, trying to push past the pain now pounding through her head. she watched as the boy got up and left the bedroom, feeling her stomach starting to churn at the mention of food. thats when reality hit her harder than her hangover. She frantically swivelled her head left and right trying to find a clock, praying to God that she wasnt late.

"Shit!" Ruby sprinted out of bed and scrambled for her clothes. Granny was just going to live with the fact that she was not only late, but incredibly hung-over and wearing the same thing she wore yesterday. What bugged Ruby the most, however, wasnt Granny's wrath, but missing Knox. Who was going to bring him his cheese fries?

"Hey, you alright in there?" Jake asked over the sound of a flushing toilet and running water. He opened the door and stepped out to the sight of Ruby scrambling to put clothes on. "You seem to be in a hurry." Jake put his own set of clothes on before continuing, "If you need to get somewhere, it'll be quicker if I take you."

"Yeah...if I could get...a ride...to Granny's..." Ruby breathed out attempting to strap on her heels while standing. "That would be great." She sat down on the edge of the bed, having given up on the impossible feat and finished getting her shoes on before looking up at his direction. "Uh...you...got a car?" She asked tenatively, racking her brain for any information as to what happened after the storage room closet at The Rabbit Hole. Just how[\I] did she even [I]get[\I] here anyway?

Jake grabbed the keys to his jeep, "Well, yeah. How else would I get around town? This apartment's on the town's edge, wouldn't make much sense to walk everywhere, especially if it was raining. Anyway, if you wanna make good time, you might wanna start hobbling over here to the door. I'll meet you outside. It's the red Jeep with the roof cover pulled back." Jake then stepped out and onto the landing. The apartment was pretty decent, especially for the price. He walked down the stairs and out into the parking lot, waiting for Ruby to catch up to him.

God Ruby hated 'the morning afters.' They were always so awkward when the guys started talking about doing it again and offering rides and what-not. She quickly tied her white shirt together in the front and headed out of the apartment behind Jake, attempting to smooth out her hair as she reached the jeep and got in. She pulled down the passenger-side mirror and pulled out a small red tube of lipstick from her red bra and applied it generously to her lips and then afterwards reached back into her bra and pulled out eyeliner and mascara and did the same, freshening up her eyes.

"Damn, you hide everything in there, don't you." Jake hopped in the driver's seat and and started the engine. A resounding [i] huumm came next. He pulled the jeep out of the parking lot and drove off down the road. Jake glanced over at Ruby every now-and-then, seeing her trying to freshen up before getting back on the job. "If it makes you feel any better, I don't really have any feelings from last night. And if you ever wanna remember what happened, just let me know, I'll fill you in on all the details."

Ruby shot him an almost shy side-glance as she finished up on her makeup, the corner of her now ruby red lips turning up into a smirk.

"That bad was I?" She asked keeping her smirk. She really must have been out of it for him to bring it up; but where she should have probably been embarassed about it, she just shrugged and put her makeup items back in their hidden places in her bra. Clearly, this wasn't any sort of news to her. Once she checked herself out the best she could in the tiny viser window, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone, frowning when she realized that it was completely dead.

"Tell you what..." Ruby said putting the useless phone into Jake's lap, letting her hand linger just a little bit longer than it should have. "...charge this up for me and bring it by Granny's after my shift. Then you can fill me in on all the details." She gave Jake a flirty wink before turning to see that Granny's was just in sight and felt the jeep start to slow down.

"Sounds like a deal, then." Jake grabbed the phone and placed it in the center console. He pulled the car into the parking lot and gave Ruby a chance to hop out. As soon as she did, he drove off back to his place.

It was strange, she had gone to Granny's everyday for some kind of shift, being morning, afternoon or night, but this was the first time ever that just by looking at the building she felt butterflies beginning to rise up in her stomach, slowly metamorphasizing into what she was sure was raging bulls. What the hell was Knox doing to her?

Henry sat at, what was now, his desk, the only sound beside his fingers rapping against the hardwood surface being the wall-clock ticking as all clocks do. He had arrived to the school about half an hour early to gather his materials and ensure this first day went as smoothly as possible - and the students were due to arrive at any time.

Henry stood up and turned behind him to look at the large chalkboard that was placed against the back wall. On it was written in large letters: "English Class: Mr. Carlyle." Henry could only subtly nod in approval at the wording, pushing his glasses up against his face as the last few minutes seemed to take their sweet time.

Suddenly, the sound of the school bell rang out across the halls, signaling it was time for class to start. Henry took a quick final sip of the can of Coke he brought with before a group of youngsters seemed to flood through the doorway into the classroom.

All small talk and joking amongst the students seemed to quickly subside as they took a second to glance at Henry, immediately recognizing him as being new. They were almost completely silent as they hung up their coats and lunchboxes before sitting down at their desks, staring intently at their teacher; who currently seemed to be studying them as well.

Henry let a few moments pass before finally speaking, "Good morning class, and welcome to English!" He began, pacing about in front of the chalkboard in an almost casual manner; attempting to defuse any wariness from the get-go. "I am Mr. Carlyle, your new English teacher; and I hope that, by the end of the period, we're all good pals, eh?"

Without giving them a chance to respond, he continued with just as much vigor. "Now then, let's take roll, shall we?" He reached for a simple clipboard that lay aimlessly on his desk, holding it up with a single hand whilst adjusting his glasses. "Alrighty then, Michael?" He called, answered by a simple "Present!" By the child.

"Grayson?"
"Here!"

"Marie?"
"That's me!"

"Brittany?"
"Present!"

Henry continued to call out names on the list before coming to the last one; "Mason?" At this a small boy with a mop of curly dark brown hair raised his hand up high. "Here, Teacher!" The boy piped with a cheerful voice.

Henry looked out under his glasses for a moment, placing the boy before checking his name off the board. "Alright, class, that should be everyone! Fortunately we didn't lose anyone - good thing too, because they'd have missed out on all the fun." He added with a friendly smirk, almost haphazardly dropping the clipboard onto the desk, where it landed with a louder-than-appropriate thud

"So...English! What about it? We speak it, we read it, we write it; it's normal to us - and that's all well and good, but there's more *beyond* that. So, this week, we're going to cover a bunch of different parts of speech. Today, we're going to work on adjectives!" At this, Henry clapped his hands, rubbing them together furiously.

"Now, can someone tell me *what* an adjective is?" Henry asked, watching as small hands shot up into the air. Henry looked about the class for a split-second before landing on Grayson. "Mr. Grayson! What is an adjective?" He repeated, waiting for the young boy to answer.

"A word that adds on to a...noun?" The boy responded, phrasing his answer like a question.

"Correctamundo, a word I've never used before and hopefully never will again." Henry replied approvingly before seeming to launch himself towards the chalkboard; writing "Adjective - word that describes a noun."

"Now then, who can give me an example of an adjective? I'll pick...three students." He settled on, eyes alight with curiosity. "Yes, Marie?" "Bright!" The young girl replied, earning herself an approving grin and a written version of her example on the chalkboard.

"And, Michael?" "Slimy." The boy replied with an almost devilish smirk. "Slimy, good." Henry replied, writing that on the chalkboard as well.

"And last, but not certainly least, Mason!" He declared, pointing to the boy. "Um...uh...Noisy!" He finally said after pondering for a few moments.

"Noisy - yes." Henry responded, writing the third example on the chalkboard. "Now, what can we all gather from these three examples?" Without skipping a beat, he continued, "They *describe* a noun, which is a person, place, or thing! So essentially, everything in this room is a noun!"

The rest of the class continued on very much like this, with the time seeming to fly by until the blaring of the school bell signaled that class-time was over. "Well, look's like we're done for today. Remember, I want individual reports about yourselves using as many adjectives as you can by Wednesday." After that reminder, he proceeded to give individual goodbyes to the students as they left, finally taking a moment to sit down and relax for a few minutes. It was turning out to be a good morning.

There was a light rap at the door and Rumpelstiltskin turned his head to look at the old, warped door. It was so poorly crafted that a large gap between the door and threshold allowed in a cool gust of wind, followed by a couple snow flurries that immediately melted onto the stone floor before the roaring fireplace.

Upon habit, Rumpelstiltskin turned his head away from the door, willing whoever it was to just go away and let his soft brown eyes fall back onto the slow burning candle on top of the table in the center of the room, a poorly knitted baby blanket folded neatly next to the candle making the red stitching on the blanket illuminate the word 'Baelfire' as a haunting memory of what he had lost.

A second, louder knock came from the door and Rumpelstiltskin turned his head once more to look at it. His shoulders heaved heavily as he sighed and reached over for his walking stick and pushed himself up, taking his time as he limped heavily to the door before opening it just a crack. On his doorstep was a short, stout man wrapped up in a tattered, burlap cloak with the hood wrapped so tightly around his face, Rumpelstiltskin wasn't so sure if it was the just the cold that made the man's face blue.

"I'm sorry to bother you sir, but might you have a spot on your hearth for a lowly man down on his luck to warm up his bones for a spell?" The beggar asked.

Rumpelstiltskin was conflicted; he hadn't allowed a single soul into his home ever since Milah and Baelfire had been taken by the pirates, and those who did come to visit were those who came to rub the fact that he was a coward into his face, in which he would just promptly shut the door back on them...

But then Rumpelstiltskin remembered the Ogres War; and how his journey home in similar circumstances had abused his body even more than the self-inflicted injury so that he could return home. Another gust of wind picked up, pushing past the beggar and stung Rumpelstiltskin's tired and worn face as a reminder, and so he promptly nodded and allowed the beggar inside.

"I don't have much, but I can offer you some warm broth if you would like." Rumpelstiltskin said closing the door behind the beggar as the stout man hurried towards the hearth, ripping off his rags for gloves and holding them up to the fire, clapping and wringing them together in an effort to speed up the process.

"Whatever it is you can spare will be a welcome contrast to the fate I was to have out in the cold." The beggar replied gratefully and Rumpelstiltskin busied himself with getting an old tin cup and filled it with the warm broth that had been stewing inside a small cauldron hanging above the fire pit. Rumpelstiltskin handed the cup to the man and then hobbled his way back over to the table where he blew out the candle, the moment of remembrance for what he had lost disturbed.

The beggar spent a few more moments warming up at the fire, though his eyes were now on his gracious host. The candle and baby blanket didn't go unnoticed by the older man, and felt it in his place to speak up about it.

"I'm sorry...I-I didn't realize I was intruding..." He stammered. Rumpelstiltskin just shook his head no, watching the smoke of the once burning candle dissipate into the air, indicating that the beggar was no trouble at all. Silence hung in the air as the beggar sipped at the warm broth, but again opened his mouth to speak. "My condolences."

It could have been the flickering shadow cast by the fireplace, but at the man's words Rumpelstiltskin seemed to have aged a couple more years. The creases in his face deepening and the crows feet at his squinted eyes becoming more prominent and the silver wisps in his hair shining in the darkness of the hut.

"She's not dead. She's just lost." Rumpelstiltskin corrected the man in a bitter tone that was in no way directed towards the beggar. There was a long pause, and then he added on, "She would have been eight today."

"Taken?" The beggar repeated and made his way from the fireplace and took the second chair at the table, sitting across from Rumpelstiltskin. "So go and get her back!"

Rumpelstiltskin laughed out to hide his sorrow. This beggar knew nothing of his pain, of his cowardice. Simply getting Baelfire back just wasn't so simple as the beggar might have thought. There were too many...complications.

"I wouldn't know where to look." Rumpelstiltskin then said honestly, and to his surprise the beggar smiled.

"You might not know where to look, but I know someone who does."

Rumpelstiltskin shifted in his chair, the wooden legs creaking in their old age under his weight and threatening to give way. He paid the chair no heed though, as his attention was now completely on the beggar's words.

"Who?" What did the beggar know? How could he possibly know someone with that kind of knowledge? A mix of skepticism and interest peaked in his eyes, vanishing the tiredness that had plagued them just moments before.

The beggar set down his cup of broth on the table and leaned in forward towards Rumpelstiltskin, keeping his voice down despite the fact that no one else was around that could possibly overhear them.

"The Dark One."

Rumpelstiltskin straightened up as quickly as if there were a string attached to the top of his head and some puppeteer pulled it taught. The Dark One? Was this man out of his mind? No one asked a favor of The Dark One without paying a heavy price; and though he hated to admit it Rumpelstiltskin knew what happened when he dabbled in dark magic; it cost him his wife's love and any chance that his daughter would have a hero for a father, instead replaced by cowardice. The seer was bad news, and The Dark One would only be worse.

The beggar smiled broadly once more, as if reading Rumpelstiltskin's mind though it wasn't too hard to guess what he was thinking since the worry on his face seemed to tell all.

"Just imagine, with The Dark One on your side, you can do anything. You can have your girl back, and rain down terror on those who took her away from you for the rest of their miserable lives."

"But I haven't anything to offer!" Rumpelstiltskin replied immediately, his voice cracking as he was once again reminded of just how helpless he really was. The beggar's smile faltered, realizing the honesty in Rumpelstiltskin's words. The beggar seemed to shy away then, as if hiding a secret, but Rumpelstiltskin was quick to catch on.

"What? What is it?" He demanded, desperation dripping from his words.

"Well...there's...a dagger..." The beggar began. "They say that if you control the dagger, you control The Dark One."

"A dagger?"

"Aye, they say the true name of The Dark One is engraved into the steel, and The Dark One becomes powerless against it's wielder, forced into doing the will of the one who controls it." The beggar paused to lick his cracked lips. "Why else do you think The Dark One would be subjected into helping the Duke gather the children for the Ogres War? Why would someone as powerful as The Dark One subject himself into working for someone as powerless as The Duke?"

This caused Rumpelstiltskin to pause, and think. The beggar had a point; he had seen this very thing first hand when The King's army came to his very village and began to pull away the twelve-year old boys from their families. One courageous father tried to interfere by fighting the King's men in an order to save his son from their death sentence, but a large wave of magic pushed the father down into the dirt and The Dark One made himself known; sitting on horseback with the King's Men covered heavily in a black cloak that concealed his identity.

"So then, The Duke has the dagger?" Rumpelstiltskin asked, wanting to make sure he had the correct information. The beggar nodded.

"He has to, there's no other explanation." The beggar then grabbed the tin cup and took a drink of the slowly cooling down broth. "Take the dagger, control The Dark One, get your life back."

The beggar made it all seem so easy, but there was still something holding Rumpelstiltskin back...his sense of honor.

"I...I couldn't control someone like that; a servant...it's...it's not me..." Perhaps it really was his sense of honor talking, or perhaps it was his cowardice looking for excuses to not put himself in such dangerous circumstances, and the beggar made another face; he knew something more.

"Then take the dagger and plunge it into The Dark Ones heart. The Dark One will die, and his powers will become yours to do with as you please." The beggar gruffed, throwing the idea out there but not actually thinking that Rumpelstiltskin would take the bait. If it was as easy as he made it out to be, then there would most certainly have been a new Dark One by now. Rumpelstiltskin paused once more, looking the beggar up and down with a face of both humility and concern.

"Why are you helping me?" He finally asked, and the beggar finished up his broth before answering,

"I know how to recognize a desperate soul."

---

Mr. Gold sat on the edge of his bed, thumbing the sixteen inch steel dagger between his two hands. His dark browns never left the name etched in black into the silver blade, 'Rumpelstiltskin.' He had done as the beggar had suggested. That very night, after the beggar had left, he had gone to the Duke's Castle, and burned down the wooden rafters as a distraction so he could slip inside. Finding the dagger wasn't all too difficult, hidden behind a tapestry that seemed to be out of place compared to the rest of the decor in the room. He didn't even give the dagger a second glance as he grabbed it and ran, far away from the castle until he was so deep into the woods he wasn't sure just how he would find his way back. Only then did he pull the dagger out and examine it closely.

There was a different name on the dagger back then, Zoso. Raising the dagger to the sky, he had summoned The Dark One who appeared almost immediately and Rumpelstiltskin plunged the dagger into The Dark One's heart, the thought of using The Dark One's powers to bring back Baelfire clouding his judgement for any consequences that would be soon to follow. As The Dark One lay there dying in the dirt, the contorted, scaley green skin of The Dark One's face melted away and Rumpelstiltskin recognized him immediately as the very beggar that had gave him the idea of killing The Dark One in the first place.

Zoso eased Rumpelstiltskin's confusion by stating that being The Dark One came at a heavy price, it was a prison sentence that he was ready to be released from, even if that meant in death. Rumpelstiltskin watched as the curse took his body over and his blood began to grow hot. In Zoso's last words, he warned Rumpelstiltskin that all magic came at a price, and then he was gone, and Rumpelstiltskin screamed out in agony as all The Dark One's magical powers forced it's way into his body.

The dagger held no power over him here in Storybrooke, but things were changing. Henry was here, and he would break the curse. Mr. Gold hadn't parted with the dagger since he had acquired it over a thousand years ago, but due to the circumstances, he knew it would not be safe in his possession much longer.

Making up his mind, Mr. Gold used his cane to help him up and he walked to the end table, wrapping the dagger in a square of canvas he had pulled out previously and bound it with rubber bands. He then bent over the slow burning candle with an old, worn baby blanket folded neatly next to it. He blew out the candle and headed outside his home to hide his one and only weakness.

At his usual window seat of the diner, Knox sat in his full security guard uniform, and though the cheesy fries sat plainly before him…he didn’t budge to eat it. No. Even with how careful he had been, he had allowed himself to become guilty over letting Ruby go off on her own last night, to worry this morning that she didn’t come to serve him as usual. It was…a selfish thing for him to do so, her life, and her choices. She didn’t belong to him, and heck, they were nothing more than acquaintances. The security guard was just as close to Ruby as that Jane Doe, whoever that woman may be.

Yes, he could plainly see that again, seeing her step out of a young bartender’s (he vaguely recalled) car. Without even looking, he lifted his coffee cup…and set it back down again. Empty. It’s been empty for more than twenty minutes now. Cracking his knuckles rather audibly, he spoke up to the serving waitress as she passed by, causing the girl to jump at the suddenness of it, “Get me a takeout box...and tell the owner than her granddaughter has returned safe and sound.”

Ruby hurried inside without even so much as being slowed down by her high-heels. She brushed her shorts to make sure once more that she looked presentable by her standards and then hurried behind the counter to grab her tiny apron that covered up the red shorts. She could feel the hot eyes of Granny staring her down as she tied up the apron but she paid the old woman no heed and got to work; or at least what she called work, and headed over to Knox, shooing away the waitress who had been covering for her the duration of the morning.

"Hey, coffee cup's empty." Ruby observed outloud and reached over to grab it. "I'll just get that refilled for ya-"

“No.” Quick with a short interjection, Knox wasn’t loud, but he was pretty damn clear, “Don’t waste your time on me. You’ve caused your grandmother some trouble; go serve the other customers still awaiting their orders.” Snapping his fingers loudly at the other waitress retreating, the girl jumping up again in yet more suddenness, Knox’s mouth set into a firm line as he called out, “That takeout box.”

Ruby stopped with the empty coffee cup still in her hand and looked back down at Knox. Her face was placid, however there might have been a slight sliver of hurt in her eyes for the briefest of moments. She tilted her head to the side a bit and rested her free hand on her bare hip, fighting the urge to say exactly what was on her mind, so instead she settled on,

"Is something wrong?"

"Ruby." Granny called to Ruby from behind the counter. There was no way the old bat could have heard Knox and Ruby from over there, so Ruby opted to ignore her for the moment; she needed to figure this out...something was eating at Knox, and she had a feeling it was something she did.

Surprising even to him, Knox had stood up and reached a hand over, setting it on Ruby’s shoulder. His eyes were, not even seeing his own expression but just knowing, sterner than what he’d like. Staring at the younger woman with a hint of melancholy, he couldn’t help but let out the barest hint of a sigh, “Go to your grandmother, she may seem quite angry…but she’s likely that much more worried.”

"Ruby!" Granny called again, this time more urgent. Ruby, who had been holding Knox's gaze rolled her eyes and turned her head over her shoulder to call back to Granny.

"In a minute!" She quickly snapped and turned back to Knox.

Fighting with himself over what to say next, honesty or some restraint, he finally leaned in and spoke quietly. Though most knew of Ruby’s nature (especially the men), he wanted—no, needed to say this just to her, “I’ll be seeing you…like I always do. In the mornings at this diner…but I won’t give you the sort of entertainment you were looking for with busboy there,” His eye flicked over to the window for a fraction, before he continued, “So you shouldn’t bother asking me out for drinks again...it didn’t go to plan, anyhow. I’m sorry if that upset you."

"RUBY! Close your legs for just one moment and get over here!" Granny shouted, loud enough for everyone in the diner to hear. Ruby was used to Granny's insults, hell she was used to any and all sorts of insults from the people around Storybrooke who didn't quite agree with her reputation...but coming from Knox, someone she never expected something like that to come from; on top of Granny's yelling; on top of her hangover...

Ruby shot the waitress a glaring look as she handed Knox the takeout box, acting as if Ruby wasn't even there and even had the gall to flash Knox a sweet, innocent smile as she walked away.

Finally drawing back from Ruby, Knox gave her one finally look, before going and fixing some of his uniform here and there. Taking the takeout box in his hand, finally, it felt heavier than a too thin cardboard box. Nothing he couldn’t carry in his bare hands. With his fork, he began busying himself with the task of wordlessly scraping the congealed cheesy fries from the plate to the box.

Having nothing more to say to him, about ready to explode, Ruby turned on her heel and quickly approached Granny who she had just realized was looking over the books that held the information of the Bed and Breakfast.

"I can't believe you did that! That was humiliating!" Ruby hushed a whisper to Granny. Granny, however, didn't seem to hear Ruby as she took off her reading glasses to get a better look at her Granddaughter.

"I want you to start working Saturday nights."

Ruby practically felt her jaw hit the floor. She tried leaning in closer, doing her best to keep the conversation between the two of them.

"Oh c'mon we have a deal about Saturday nights!" Ruby hissed in a whisper.

"I wanna start training you to do the books and the pre-orders. Business is booming lately, and with more money comes more paperwork." Granny said, issuing her worn hands towards the large book. Ruby rolled her eyes and stood up straight again, by habit putting her hand on her hip.

"Yeah...none of that sounds good."

"It's gotta be done!" Granny snapped back, no longer giving Ruby the courtesy of keeping the conversation quiet and raised her voice to a normal level. Ruby just stood there, blinking at her grandmother for a few moments.

"Is this a punishment? For coming in late?" Ruby asked with a tinge of attitude playing into her voice. It was now Granny's turn to roll her eyes.

"If I wanted to punish you, I have better reasons. For one thing, you're always late, and for another thing...Liza, you dress like a drag queen during fleet week."

Ruby didn't even give Granny the courtesy of dropping her jaw on that one, and instead immediately came back with,

"And you dress like Norman Bates when he dresses like Norman Bates' mother!"

Granny paused, and took the higher road by changing the subject.

"Ruby, you're a grown woman. You can't keep acting like some kid!"

"You just want me to act like you until I turn in to you!" Ruby hissed back. "Well I am not a fossil yet, Granny. I should be out there having adventures with people!"

Granny shook her head and hotly began to fold the book back up and scurried around behind the counter to put it away, knocking over a few things in the process and not bothering to pick them up just yet.

"Well as long as you work here, you are going to listen to me!"

Ruby followed Granny on the opposite side of the counter, keeping it between them.

"I didn't ask to work here!"

"Then what's keeping ya?"

Ruby paused, then,

"Nothing! I QUIT!" Ruby didn't even hesitate her step as she then continued down the side of the counter and walked straight to the door, untying the small apron and threw it on the ground behind her as she stormed out with the bell of the Diner door ringing it's echo behind her.

Having silently just listened to the whole fight, quietly trying to scrape more of his cheesy fries into the cardboard box…by the fight at the counter between Granny and Ruby, Knox was scraping at nothing but an empty, cheese smeared plate. Setting the plate and fork down, shutting the takeout box, he followed Ruby out quickly. Standing at the entrance of the diner, the security guard called out to her, “Are you going to just leave it at that?”

"Yeah, I am." Ruby replied hotly to Knox without even bothering to look at him. She stood there on the curb of the sidewalk, staring blankly at the road's ends to the right and left of her, feeling hot tears stinging the corners of her eyes.

Staring at her blankly, so many conflicting emotions and ideas on how to handle things…just minutes ago, Knox knew his own life was entirely separate from her own. Whatever she chose to do had nothing to do with him. What would happen would happen…regardless of his interference…?

Dammit.

Coming up behind her, Knox checked his watch before setting a hand tentatively on Ruby’s shoulder, “It’ll be within my work hours, but there is someone I want you to meet at the hospital.”

Feeling his broad hand on her shoulder, Ruby quickly blinked away the tears and forced her dry throat to swallow before turning to look at him, pushing aside any hurt in her face to look somewhat normal again.

"The...hospital?" She asked inquisitively, not quite understanding who or what could be there that suddenly became somewhat important sounding to Knox. But maybe it wasn't about that at all, maybe he was just trying to make up for something, which in Ruby's opinion he had nothing to make up for. She was angry with Granny, not him. "You don't have to do this..."

Ignoring her commentary, Knox was already steering her lightly to the parking lot. Letting out a quiet grunt that turned into a frustrated sigh, he pointed at his old Camaro parked in the shade of some trees, in the furthest space of the lot, “I have fifteen minutes to get to work and punch in. Just come with me, see what I have to show you...then I promise to drive you to wherever you want to go afterwards.” ...He'd have to see about asking another security guard to cover for him if Ruby needed to be driven to somewhere as far as the other side of town.

Ruby looked to the car and then to Knox and then back to the car, confusion still written on her face. She wanted to question him but frankly she was just too tired; too tired and still hungover.

"Alright, fine." She gave in with a quiet voice and walked with Knox to his car.

***

The hospital was quiet enough in the morning, though the sound of certain staff coming in and patience waking up could be heard. Signing-in appropriately, Knox nodded his head respectively at a fellow officer who he’d be replacing, he stepped away from the security office of the hospital and went back to Ruby in the lobby, “Come. Follow me.”

All business and a half in appearance and stance, motioning for the younger woman to follow him to the elevator, his heart was doing flip-flop palpitations at what was to come. Maybe he was making a terrible mistake, but...it was too late for him to back out, not without openly just wasting more of Ruby's time.

Ruby wordlessly followed him through the hospital, making a mental note at the slight strange fact that Dr. Stevenson wasn't anywhere within the hospital; at least not where Ruby could see. Perhaps she was in surgery? That would explain her strange absence. She just hoped that Mr. Gold wasn't still lingering around here somewhere.

Ruby got into the elevator with Knox and watched as the metal doors sealed shut and did her best to keep her eyes forward, concentrating on the moving numbers as they changed rather than dwell on the awkward silence between the two of them.

They didn’t wait too long to ascend to the right floor, stepping out of the elevator, Knox motioned for Ruby to follow him along again. “…he can’t move much, when he’s awake, but he won’t talk to me…” The ward was quiet, but reaching the door…his hand lingered on the knob of the closed door for more than a minute of mere solemn thought, before Knox finally pushed the door open and does an almost graceful gesture for Ruby to step in,

“Come meet my father, Bruno Kowalski.”

Ruby paused at the doorway, unable to feel her legs move any longer when Knox brought out the word father. Father? Knox had a father? Well of course he did, everyone had a father; Ruby just never really thought about Knox having his own family really. He was always alone, either at work or at Granny's before and after work. It was a bit of a shock really, but even more than the inital realization that Knox was just like everyone else, her shock then transferred to the fact that his father was in the hospital. Turning her confused expression that was caused by so many different things right now, she looked to Knox and whispered quietly,

"...what?"

The security guard ignored Ruby for the nth time, and soundlessly moved closer to the bed. For a moment, Knox looked like he might just reach over and shake the shoulder of the figure near cocooned in the blanket, but he instead seemed to snap his head up in realisation…like he had only just remembered Ruby was present, “He’s asleep.” Turning to her, his gaze flickered to the figure for a moment, before his full attention was on the girl again.

“I can’t remember what he said, back then, but he never gave up on me when many more did…” His memory…didn’t seem clear, for some reason. Then again, is seems like nowadays, the condition was half of his father…consumed the memory of his healthy father was the depressing image of the portly man becoming thinner and thinner in a matter of a few years, “He’s become real enough of a father for me that I’ve given up on the other factors, but…do you even know what sort of relationship we had?”

Ruby folded her arms across her chest and took a few steps inside, shaking her head no lightly.

"No, but it was a good one I imagine." She said quietly, not wanting to wake the man. However, with Knox's brief explanation, she finally figured out why he had brought her here. The fight she had with Granny, he wanted her to understand the importance of family...to cherish what she had before she lost it.

She bit at her lower lip a few times and shuffled her feet awkwardly. As if the guilt that had been welling up in her gut after she had left Granny's could have gotten any more uncomfortable...

The man’s eyes darkened considerably, “And yet, he won’t even speak to me anymore. I don’t know much about the medical condition, but he’s had it for a long time…longer than when I became part of his family. A longer relationship. I can’t hope to drive a wedge between him and his condition…his depression. And believe me when I say ‘I’ve tried.’” There was a long sigh that followed, and quite abruptly, noticing her discomfort…he steered her out of the room again, to the hallway.

Ruby was only too glad to go with him, leaving the ominous air of the hospital room behind them. She learned three things in the last five minutes about Knox. He had a father, it wasn't his biological father, and he loved him very, very much.

“Fights are natural, apologize when you mean it…and more importantly, when you yourself are ready to hear how sorry you can become.”
As if such a depressing and short visit hadn’t just transpired minutes ago, Knox spoke up again, “Do you have anywhere you can stay, for a few days?” Pausing for a moment, a hint of what may possibly have been a laugh left his lips, “Unless your plan was to fight, quit, leave, then go back to stay with your grandmother while looking for that new job…” Or find other places, others beds to rest her head in…

Ruby bit on her lower lip again, shaking her head no.

"I was just thinking of packing up and moving to Boston actually." She admitted, it being the very first thought she had once she told Granny that she quit, but as she thought about it now, with her temper now borderline normal, it seemed like such a stupid idea. She didn't have any money, no contacts, no plan...she'd wind up back in Storybrooke faster than the blink of an eye with nothing to show for it other than an even more damaged ego.

Knox looked away from Ruby, hearing her mention Boston, the security guard hid the barest hint of a bitter-sad smile, “Sounds like something I wanted to do when I was still much younger.” Become a police officer in a big city…but the idea seemed to become more and more impossible with Bruno’s condition worsening. Going from wanting to become a police officer, to settling for security guard to the institute for the infirm, to becoming the security guard for the hospital his father was staying in, “But I couldn’t do that, I have someone I need to take care of.”

A pause, "You, go to Boston? Hmmm...what ever happened to those five facts? That smile?" At the time, it seemed like a childish thing to want or ask for, but at present...the right thing for Knox to be humoring her about.

Ruby feigned a light smile, laughing through her nose slightly and looked down at her feet as she absentmindedly shuffled them again.

"Oh, so I threaten to leave and now you're interested in my childish games?" She half-teased and half jabbed at him, braving for the moment to look up at him once more. "I still have two more things to learn about you, and get you to smile. So...maybe...so maybe I'll stick around to bug you just a bit longer; it will give me time to look for a job and a place in Boston before I just...show up..."

“I’m not one to leave important business unfinished, even if most of the benefits go to the other person.” With a quiet sniff and a quick glance at his watch, Knox tilted his head slightly and raised a brow at Ruby inquiringly, “At this moment in time, unless you plan to distract people from doing their jobs,” A few staff members here or there were ogling the girl and her outfit, “Is there a place you can stay? The offer to drive you anywhere, within fifteen minutes of the hospital, still stands.”

A place she could stay? Ruby had to think long and hard about that. Really the only place she would be welcome would be the homes of the men she still slept around with, but it wasn't in her heart at that moment to open up those doors again, not even with Jake who she had spent the night with last night.

"Uh, you know what? I hear they have a great newspaper selection here...and internet...I could just, uh, stick around here for a bit and start looking for places and jobs in Boston." She suggested with a shrug. "Don't let me distract you from doing your job Knox, I'll be fine." She gave him a light nod, not really catching on to what he really meant, the looks of the male staff members going completely unnoticed by her until the Janitor, Leroy, gave a sharp whistle to Ruby.

With a snap of his fingers resounding like a thunder strike, his voice was not loud by sharp, “Jenkins, you work on the ground floor. What are you doing here?” As the smarmy janitor slunk away, Knox returned to give Ruby a rather skeptical look, “You can’t stay here, not without causing a problem here or there…dammit…”

Ruby folded her arms even tighter over her chest and shot Knox a 'What's that supposed to mean?' kind of look.

Going over to a bright yellow telephone attached to the nearest wall, Knox spoke to the security office on the other end, finally hanging up after a few minutes. “Ruby…” His expression was largely unreadable, but as usual, the sigh that followed was just plain tired, “…I don’t suppose you have any clothing you can bring with you, but—don’t touch anything that looks delicate, don’t try and unlock the filing cabinets, don’t unpack any of my stuff, clean up after yourself, no unapproved guests, bring the mail inside and leave it on the coffee table…”

Ruby blinked once...twice...three times. Was Knox offering for her to stay with him during this time? She hadn't at all been expecting that, however the offer wasn't unwelcome. Out of anyone in Storybrooke, Knox really was the only person that was unbiased about who she was, literally being the only male his age who hadn't slept with her. And at that point, to Ruby, that was alright...even better, in fact. Probably the least awkward choice of where to stay while she figured things out actually.

She couldn't stop herself. Her hands dropped to their sides and she closed the distance between herself and Knox, throwing her arms around his neck and gave him a quick hug, her smile never faltering.

Mouth opening as if to speak, shut quickly instead to settle (momentarily) for the action of patting the girl on the back, his other hand hovering awkwardly at her waist not entirely sure what to make of itself. An attractive young woman was pressed up against him, but all he wanted to do was sort this...this out...and get back to work.

"I promise, none of that stuff. I'll even clean...do the dishes, make breakfast...whatever you need." After all, that's all she really knew how to do anyway. She pulled out of her hug and took a few steps back, giving Knox an endearing smile. "Thank you. Really. I promise I won't get in your way."

Honestly…honest to the gods, the powers that be…Knox had no idea how he went from rejecting Ruby for future drinks, to full on inviting her to live in his house. “I had to call the security office, since my place is on the other side of town.” Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his set of keys, fiddling with them before presenting her with a very new looking house key, “I’ll drive you now. Please try and remember the directions in relation to the rest of town, I don't want you getting lost and causing the rest of town some trouble...”

"I'll be on my best behavior." Ruby promised, still with her genuine smile and then walked with Knox out of the hospital so that he may take her to her new, temporary home.

Collaboration between YoshiSkittlez and Ghost Shadow
--
A gentle wind seemed to breeze through the forest, making odd whistling sounds, as if the trees were making quiet conversation amongst themselves. Birds began to make their chirping sound as they awoke from the night’s rest, and squirrels scuttled from branch to branch in search of nuts. The morning sun dappled across the expanse, the treetops transforming the sunlight into odd patterns across the landscape: all was quiet, all was peaceful.

Mark had gotten to work no more than an hour earlier, packing up his equipment with haste. He had enjoyed the weekend out in the woods, but he had a shift at the fire station, and God forbid he be late.

Grip sauntered about the campfire lazily, perking his ears this way and that as the woodland sounds piqued his interest. Mark could only offer a small smile to his dog before stuffing his mess kit in his backpack.

He stamped out the still-smoldering remains of his campfire; ensuring to leave no mark of his presence in the woods. He looked down at his wrist, his watch giving the time at around 8 o’clock. Mark nodded approvingly; he would have enough time to grab a quick breakfast at Granny’s and drop his gear off at his house before heading into work for the day.

He continued working on in silence. His peace was soon interrupted, however, when Grip stopped dead in his tracks. The German Shepherd's fur seemed to bristle, and a low, guttural growl came from deep in his throat.

Mark gave the dog a peculiar look, Grip only growled when something dangerous was about. He instinctively placed a single hand on the hunting knife that was strapped securely to his thigh, eyes sharp and alert for any danger.

The rustling in the bushes continued, something large enough to make a few thicker twigs snap in a ghostly echo of the morning air, getting closer and closer until finally, Mr. Gold pushed his way through the push and into the clearing, pausing to lean heavily on his cane once he spotted that he was no longer alone but unable to keep a smile out of the corners of his eyes, obviously very pleased with something.

Aside from his usual wear, a rather large green gardening apron protected his four piece suit from the elements of the forest, giving way that Mr. Gold was indeed not here by accident, although humerous that the apron could really keep his suit clean in all areas, however not a spec of dirt could be seen anywhere but the apron.

"Good morning Mr. Dufresne. Sorry if I startled you." Mr Gold offered in what almost sounded like sincerity in his thick, Scottish accent, hinting with a drawl of boredom.

Mark quickly released the grip of his blade, choosing to rest both hands in his pants pockets. "A good morning to you as well, Mr. Gold; pardon my actions, I thought you might have been a wolf." He explained, his words sounding conversational enough, but his tone was stiff and slightly uncomfortable. Grip continued to leer at Mr. Gold even after the pawnbroker made his presence known.

Mr. Gold flashed a sideways smile, his white teeth and single golden-capped tooth glinting in the morning light, a twinkle in his eye as if thinking of something humerous.

"Did I forget to shave?" He mused.

"Oh, no..." Mark began, scratching the back of his head. He wasn't quite used to joking banter, and was obviously fishing for a proper response. "What are you doing out here anyways? If you don't mind my asking." He finally settled on, calling Grip to him with a simple pat on his hip.

"Oh, just a spot of gardening." Mr. Gold replied with a gentle shrug of his narrow shoulders, and as if to prove this, he reached back behind the bush, procuring a shovel that had been resting against a tree that had been well hidden from sight behind the bushes he was still standing beside. Fresh, clumped dirt covered the spade, but just like Mr. Gold's suit, the rest of the shovel remained immaculately clean. "Yourself?"

"Just camping for the weekend. I come out here every few weeks when I want some time to think." He replied nonchalantly, securing a few more items to his backpack while he spoke; though never letting his eyes off of Mr. Gold longer than a few seconds. "Pardon the observation, but I would have never taken you for a gardener." Mark said simply, standing still to look directly at the Scottish man once more.

Gold's smile brightened, if just a bit and palmed the handle of his cane a bit, answering with a snide smile,

"I suppose not." He said simply and then after a pause. "But then you don't really know me, do you?" Letting it rest at that, with his cane in one hand and shovel in the other, Mr. Gold began to walk forwards, back towards the trail that would lead him back to the town. "Enjoy the quiet while you can." Gold then said just before disappearing into the thicket of trees, his voice holding something that almost sounded like...like a warning.

"Huh...sure." Mark simply responded to himself with a slight shrug. Mr. Gold made him feel nothing short of uncomfortable, as if he knew something no one else did. Pushing this thought to the back of his mind, Mark finished packing up his gear before beginning the short hike that led to Storybrooke, Grip treading closely at his heels. With the newcomer rolling into town, something inside Mark seemed to signal to him that this would be far from a normal week.

Collaboration between YoshiSkittlez as Regina Mills and I as the Mysterious Lady

The analog clock inside the Sheriff's office just hit 8:00 am, and no sooner than the second hand could even tick once more did the doors open, but it was not Robert who came into the room that held the cells, but Regina. She pocketed the key that Robert had given her the night before into her suit jacket pocket, patting it for good measure as she walked with purpose towards the cell that held the mystery woman Robert had sent her a report about.

In the cell, the mysterious woman was humming 'The Lion Sleeps Tonight' to herself as a way of killing time and waiting for Henry or that mayor to show up. As soon as the mayor entered, the woman easily picked up the smell of expensive perfume that was tinged with a bit of fear, alerting the woman to the mayor's presence. The woman's pitch black eyes opened as she stopped humming, and she slowly faced the mayor.

Regina approached the cell and enclosed her small hands around the bars, peering inside so close that her forehead was practically pressing up against the two bars, her dark brown eyes glaring down at the woman who Regina didn't bother getting to know in the past, but now that she knew who it was in her cell, (the mystery woman that had been seen around Storybrooke for quite some time) the once emerging beast that had quelled in her stomach overnight subsided; relief washing over her as she was able to gather that she was, indeed not, with Henry.

The woman also went and stood at the bars, meeting her cold, soulless gaze with Regina's gaze, not at all fazed by the anger in her eyes. She said nothing as she smirked and greeted coolly "Yo, Mayor lady,"

"You wanna tell me how you came by ten-thousand dollars of Storybrooke's tax money?" She asked with no regard of hiding her venemous tone, opting to ignore the chivalry in the woman's voice.

The woman chuckled and she retorted, like she was lightly scolding a child, "Now, now, mayor. It's not polite to ask questions that you already know the answer to. Besides it would take out the fun in playing make-believe, now wouldn't it?"

Regina's upper lip curled into a bit of a snarl at the word 'make-believe.' She didn't even blink, though, as she continued to stare the woman down. Now that some of her questions had been answered, more arose.

"Who are you?" She decided on asking at last, her tone notwitstanding even a hint of trying to be polite.

The woman merely shrugged and said with great casualty, "Can't answer that,"

"Why not?" Regina demanded, though kept her voice down.

The woman laughed as though Regina had told a mildly funny joke, and she answered "Don't want to, and I don't even have a name to give you. Too bad, so sad,"

Regina straightened up her gait a bit, releasing her hands from the bars which she had just realized had been clutching onto so hard the tips of her fingers had lost feeling.

That wasn't possible, the girl had to be lying. She gave everyone a name, everyone. Regina's eyes never left the woman's, her lip curling in another (though lighter) snarl, as if the woman's very presence before her disgusted her beyond measure.

"Why do you protect him?" Regina folded her arms across her chest, turning so that she was sideways agaisnt the prisoner, but her head still turned to better keep a close eye on her.

The woman tilted her head sideways, but kept her smirk and her gaze on Regina. She answered the mayor, "Why not? Besides, it's quite rude to frame a guest of Storybrooke of any crimes while they're in town, don't you think?"

Regina pursed her lips in annoyance.

Then the woman called out, like a child playing a game, "My turn!" She then asked, "Why frame a guest anyways? I'm sure innocent ol' Henry has done nothing to you,"

"You know nothing." Regina practically spat at the prisoner. She took a moment to unfold her arms and dug into her pocket, feeling the two keys kept safe inside and pulled out the second one and held it up to the woman, though she was far away enough that the prisoner couldn't just reach out and grab it.

"I hold the key to your cell here in my hand. You would be wise to cooperate or so help me - you might want to remember that I am Mayor of this town, and my influence on the DA is more than important in deciding what will become of you within the next few days."

The woman raised an eyebrow, her smirk faded, and she stepped back. She looked completely serious now as she asked, "What's the condition?"

Regina sighed loudly, the vein in her forehead now prominent in her obvious irritation. God, it was like dealing with Rumpelstiltskin.

"Your immunity for information." She said simply, a heavy breath coming from her nose in an effort to keep from losing her temper. "The correct information."

The woman looked at Regina and she smirked again. She then answered not giving her a chance to ammend or add to her deal, "Alright. Deal,"

Regina couldn't explain it, but suddenly her arms felt stiff and uncomfortable. Underneath the barrier of her suit jacket sleeves, goosebumps caused the hairs on her arms to stand on end. Something...unsettling about how the woman answered her, but she refused to pause on it.

"Now...I'll ask you again. Why. Help. Henry?"

The woman smirked, having noticed how her arms went stiff. She told the woman "I told you the truth earlier. You see, I don't lie," She then stated, her voice lowered into an animalistic growl or sneer, "I believe you are going to let me out now," She raised both of her eyebrows as she stared at Regina to show she's serious.

"Not until I get the answers I want." Regina furrowed her eyebrows together, returning her hands to the bars with her forehead resting on the metal, but putting the key back into her pocket before she did. "Give me something of importance, your answer will determine if you walk free or not."

The woman's predatory smirk widened to show her pearly whites, that seemed almost unnaturally sharp. She suddenly jumped towards the bars quickly, and wrapped her hands at the bars. She smirked and said "You remember Storybrooke's little guardian angel, the head of the hospital, yes? Your reliable little doctor that keeps watch over the Jane Doe in the hospital, yes?"

Regina only answered by narrowing her dark eyes a bit, unflinching when the prisoner jumped at the bars towards her. She had enough experience of that with Rumpelstiltskin in his cell.

After Regina answered, the woman continued with a smirk, "Her life...is in my hands. Anything that happens to me, you lose your way of keeping an eye on that Jane Doe. Next in line for Head Doctor is that Dr. Whale guy, and he's made his point clear of not letting you near her."

Raising an eyebrow, Regina's lip twitched, and then she smiled, as if trying to outshine the prisoner's own brilliant whites.

"Whale has no authority over me. Keep trying dear." She goaded.

The woman's smirk widened more if it was possible, to show that Regina had just made a mistake. She answered calmly "Alright...I am capable of much. I can easily break out of here on my own, come after you, and do...THIS!"

Her last word sounded more like a lion's roar than a normal yell, and her hand shot out and gripped around Regina's throat. Her grip was tight around Regina's throat, blocking the air passages, until it looked as though Regina was ready to faint. She choked and sputtered, her face becoming an alarming shade of pink as her hands went to the single hand clutched around her throat, using what strength she had to pry the hand away. At that point, the woman let go and stepped back, allowing Regina to breathe.

Regina staggered a few steps back from the cells immediately, putting her hand to her throat to rub at the raw flesh. Her eyes were wide, unmoving from the woman as she looked upon her with unbelief. Just what the hell was going on in Storybrooke? Five years, five years of absolute perfection. Everyone had always done as she willed, and though yes, it was boring, she made her own happiness from it. But now...ever since yesterday...things seemed to be coming unglued faster than she could nail it back together.

"You're insane!" Regina coughed out, still rubbing her throat, her eyes changing from unbelief to a steely glare. She took a moment to stand up tall once more, holding her chin up high to prove that she was still in control here, but the firmness of her iron face from when she first entered the Sheriff's department that day was all but gone. "But you still haven't given me what I want." She adjusted her suit jacket, and double checked to make sure that both keys were still there. "I'll inform Sheriff Leland to bump your appointment up with the DA, and with my influence it will happen, and you will never see Storybrooke again."

The woman laughed as Regina showed her fear and shock. She commented shaking her head, "It's so cute that you are still trying to show dominance over me, especially when it's very clear that you are afraid of me," She then said to Regina, "I can easily disappear, and you'll never be able to find me, until it is too late for the poor unfortunate soul who crosses me."

Regina scowled, and her face darkened as if a few lights had gone out in the building, a mask she wore when attempting to hide her fear.

"I doubt it." She spat, her eyes only growing darker in anger. In a huff, Regina flipped back her suit open suit jacket flaps, putting her hands on her hips over her dark blue silk shirt and turned on her heel, walking out of the building without another word.

As Regina left, the woman called out to her in a sinister sing song voice, "Run, run, run, as fast as you can, but you won't be able to escape!" After Regina was gone, she went back to her seat and resumed humming.

Regina had a new agenda now, she needed to know more about Dr. Faye Stevenson, find out her connection to this mad woman throwing taunts at her back. And she knew just the man to go and see.

The small bell connected to the entry door rang out, alerting Mr. Gold that someone had entered his shop, however his own eyes had spotted Regina briskly walking to the door outside his shop through the dusty, single pane windows before she had even entered. She walked to Mr. Gold with purpose, not bothering to stop and look around the precariously placed items that filled the room to the ceiling; only stopping when she reached the counter.

"Your Majesty." Mr. Gold greeted her politely, his eyes darting down to the red marks on the woman's neck. "Trying something a bit new are we? Erotic asphyxiation, although strange, does have it's-"

"Can it imp!" Regina hissed, the vein on her forehead pulsing angrily. Her dark eyes glanced over to the left to an old coat rack, covered completely by assorted hats, coats, gloves and scarves and Regina shot her hand out to grab at one of the scarves, a deep purple and blue silk style with tiny circular embroidery around it that, however ironic, went with the silk shirt she wore under her suit jacket.

Taking a bit of care as to not harm herself, she wrapped the silk scarf around her neck, ignoring the amused smirks coming from Mr. Gold.

"You'll have to pay for that dearie..."

"Dr. Faye Stevenson. What do you know about her?" Regina asked, cutting right to the chase. Mr. Gold licked his lips and looked up, pondering thoughtfully before answering.

"Well, she's not unattractive. Got her degree from a curse. Lives just around the corner from-"

"Gold..." Regina cut in with a warning tone, earning her a throaty laugh from the man as he placed his palms on the counter, leaning in to Regina a bit. "I'm so glad this amuses you, but I've got a woman in jail threatening to kill me and she's somehow linked to Stevenson."

"Not so different from The Enchanted Forest hm?" Gold asked with raised eyebrows. "People trying to kill you..."

Regina held her death glare, and Mr. Gold chuckled once more.

"You might want to go and talk with our friend Dr. Hopper. I've happened upon Dr. Stevenson walking in and out of his office on a number of occasions. If she's not at the hospital, or with our new town guest, she'll most certainly be there." He paused, looking thoughtful and licked his lips again. "Although I doubt she'd be going much anywhere today. She and I had a bit of a...disagreement last night."

Regina's hard gaze let up a bit at the information and moved to cross her arms over her chest tightly.

"You mean Henry?" She asked quizzically and raising an eyebrow. "Why would she be with Henry?"

Mr. Gold, yet again chuckled and Regina pressed her lips into a thin line. She hated it when he knew more than she did, and she had been doing a lot of 'catching-up' lately.

"They've got quite the number of things to talk about. New stranger in town, finds nothing better to do with his time than to go to the hospital and read to our dear Jane Doe. And that's when he realizes he knows her, causing him to want to stick around."

"Knows who?" Regina barked.

"Both of them of course." Mr. Gold chuckled, his amusement could not be any more evident.

"How? How is that even possib-" Regina's eyes first went wide, and then narrowed. She knew exactly how it was possible. It was because Henry...he was from The Enchanted Forest! He was not a part of the curse and therefore had his memories; a fact that Regina believed to be impossible until yesterday when Mr. Gold admitted to having his own memories. Obviously, there were ways around this, and Gold knew the whole time.
Mr. Gold's thin lips curled into the smile, reading the initial shock on Regina's face as she put the pieces together.

"You...you brought him here!" Regina hissed at him coldly, if at all possible her eyes narrowing even more. "This doesn't make any sense! You and I...we've been in this...together...from the start!"

"Oho! Have we?"

"You created the curse for me! The curse that brought us here and built all this."

"Yes, it's about time you said thank you."

"Why did you do it?"

Mr. Gold leaned further over the counter, pressing his face so close to Regina's that she could feel his hot breath on her cheek.

"Well you're a smart woman your Majesty." Mr. Gold taunted. "Figure it out." He added on with a sneer so cold, that Regina couldn't help but remember his threat to kill her for killing Belle.

An icy shiver rolled down her spine, causing Regina to stand up straight and back away a few steps from the imp. He may have not been The Dark One here, but she knew him well enough to know his threats were more than just words.

"Where's Henry now?" Regina asked, keeping her voice calm and level despite her hands beginning to shake and grow cold with lack of circulation.

"Try the school. I might have offered him the position at the elementary you came in here complaining about filling the other day."

It took whatever was left of Regina's willpower to not explode on Mr. Gold right then. She didn't know how much good it would do anyway, it was clear that Gold was in control of what was happening here, and Regina was powerless to stop it.

Unless-

Regina turned and walked out the door without another word to Mr. Gold, doing her best to walk out with her head held high and shaking the unnerving feeling of his eyes following her out.

It was time to go see Dr. Hopper and get the records of Dr. Faye Stevenson.

Collaboration between YoshiSkittlez and Ghost Shadow
--
It didn't take long to...convince Dr. Hopper that she was entitled to taking Dr. Stevenson's client file from his office. She couldn't stop to read it now though, she was still a bit shaken by the days events but she had enough of a head on her shoulders to find Henry at the school without looking like she was about to pass out.

She walked into the room just as the bell rang, using her hand to gently push the children that filed past her away lest she stomp them down in her rage. One boy in particular, possibly the smallest in the class bumped into her harshly, causing him to stumble back a few paces as he looked up at her with wide, terrified eyes.

"I'm...I'm so sorry Madam Mayor!" The boy squeaked. Regina just pushed forward, ignoring the boy's apology and pressed on to Henry towards the front of the room.

Henry, in the meantime, had begun to erase the writing from the chalkboard; whistling a small tune to himself as he did so, obviously not paying attention to his surroundings - or so it seemed.

"What an unexpected pleasure, Madam Mayor! What might I do for you?" He greeted suddenly, putting down the eraser as he turned to look at her.

"I-" Regina stopped. She had been so focused on getting here, to confront Henry, that she hadn't even paused to think about what she wanted to say. "I had heard you voulenteered to fill in here..." She decided on, at least trying to sound civil in the same way she had spoken with him just last night. "...without consulting me." She added on. It wasn't anger or annoyance in her voice, more like a mother scolding her child for forgetting to pick up his shoes.

"Yes, and I do hope you'll pardon me for that. But, I was made aware of the lack of help you had here and took it upon myself to...lend a hand. The rest of the faculty was...quite welcoming, actually." He added, placing odd spaces in his words, yet still maintaining a cheery smile and easy posture.

"Of course they were." Regina replied bitterly under her breath, shifting her focus to a notepad that had been left on one of the desks by one of the students. She picked it up, whiped away the eraser marks left on the page and then brought it up to Henry.

Henry pushed his glasses up on his face as Regina handed him the notepad. "Ah, someone misplaced this. Thank you." He answered with a warm smile, grabbing the pad and placing it on his desk. "Again, I do apologize for not informing you first. But I will gladly allow any background checks you wish to run." He offered friendlily.

"That won't be necissary." Regina said, giving him a polite smile. She walked around Henry to sit on the edge of his desk, far enough to hold her weight but not so much that her feet dangled above the ground. The position pulled Regina's black slacks tight, showing off the curvatures of her thighs all the way down to her calves before they 'ballooned' out at her ankles.

"I'll just need to ask you a few questions. Consider it an interview." Regina neatly folded her hands into her lap. "Have you a teaching degree?"

Henry raised his eyebrows in interest at the mention of an interview. He grabbed a chair from a nearby desk and sat down neatly in it, making sure to catch a glancing look at the mayor's curves before focusing on her face.

"I have a Bachelor's degree in English, but no teaching degree." He responded simply, tapping his left foot rhythmically.

Regina's full lips pressed into a thin line, looking almost disappointed in his answer.

"Well now, that is a problem..." Regina hummed, moving a hand from her lap to tap at her lower lip in thought. "You understand of course, that I can't allow you to teach here without a degree..."

Henry slowly reached up and took off his glasses. "Problems can be solved, as I so often like to think. So...why don't we solve it, then? You could always come in and watch me teach one day, if you'd like. Then, if you're impressed - you could skip over that little detail." He offered with a grin.

Regina tilted her head to the side just a bit, looking at him thoughtfully for a moment.

"Awful lot of work to do for someone who's just...passing through." Regina commented, a smile playing at her lips.

"Oh?" Henry noised, eyes catching her small smile. "Then what would you have in mind?" He asked in an almost coy manner.

"Storybrooke..." Regina began, sitting up just a bit from her relaxed position on the edge of the desk. "...is a very small place, as you well know by now. But...the city doesn't come without it's dangers. Hardly anything compared to New York I'm sure, but still dangerous."

Regina felt her hand instinctively move to her neck where the red hot burn around her throat still lingered, but she let her hand immediately fall back into her lap.

"In fact, I had the pleasure of meeting with one of our prisoners this morning. I had every intention of releasing her-" Regina patted the pocket of her suit jacket where the keys were located hearing them clink together a few times. "-however she attacked me, and thus her fate is set." She paused to clear her throat.

"My point, Mr. Carlyle, is that you truly don't know someone until you give them a chance. You are new here, and I do not know you, nor what sort of influence you will have on the children here at the school if I allow you to continue teaching and yes, even the dangers you might pocess to my city. However...I'm all about giving chances." Regina stood up off the desk completely and walked a few paces towards Henry. "So...Mr. Carlyle, all I ask is that you give me a reason; one reason that I should allow you to teach here."

Henry could barely contain a smirk when she spoke of him being a 'danger to the city'. 'Why, yes, your majesty. I'm the biggest threat to your city you'll ever see.' He thought to himself, not letting his expression change from its general mirth.

"One reason, eh? Well, I'd hate to use this card so early but, with all due respect, who else do you have? Everyone else in the town is either employed or lacks the necessary skills. I don't have a teaching degree in itself; but I am teaching a subject I studied on a college-grade level for four years." He finally answered with a small shrug of his shoulders. He wasn't sure if the answer would convince Regina or not...but worst come to worst, he just doesn't get the job - that's not his problem.

Regina, who would have normally glared at the way that Henry spoke to her, instead smiled and placed her hands on either side of the desk Henry was sitting behind, bending over the desk so that her face was almost too close to Henry's.

"I like you Henry. I wasn't so sure yesterday when you first came into town, but I can now see that you'll do well here in Storybrooke, provided of course...you'll stay..." She purred, her dark browns flickering for just a split second to the stranger's lips.

Henry caught her glance, returning with a sultry smile. Inwardly, he wasn't sure whether or not this was a trick (which, it most likely was), but he didn't care; instead letting himself fall into the enticement.

"I'd love to." He replied, voice as smooth as silk. Nothing else had to be said.

The implications were there, they had been there ever since Regina caught Henry looking her over just last night when she met him for the first time. It was a look she wasn't unfamiliar with, a look he seemed to carry around with him wherever he went; desire. It could have been for Regina solely; she knew she wasn't hard to look at, or it could have been for someone else he had met along the way but it was there now, and their conversation had a completely different implication unknown to anyone that was unable to see the way they looked at one another.

Regina took a single breath as she bent her head forward and crashed her lips against Henry's. There was nothing remotely tentative or timid about the kiss, but neither seemed to mind as they veritably devoured each other whole; tongues eagerly exploring and meeting in frenzied bliss, like this is why they had them in the first place and they were both just finding that out.

Henry found himsef lost in passion. Any sense of logic or judgement tossed aside the moment their lips touched. A sense of dread seemed to pang in him when they first started, as though his body was signaling a final warning to think his decision through. But it was soon ignored.

Henry abruptly, but not ungently, stood up, using a single hand to push the small desk separating them to the side; allowing them both to narrow the distance between them. Henry, in an almost ferocious manner, began to push Regina back, not letting their lips part in the process until she was pushed onto his larger desk getting no complaint from Regina; random items falling off in his haste.

He let his hands fall to her, admittedly curvy hips, letting them linger for more than a moment as he let one rational thought enter his head: get the key. Regina's hands went to his chest, bracing herself against him as she continued to kiss him, refusing to let herself part to breathe.Parting his lips only to catch a small breath of air, Henry let two deft fingers go into her coat pocket, quickly swiping the key before pulling his hand out; letting it rest on her hip once more. If Regina noticed, she didn't show it. She was immensly engrossed into Henry at that point, her hands running up and down his chest and over his shoulders, unable to decide where she wanted to keep them.

Henry let himself pull back to catch more than a gasp of breath, though his eyes were alight with a passionate fire, a hunger for more. "No...no, not here." He said breathlessly. "But tonight..." he added on, stopping in mid-sentence to let Regina put two and two together.

Regina looked up at him with a breathy smile, sweat beading at her forehead and her chest heaving as she as well tried to catch her breath. She patted him where her hands had stopped their roaming on his shoulders as if to say 'alright' unable to do it herself.

"Dinner." She reminded him simply, moving to sit up, her body seeming to be out of sorts as she did but she still somehow managed to keep an air of authority in the way she got off of the desk. Once standing tall again, Regina fixed up her suit jacket and gave Henry a curt nod, running a hand through her black hair to ensure that it was still in place and walked towards the exit, making a point to sway her hips a bit more than necessary.

Henry straightened up his outfit as Regina did, leaving his hair be as it was *always* in some sort of chaotic mess. "6:30, I won't forget." He reassured with that same friendly smile, though that seductiveness still remained in it. He paid close attention to her as she walked out, raising his eyebrows before nodding in approval.

As soon as Regina was out of sight, out of the classroom and into the hallway, Regina her fingers into her coat pocket feeling only one key, the missing one being the one that opened up the cell. Without even so much as flinching, or looking at the remaining key just to be sure...she smiled and hurried on her way, finally in the right mood to read over Dr. Stevenson's files.

Collaboration between GhostShadow as Henry, and I as the Mysterious woman and Dr. Faye Stevenson

*~*~*

After the slight shenanigans at the school, Henry quickly cleaned himself up as best he could before leaving the school to head for the sheriff's office.

The walk there wasn't terribly bad, and Henry didn't want to risk his car being parked there in case of suspicion. He looked through the windows before walking through the front door, eyes almost immediately landing on the Mysterious Woman in the cell.

"Hello, Sweetie." He greeted with a sly smile, approaching the cell with a slight swagger to his step, pulling the key from his coat pocket.

The woman stopped humming when she felt a pair of eyes on her, and she smirked when the door opened and she was greeted with Henry's voice. She stood and turned to face him, and started, "Hello, Fox-"

She stopped when she caught whiff of his scent. Her smirk fell, and her shoulders slumped. She commented dryly and her joviality gone, "Her perfume...and that smell of desire. You made out with her..."

Henry's smile fell just as quickly as it came. He knew there was no point in lying to the Woman, and prayed she would be understanding. "Yes...I did. It was the only way I could get the key while being inconspicuous." He explained in a bargaining tone, hiding the fact that he thoroughly enjoyed the kiss - and hoped for more later.

The woman paid careful attention to the scent that permeated off of him, ready to detect any lies that he may utter. What he said was the truth, supported by the key's presence, but she knew that he enjoyed being with the woman. She didn't make any move to attack Henry like she had with Regina, and she said tartly, "I see,"

She then commented with a light hearted tone to hide a hidden pain that she would never show to anyone, "Well, you certainly are a lady killer, hm?" She then warned still using the light hearted tone, "Just be careful in playing with the mayor. I'd rather not see you as her puppet,"

"I understand." He responded seriously, but offered a small, almost sad smile as he approached the cell; inserting the key into the door with an audible clack as the door subsequently swung open with a creak.

"You're free now." He stated matter-of-factly before continuing. "Try not to get yourself arrested again, be it for my sake or not. I don't think I can pull that stunt again." He warned, but his tone was warm, and his eyes shone with a certain brightness.

The woman walked through the open door after Henry opened it, and she said "Very well. And I shall make my disappearance. It may be a while before you ever see me again," She stopped walking after she passed Henry and she turned to face him, and she told him, "If you have any problems, Dr. Stevenson is a pret-ty good...listener,"

"I'll keep that in mind." He responded with a simple nod, his hands going to his coat pockets as she made her disappearance. He followed out the door shortly after, not wanting to be caught in the sheriff's office by anyone less-than-savory.

He stood on the side of the road for what seemed like forever, figuring out just what to do until he remembered - he had to volunteer.

The woman walked out as well, taking great care to make sure that not a single soul saw her flee the prison, and make it back to Dr. Stevenson's home, through the back door. There, the woman changed to comfortable pajamas before she switched back to Dr. Stevenson.

The doctor woke up in the chair, finding a glass of scotch next to her. As soon as she thought she slept in because of the alcohol, she panicked and quickly got dressed and hurried for the hospital for work, ignoring the throbbing bruise and cut on her face that she received from Mr. Gold's cane.

She rushed into the hospital, and checked in. Dr. Whale spotted her and he asked in concern, "Dr. Stevenson! There you are! What happened?" Dr. Stevenson shook her head and said "Nothing, nothing. Dr. Whale, what's the report on the patients?"

The day continued on like normal as far as Faye knew.

Henry sat alone in Snow's room, the steady beeping of the heart monitor being the only sound besides the careful rustling of pages and the sound of his own voice as he read, looking up from the book constantly to see any sign of life.

"Once upon a time there lived a lovely princess with skin as white as snow and appropriately named Snow White. Her mother died when Snow was just a young woman and her father eventually married again. This new Queen was stunning beyond all measure, but she was also very cruel. The wicked stepmother was very angry and jealous of Snow White and so she ordered the Huntsman to take Snow White to the forest and kill her. “I want you to bring back her heart,” she ordered. But when The Huntsman reached the forest with Snow White, he took pity on her and set her free. He killed a stag and took its heart to the Evil Queen and told her that he had killed Snow White."

After taking care of other patients that needed urgent attention, she went to go and check on Jane Doe. She stepped in to see Henry was there reading to her. She wasn't sure why, but she felt...somewhat relieved to see him. She remained silent as she watched him, with a small kind smile appearing on her face.

Henry didn't seem to notice Dr. Stevenson as he continued to read. But every so often, he would let one of his hands brush across the Jane Doe's; as if he was trying to goad her awake, or enjoy her touch. "If only you could see me now." He said in a voice that was just barely above a whisper. "Not a silly old cat now, am I?' He asked, though he knew no one would answer him.

Dr. Stevenson raised an eyebrow, just barely hearing what Henry had just said to Jane Doe. She had caught the words 'cat' and 'am i' from his quiet voice. She cleared her throat and she spoke up, "I hate to interrupt, Mr. Carlyle. I just wanted to check in on Miss Doe,"

Henry jumped, startled, obviously not expecting anyone else to come in. "Oh, yes, of course. Excuse me, Dr. Stevenson." He said politely, moving away from the bed to allow her access.

Dr. Stevenson nodded and she answered politely, "Thank you," before she moved to get diagnostics on Miss Doe's condition. So far, it seemed as though Miss Doe was the same as ever, much to her disappointment.

He got a good look at the cut that dotted her forehead, narrowing his eyes. "Might I inquire how you got that cut there, Doctor? Looks nasty - no offense." He stated in a peculiar manner.

Dr. Stevenson had finished when Henry asked about her wound. She touched her wound, wincing slightly, and she answered "An uncooperative patient. Don't worry, it's part of the occupational hazards,"

Henry couldn't help but give a slight wince, as though a blow had fallen on him. "Being a doctor's more dangerous than I thought, then. Hope elementary students aren't as bloodthirsty." He japed with a friendly smile, leaning against the wall; eyes kept on the doctor as she examined Snow.

Dr. Stevenson chuckled in a grim tone, "It's not as dangerous as you're thinking. It's natural for people to lash out, especially when it seems that their situation seems...hopeless,"

"I've been talking to your roomate." He started, trying to make conversation.

Dr. Stevenson paled at the mention of her roommate, knowing who he was talking about, and she groaned "Oh dear...Whatever she did, I greatly apologize for her actions. If there's anything I can do to make up for whatever she did, let me know,"

Henry's expression turned from one of base amusement to confusion. "Apologize? I quite enjoyed talking to her. She's very...feisty." He settled on, smiling once more. "Ran into her at the Rabbit Hole, then it seems we kept bumping into each other." He commented with a slight roll of his shoulders.

Dr. Stevenson was surprised at what she heard, and she asked confusedly "Oh...really? I-I see," She then apologized, "I apologize for my outburst then. Normally if someone brings her up as a conversation topic, it's to complain about what she did. I'm glad to hear she hasn't caused you any trouble..." She then grumbled under her breath, "Yet, anyways..."

"Oh she's not caused me any trouble. Quite the contrary, honestly. I think she wants to go on a date with me, though." He added, scratching the back of his head. Normally he'd be more composed around Dr. Stevenson. But his regular interactions with her at Rumpelstiltskin's castle loosened him up a bit - even if she didn't remember him or anything about the Enchanted Forest.

Dr. Stevenson widened her eyes slightly, and her cheeks turned pink at the mention of what her 'roommate' may want with him. She stated "O-Oh," She had no idea what she wanted to say, but she felt awkward now. She cleared her throat and she asked stuttering a bit "Forgive me for being brash, but do-do you want to date my roommate...?"

Henry raised his eyebrows at the question, a coy smile teasing at the corner of his lips as he thought about the inquiry for a few moments. "Sure, why not? She's quite easy on the eyes and has a remarkable...for want of a better word, aura around her." He answered with a small chuckle. "I'm sorry, did that make you uncomfortable?" He asked, hands in hs coat pockets once again.

Dr. Stevenson shook her head and answered "No. No, of course not! I'm just concerned because most relationships that my roommate starts up...almost never ends well. I just really would hate to see you get hurt because of my roommate. Also she doesn't exactly have the best reputation in town...."

"Well, I like people who have flaws - makes them more real." He replied nonchalantly, studying Dr. Stevenson with an almost intense gaze while he was speaking.

"You know, you remind me of someone I knew awhile back." He began, running a single hand through his hair. "I don't know if I'll see her again, but she was very beautiful like you - and remarkably intelligent. Funny how people can remind you of old friends." He said in an almost reminiscent tone.

Dr. Stevenson didn't respond to his comment about people having flaws, remembering how she had to be perfect to everyone around her.

She snapped out of her brief reverie when Henry mentioned how she reminded him of an old friend. She nodded in agreement at his last comment as she stated "Thank you for the compliment, and yes it is quite strange," She looked at him carefully, and she couldn't help but get the feeling that he seemed familiar...

"Ah well..." He finished, looking at Snow White on the bed. "Any change?" He asked, his voice turning dour and serious instead of warm and giddy.

Dr. Stevenson shook her head and answered seriously "Sadly no...Thankfully, she's still stable," She then asked, "Mr. Carlyle. Are you sure you don't know her? I believe you mentioned something about a cat a little earlier,"

Henry nodded solemnly as she spoke, giving a passing glance to Snow before looking back at the doctor. "No, I don't know her. She, like you, just reminds me of someone before. As for the cat - little poem I learned as a child. Recite it from time to time, force of habit." He lied, but his tone didn't give away any false deception, even his eyes stared plainly into the doctor's.

Dr. Stevenson sighed as she answered, "I see..." She couldn't help but get the strange feeling that he was lying to her, but she didn't bring it up. Instead she ignored the feeling as a figment of her imagination. Before she could ask Henry anything, her pager beeped loudly and she said "Oh, I have to go. Maybe we can talk later, Mr. Carlyle?"

"I'd quite like that. Go on then, off you pop. No need for someone to die of cardiac arrest because I was keeping you." He joked with a warm grin, waving her off.

Dr. Stevenson smiled and laughed a bit at the joke, and she waved bye to him, and as she left, she said to him, "I'll see you later, Mr. Carlyle,".

After she said that, she rushed to the patient that was in the ER.

Henry left the hospital not long after Dr. Stevenson and he had spoken, returning to his room to prepare himself for the dinner date tonight: showering, fresh shave, a more formal herringbone coat, along with picking up a couple things from the convenience store. Time seemed to rush by until it was nearly 6:30.

He parked outside the mayor's house with less than 5 minutes to spare, doing a quick hair-check before stepping up onto the front porch.
'You can do this, Chesh, it's just dinner with the Evil Queen....and maybe some other stuff. Bloody hell.' He thought to himself before knocking sharply on the door, hands falling to his pockets as he awaited his host.

There was a pause that seemed to go on for ages, but Regina finally answered the door with a warm, bright smile.

"Henry." She welcomed. "Good, I've just taken the lasagna out of the oven." Her dress apparel hadn't changed too much from when they had spoken with one another at the school, except now she had lost the suit jacket, showing off the brilliant dark blue silk shirt she wore underneath that buttoned up in the front, the top three buttons of course undone. She had done away with the scarf as well, having been at home able to cover up the bruising on her neck with makeup.

She opened the door wider for Henry to walk in past her, and then shut the door behind him.

"Why, thank you." He responded in a gentlemanly manner as she opened the door, stepping through the threshold and taking in the sight. The house was nothing short of marvelous, the walls colored a crisp white and the floors a shiny hardwood. Little in the way of paintings were in the house, but somehow - it worked. The furniture was of exquisite craftsmanship, exuding an air of both regality and modernity.

"I must say, Madam Mayor...your house is nothing short of marvelous!" Henry exclaimed, thoroughly and sincerely impressed, taking off his glasses to get a better look at the furnishings.

"Why thank you!"

Regina led Henry from the main hall to the dining hall where most of the food she had prepared throughout the day was laid out, the only thing missing was the main dish of lasagna that she had promised. She issued a chair for him to sit in, then said,

"I'll just pop into the kitchen and get the lasagna." She informed him quickly, and walked through the open threshold that took her there. Once out of sight, Regina pulled her phone from her tight slacks and opened up her recent text messages. Regina wasn't much of a texter, but she only had one word to send out. Scrolling through them, she found Robert Leland's name and opened up the thread, typing 'GO' and sent it out quickly. He would know what she meant.

Using oven mitts, Regina grabbed the lasagna and brought it back to the dining hall and placed it in the center of the table, allowing herself to sit across from Henry and crossed her legs.

"So you think you'll stay then, in Storybrooke?" She asked, picking up her glass of wine that she had already filled before Henry had arrived. "At least...for a while...?"

"Sure, I don't see why not." He responded with his (practically) signature grin. "That is, unless you have a problem with it?" He asked simply, no hostility whatsoever in his tone - just genuine curiosity.

"Nothing keeping you from wanting to go back?" Regina inquired, blatantly ignoring his second statement. "No family, friends?" She quirked an eyebrow and lowered her voice in pitch. "A lover?"

"Nope, 'fraid not. My family's been gone for awhile...I lost my sister in a...house fire. I'm the only one left-" Regina quickly shot him an apologetic look. "-no lovers or girlfriends to speak of," his eyes met hers. "Yet." He finished, a slight twinkle in his eyes.

"Well, that's a shame." Regina stood at the table and began to fill Henry's plate with the food she had provided, handing the plate to him with a generous amount of food and then helped herself with a portion less than half of what she gave him. "But no..." Regina said sitting down again. "...I don't have a problem with you staying, so long as you behave."

If someone would have told Regina three hours ago that she would be condoning the stranger that would surely be the one to break the curse into staying in Storybrooke, she would have never believed them. However, now, the way she saw it, getting Henry to be closer to her rather than Mr. Gold could only prove to be beneficial towards her. SHE would not be the one to drive Henry out, something or someone else would.

Henry nodded in thanks as she handed the plate to him, grinning from ear to ear (when did he stop?) while she spoke. "Oh, don't worry, you'll expect no trouble from me. It'll be as though I've been here my whole life." He promised sincerely, taking a small bite of the lasagna.

"This is absolutely delicious!" He commended with an approving nod. "I've never tasted anything quite like it." He added.

"Well, I'm not the greatest cook, but I do manage. Lasagna seems to be what I'm best at, if of course you don't count my apple pie." Regina replied modestly.

"Apple pie. I remember that being a treat when I was younger. My family wasn't the...wealthiest, so it was the little things that counted most." He said in a solemn voice, but seemed to perk up again as if nothing had happened.

"There's an apple tree just in my backyard, I've been tending to it ever since I was a little girl, so apples aren't exactly scarce around here." She breathed out a sort of small laugh, and returned to drinking her wine.

The evening went on as such until they had both had their fill of food and conversation. Regina had made a mention that she had an apple pie in the freezer, and it was decided that she was to put it into the oven just so Henry could see how delicious it really was. While they waited, they retreated into the living room which was as large and elaborate as any other part of her house, though this room had a lush, white carpet spreading across the floor, a roaring fireplace in the center of the wall across from them and a quiet theme of horses.

Regina filled Henry's cup of wine before setting the bottle back down in the ice bucket on the coffee table in front of them and leaned back into the corner of the couch, kicking off her black heels so that she could comfortably bring them up and underneath her.

"...I can still remember the look on my father's face when I had cleared the course while riding bareback. He was so happy I swear I saw tears." Regina finished her story, since the topic of the horses in the room piqued Henry's interest, and she had told him of her experience riding horses often as a little girl.

"You know..." Regina said after a small pause. "...that could very well be what drew me to you, Henry." She went on. "My father's name was Henry also...the most noble, honest man I had ever met..."

Henry smiled as Regina told her story, taking random sips of his wine as she spoke before switching onto the subject of her father; who shared Henry's name.

"He sounds like a good man." He replied warmly, letting out a soft exhale.

"He was." Regina replied almost curtly, letting the implication that her father was no longer alive hang in the air like a bitter cold.

"I'm terribly sorry for your loss." Henry said, empathetically; easily reading the signs that Regina's father was no longer alive. "I'm sure he's very proud of you." He reassured gently, removing his glasses again as if to add emphasis to his statement.

Regina was unable to hold back a scoff, her mind now going to what her father would say about all of this...would he be proud? She remembered his last words to her before she ripped his heart out, that whatever it was that made her happy, then he would be happy also. But again, that was before she ripped his heart out for her own selfish reasons for wanting this curse. But that wasn't likely a story she'd be willing to share with the man sitting a few feet away from her, so she settled on simply answering with,

"I hope so."

Henry offered a warm, genuine smile in return; being about all he could do with so sensitive a topic. "My father was never around much. Wasn't his fault, just couldn't afford to pay the bills. Constantly worked two to three jobs at a time, never saw us much. He was a provider...but never a father - hopefully he found rest." Henry finished, taking another swig of wine.

Regina looked from her half-empty wine glass to Henry, meeting his eyes. So...Henry came from poverty. She wanted to sneer on impulse, but held back when a gut-wrenching realization hit her; Daniel had been from poverty too. She was to marry him, to have a fulfilling life as the stable-boy's wife. She never wanted this...power. The money, the fame...she could have done without it all, all for Daniel. She had wanted a simple life.
Without realizing is, her thumb and forefinger fidgeted with the simple, twisted ring around her index finger on her right hand, but the moment she realized it, she quickly cleared her throat and set the glass of wine down on the table in front of them. Apparently, wine made her think too much.

"Well...enough of that." She said quickly, her eyes glancing even quicker up to the analogue clock on her wall, wondering if Robert had enough time to go through Henry's room yet or not. She'd rather not give him too much credit, and decided to stall Henry here a little longer. That shouldn't be a problem. An almost wicked smile crossed her lips as she looked back to Henry as she reached out with her hand and set it gently on his knee.

"You're still in the interview process you know..."

"Oh am I?" He asked in mock confusion, that same hungry look coming into his eyes. "I think I did pretty good on the last question." He commented with a sultry smile.

A thoughtful expression pursed at Regina's lips, threatening to make her smile.

"Yes, but, the question was only halfly answered, Mr. Carlyle." She reminded him in a professional manner, now deciding to let her lips split into a stunningly beautiful white smile.

"Half answered, eh? Well, how do I answer the other half?' He asked, cupping his chin with a single hand, shifting slightly in his seat.
Keeping her smile, Regina removed her hand from his knee and sat up a little straighter, placing both her hands into her lap.

"You act like you've never had an interview before Henry, you can't ask for tips from the boss." She chastised him with a wicked grin.

"Yes, quite right, I had nearly forgotten!" He replied, not-so-subtly licking his lips. "Now then...let's get started on that second half." He said in an almost mischievous manner.

He began to lean in towards her, setting his own glass of wine on the table to free his hands. "Tell me if this is right." He asked before planting a longing kiss on her neck.

Regina couldn't help but to move instinctively, raising her chin up towards the ceiling and let her eyes flutter closed, only letting out a soft "hmmm..." in response.

Henry took this as an obvious sign to keep going, kissing around the more sensitive parts of her neck, a single hand draping down on her hip. The covered bruising on Regina's neck made itself aware to Regina a few times while Henry kissed her neck, but the dull pain acted as a sort of stimuli, and Regina wrapped her own arms around Henry, holding her hands on the backsides of his shoulders.

Henry cocked his head in very close to her ear. "Let's see what you can do, Madam Mayor." He said before abruptly planting his lips against hers, picking up where they had left off in the classroom just a few hours ago.