Anonymous Asked You: Emma's angels - In light of all the magical emergencies in town Emma is forced to create a small task force of three witches to protect Storybrooke from magic. The trio is quickly nicknamed 'Emma's Angels' by the town's citizens.

AN: This prompt was with me for over a year, for that I ask forgiveness to the prompter and hope that this anon enjoys, if they're still in the fandom and a fan of mine!

I decided against witches and used my favorite characters. Hope that's okay!

Also, just a general disclaimer: I have always loved the Charlie's Angels movie made in 2000. I've also been obsessed and have been binge watching Leverage on Netflix (I'm halfway through with my second round of the show—yes, I enjoy it that much). So, there will be similarities—even catchphrases used in honor of the characters on that show, though you don't need to have seen it to enjoy this fic (however, as I sometimes do, I've left Easter eggs around for those that have seen and like the show). I recommend Leverage to anyone that wants a comedic-action-protecting-the-innocent-but-awesome-and-thievery-is-involved show…

As a general by the by, you will see normal scene changes with six squigglies (~) and tiny scene changes with two. When I use a smaller amount of squigglies—and this is really in any of my works—it's meaning that the scenes are closer together than a normal scene change, like it's happening just after. In this story, if I use the two squigglies and not six, I am either using them as a literary montage device or to show that the next scene is immediately after or continuous with the scene previous. (I hope I've explained clearly enough…)

Hope you all enjoy.

Emma shut the bedroom door behind her and moved quietly to her dozing wife and the sleeping newborn on said wife's chest. She carefully got in bed with them.

"You really think I'm sleeping at a time like this?" Regina's soft deadpan filled the room.

"A woman can hope."

"Darling..."

"I know. All the stuff that's going on. That bitch wants our kid dead…"

"Hannah. That bitch wants Hannah dead. We've had her name picked out since my fifth month, Darling honestly. Are you just going to call both our children 'kid'? You can't even come up with something new?"

"Ha. Ha. Ha." Emma's sarcasm was not subtle. "I'll let you insult me all you want right now…" she lifted Hannah from Regina's chest and held her close as she stood up and moved to the window, looking out the small crack Regina allowed for the grim night they were living through.

It was as they stood quietly, Regina softly turning on her side in the bed that they heard Ruby howl to the moon.

"Oh, Hannah, my love, you have probably come at the most inopportune time." Emma held the baby tighter to her body, kissing the crown of the newborn's head.

"Emma. Don't… I can't… Bring her away from the window…"

"Have some faith, Regina."

"I'll have faith when the girls—"

"The Angels."

"The girls finish."

"They said it wouldn't be long now."

"That's not good enough."

Emma gave her wife a soft, loving, protective look as she moved with the baby back to the bed. She carefully got back on and settled against the head board. She then brought Hannah to lie in the crevice between her legs and felt her wife snuggle against her. They watched the baby open her eyes a little bit.

"She is magical. I can't get over her eyes, Babe."

"I know." Regina traced the brand new baby's eyebrow line, "One brown. And one green." She kissed Emma's cheek.

"She's perfect." Emma put a loving hand over Hannah's tummy, "And so tiny! Look, she's like the size of my hand."

"She is not. Just her torso. She's perfectly healthy."

Emma shrugged, "Hannah. You have no idea what the Angels are doing for you right now…"

"Why do you have your epic story voice on?"

"Because Honey, I'm about to tell an epic story."

"One that's in progress? How's that gonna work?"

"Like this, Sassy." Emma stared at Hannah. "Once upon a time—"

"All of your stories start off 'once upon a time' and you know what? None of them are fairytales…."

"What's your point?"

"Tell her a fairytale. I don't want her first bedtime story to be this one."

Emma shrugged, "Meh. This one is a fairytale technically. Besides it's way better than the typical fairytales she's gonna get to know thanks to Disney." Regina opened her mouth to speak, but Emma kissed her by way of cutting her off. She gave Regina one last look to make sure she wouldn't interrupt again.

"Once Upon a time there were three very different girls…"

~0~0~0~0~0~

Flashback: Ruby: The Enchanted Forest Pre-Curse:

Ruby could feel the fear as she quickly made her way through the forest. As she came upon a little girl cornered at a large tree, surrounded by wolves ready to pounce, she ran at her full speed, surprising both the wolves and the girl.

"Hi, Sweetie." She gave a smile as she half-glanced behind her while she faced the wolves. "It's okay to be scared, but just remember next time that you just have to remind them that you're their friend. You have to adapt to them, to do what they want. You have to remind them that they are an animal on the hunt too."

Ruby turned with a wink before she looked up at the moon and howled while she shape-shifted into her wolf. She got the other wolves' attention. She was clearly bigger and better than their alpha, and after making him feel inferior to her, having him understand that they would not be preying on this little girl, she turned to the girl and licked the girl's cheek before nuzzling into the child's hands, making the girl pet her.

It wasn't long before the rest of the wolves began sniffing her and wanting to play. They ended up walking the lost girl back to the village, back to her home. After making sure the girl's parents opened it—which they did with worry on their faces, Ruby sat, causing the rest of the pack to follow suit. They waited patiently and when the parents looked up to thank the rescuer, the bewilderment on the parents' faces was priceless. They thanked the wolves and the father (and butcher of the town) was kind enough to give the wolf pack some meat.

~0~0~0~0~0~

Flashback: Belle: The Enchanted Forest Pre-Curse:

Belle sat at the front and center of her class. As always. She sat straight and closed her eyes as the possibilities of the answer to the professor's riddle ran through her mind.

"A lonely wanderer, wounded with iron, I am smitten with war-blades, sated with

strife,

Worn with the sword-edge; I have seen many battles, Much hazardous fighting, oft

without hope

Of comforts or help in the carnage of war Ere I perish and fall in the fighting of men.

The leavings of hammers, the handiwork of smiths, Batter and bite me, hard-eged

and sharp;

The brunt of the battle I am doomed to endure. In all the folk-stead no leech could I

find

With wort or simple to heal my wounds; But day and night with the deadly blows

The marks of the war-blades double and deepen."

The professor walked around the front of his classroom as he waited for someone to raise their hand, "Anyone?"

Belle narrowed her eyes a smirk on her face before she folded her hands in her lap, "A shield."

The class seemed to both thank Belle for the answer and slump forward because they didn't think of it first. This only made her smirk more prominent on her face and her back a little straighter as the arrogance flowed through her.

~0~0~0~0~0~

Flashback: Mulan: The Enchanted Forest Pre-Curse

Mulan walked along the street. She worked all day at her father's restaurant and it was far passed a safe time by the time she locked up for the night. She felt as if she were being followed.

She turned.

Nothing.

She picked up her pace a fraction but continued walking. This second time there was no doubt that she felt eyes boring into her back.

She turned again.

No one.

She broke into a sprint. She heard the many footfalls catch up with her and it wasn't long before her face hit the pavement and the beginnings of a brutal beating came upon her. She saw that it was boys her own age, boys from her own class actually.

She closed her eyes hoping the hits would end and the boys would leave her alone. It was in this moment that a need came over her. A sense of peace, but a distinct need to protect flowed throughout her veins. She picked herself up while they were still hitting her and threw her own punches to keep them off.

She opened her eyes at this point and saw them all zeroing in on her again, "Come on." She growled.

The next minutes felt like a dance. It was both dizzying and sobering. It was made completely clear what her purpose was to be in life. She was made to protect. She looked around after this revelation, in a pose obviously prepared to fight more and saw that none of the boys were going to get back up.

She gave a happy-go-lucky grin to nothing and skipped off to her house.

~0~0~0~0~0~

"Who grew up to be three very different women…"

~0~0~0~0~0~

Flashback: Ruby: Storybrooke

Ruby's theory on life was "adapt to the situation." She'd learned to adapt to every occasion. She'd dyed her hair, worn wigs, changed her style, her form, her features. She'd even posed as a man. She'd played an attorney, a nurse, a shrink, a secretary—a thousand times over she easily played a secretary. All for the sake of adaptation.

Yes, the stage is lost on her, film is much too simple as well. She was born to act though. She was born to act through life. But, she still kept a day job. She still waited tables even though she was now an Angel. It kept her on her heels.

She was able to get the best gossip in town:

"Rumer has it you and Gold broke up…" Ruby poured Belle a glass of tea as the other girl waited for her lunch.

"That was a long time ago… Almost a month." Belle looked up, surprise in her eyes.

"I figured you'd be able to talk about it now…."

Belle blushed and looked down, "Why would I talk about it with you?"

"Because I'm your friend…"

"I think we both know you're more than that."

"Then what am I? Your pretend sister?"

"No." Belle turned away from the waitress. "I'm not hungry. I'll see you tomorrow." She stood and left the almost empty diner.

Ruby took the auburn-haired girl's seat and then took a sip from her drink before giving a sigh as she watched her go. Belle would, at this rate, never truly comprehend how devoted Ruby was to her. She wasn't able to get anywhere. Their life was in a perpetual limbo, flirting, but not doing anything; dancing around each other, not with each other; alluring and luring the other in, only to turn at the prime moment. Ruby loved games, but she hated this one.

~0~0~0~0~0~

Flashback: Belle: Storybrooke

Belle loved computers. After the curse broke, after she was released from the looney bin, after all the stuff happened, she discovered just how cool the digital world was. She'd formerly been the equivalent of a literary hacker before the curse; now that the curse was over she'd graduated to the digital age. She'd created programs, she hacked people when she was bored—just to see if she could. She then told said people they needed better security. She was a gamer. She had the newest versions of Call of Duty, Assassin's Creed, and Mass Effect… and the ones that weren't even out yet.

It was no surprise when Emma came to her to become an Angel. She'd creeped and read the e-mails between the Sheriff and the Mayor—she couldn't help herself, the two of them were delicious. They were like all the great romances in literature, but they were real. It was too good to pass up!

However, being asked to be an Angel was also a bit of a shock considering the person she'd grown into. Her social abilities were that of a high-grade, socially awkward introvert. She was shocked that she was able to get herself into the situations that the Angels seemed to get in all the time.

Though most of her thriving social ability would be because of Ruby:

"Hey."

Ruby's whisper caused Belle's heart to leap to her throat. She turned in the cell she was shoved in by the guards of the new Queen of Hearts to find Ruby upside down on a rig.

"What?" She whispered shocked, "How?"

Ruby smirked as she flipped over so she was right-side up and held a harness out for her, "You didn't think we'd leave you did you? Didn't think I'd leave you? Especially after you saved me?" By the time she was finished asking her questions, she and Belle were mere inches from each other.

Belle swallowed audibly, "I hoped not."

Ruby smirked as she held onto the other girl—for extra support—and held back her grin when Belle held on for dear life as they ascended back up the tall, prison ceiling. "I'm never gonna leave you behind. Okay?" she continued whispering.

"Okay."

Yes, there was something about Ruby that made Belle's head swarm with a multitude of possibilities. She was never sure what Ruby really wanted. She was never sure what she wanted. She felt as if Ruby was for her taking sometimes, but she never took the opportunity. And now they were in a perpetual limbo, both too scared or stubborn or ignorant to do anything about it.

~0~0~0~0~0~

Flashback: Mulan: Storybrooke

Mulan was never one to consider herself special. She knew she was a protector, but she'd never think she'd be chosen for anything or given awards. But, she became an Angel.

That of course had to come after she told Aurora just how completely and utterly in love with her she was; after Phillip went off the deep end, drinking himself into oblivion and hitting Aurora everywhere but her stomach; after Aurora decided she'd had enough, after Aurora admitted her own feelings for Mulan, Mulan raided—picked over every inch of the giants' castle and found one seed perfectly preserved. She quickly found Aurora and soon they found themselves in the forest of Storybrooke, Maine.

Of course, they didn't realize where they were until they found the town—until they ran into Emma making her evening rounds at the forest's edge:

"What the hell?" Emma got out of her car and walked over to a wildly pregnant Aurora and a phenomenally suited Mulan in the woods, "How the…? What the…? It's been a long time…"

"We found a bean. Mulan found one…" Aurora said as she shivered with the evening chill.

Mulan immediately took some of her armor off to get to her clothes and protected the princess with her coat. "We needed to get out of the enchanted forest…"

Emma raised her brows and stared at the swollen belly of the woman on Mulan's side, "I see…"

"Phillip isn't the man he used to be." Aurora provided, "Besides, Mulan's had my heart since we met." She cuddled into her protector.

"We need a place to stay. I need to find work. I'm good with my hands, I'm able to protect people—" Mulan started to ramble, but Emma put her hand up, stopping her.

"Slow down, Sparky. Let's just get you guys some place warm." She walked back to the cruiser and opened the back door for them, "I'll take you back to mine and Regina's. She'd kill me if I brought you to Granny's."

"Regina? Regina the evil queen?" Mulan was ready to protest.

Emma turned back to them and scrunched her face, "Eh…. Yes and no. Not so evil anymore, lest thy name be Emma Swan and you've done something to royally piss her off and earn a spot on the couch."

Both women chose not to hide their confusion. A, "Huh?" came from them both at the same time.

"She's not evil, she's good. I promise! We're married. Happily married. No evil in the house at all…" Emma gave them both a smirk, "Maybe a little wickedness in the bedroom, but you two didn't need to know that…" She sobered once more at the end of her sentence. "Just… come on." She gestured to the car door. After receiving a questioning look from them both, she remembered they had no idea what the hell the cruiser was, "It's a mechanical carriage. In you go."

Since then, Mulan became deputy while they learned the ways of this different world. Aurora had the baby, a girl as well, named Rose. And soon enough, Emma approached Mulan about being an Angel. No, Mulan had never considered herself special, but now she had a wife, a child and she was an Angel.

~0~0~0~0~0~

"But they have three things in common. They're brilliant, they're beautiful…and they work for me. My name is Emma—But you will call me Momma."

AN: Hope you enjoyed! Please read and review. Obviously this is the teaser chapter. The real story will start with the next chapter!