Author's Note: Thank you to all those who have taken the time to read this story. I appreciate all the favorites, follows and reviews. I've done a lot of 'what if' stories in this fandom in particular but this will be the darkest of my stories ever written/posted. It will be dark but there will the moments of comedy and 'lightness'.

I am sorry for killing Regina. Truly I was very upset with myself while writing it but I'm glad many of you have decided to stick with the story (as the number of follows tells me). I promise things will get better. Baby steps though.

Chapter One
'In a World Unlike His Own'

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

They ran; Men, women, children alike.

They ran through the shadows with capes and cloaks of all kinds flying behind them as they weaved through the trees and the overgrown woods. The sounds of twigs breaking under their feet echoed through the forest. Their hearts raced against their chests; breath heavy as they panted and worked every available muscle to push them further, faster, harder.

They turned their heads back in fright every few seconds as their adrenaline kept them light on their feet, swift. Those taller than the children covered their faces as they ran. The branches and weeds cutting into their forearms and legs as they kept moving. Slowly for many of the fleeing group beads of sweat turned to droplets of blood, skin torn by thorns.

Upturned roots tripped several. The loss of breath in their lungs as they hit the ground and their cries the last the group heard or saw of many of them. Those that fell were left behind, child or not. Death would come to them all if caught.

They could not stop.
They had to keep on.
Keep running.
Keep moving forward.

The whip of cold air against flushed cheeks stung. The night was cold and the wind could be harsh in areas unblocked by forests or natures shields against the harsh weather.

Panting breaths turned to white clouds in the chill.

It did not stop them. It egged them on. Even as their lungs burned from the cold and their eyes teared with the sting of it. They ran as fast as their limbs could carry them.

Fear made them ache in pain. A pain that consumed their whole person and centered around their hearts.

Pain made them run faster.

Their ears were alert; eyes shifty as they chanced backward glances or fought against that urge. The slightest slip up would trip them and many behind them, killing them all.

Mistakes were not forgiven by the perused. So they ran.

They ran, knowing it meant death. They sought freedom and safety and risked their lives, the lives of their families for it. Life outside had to be better than life inside. It had to be. They yearned for the grass to be greener on the other side. If it weren't they had risked everything for nothing. They might as well have let the head hunters take them back at the first check point.

Not many made it passed the first check point or the second. Those that did had the highest rates of escaping. This group was midway through the first check point and the second. They only had one more, just one more and their new lives would await them. The check points were barricades marched by soldiers and head hunters alike to keep them prisoner.

Head hunters were the cruelest of their pursuers. They'd turn in their own family, probably had at one point or another. There was a sum of coin waiting for any head hunter that caught traitors, caught runners like them.

Life for a soldier, a head hunter, or the elite was prosperous. While the average villager suffered so the rich could stay comfortable. Their grass was stilted and dead here if it existed at all. They longed for the lush green of beyond, of freedom.

Times since the Evil King took the throne were hard.

Lives that were once peaceful and happy became chaotic and miserable. The land that was once the safest of them all was now the deadliest and most dangerous. Times were hard and the earth itself bespoke its dislike of the King. Crops that used to flourish and feed tens of thousands, now fed one or two thousand only.

The rich ate their fill, lived in lavish manors and estates while the villagers scavenged for food and lived in squalor. The villagers were slaves, surfs, to the bureaucrats that ruled over them with a heavy hand. No longer were their voices heard or their pleas answered.

Their outcries were met with the brandishment of swords and the spilling of blood. The Evil King burned those who spoke against him after he tortured their families in front of them, sold their female children into servitude, and killed their wives and sold their sons into slavery before he finally let them die an agonizing death. Those were the lucky ones. There were the ones that burned together. Entire villages pillaged and burned to the ground, their people locked away in their homes unable to escape.

So the Evil King's people, his surfs, learned to whisper and stay quiet. They moved slowly with heads bowed and downcast eyes so they were not noticed. When attention was brought to them it only brought sorrow and grief with it. It was in the quiet they planned and schemed and decided risk was better than none. They decided to run. Runners at least were given swift deaths at the gallows or before a firing squad.

The risk to those that ran before certain death if caught; was the chase. Those who ran and sought more, sought freedom elsewhere were hunted down like animals. Held out like prized game for all to see if caught.

If they escaped through the barricades there were the last borders. The borders of the Kingdoms were reinforced with soldiers on either side, some from the Evil King's Kingdom and others from the Kingdoms more lenient. The Evil King called these borders his wall. The villagers called them the gates that kept them inside their hellish prison. They were made to lock them away while they suffered and died.

The Evil King did not grant mercy. He did not grant quarter. He punished those who protected the traitors of his Kingdom. He sent armies of hundreds to retake a dozen villagers who escaped. The punishment for anyone who harbored runners like them: death, excruciating death for them and their family.

Running was a risk. A risk many of the starving villagers were willing to take. It was the safest risk they had available to them. Many would not survive another winter here. To those who starved to death and could do nothing to feed their families, running was a means of finding sanctuary. Sanctuary they could find either in death or beyond the borders of the Aurum Kingdom.

Even the Evil King had qualms about attacking King Midas' Kingdom. It was one of the few Kingdoms that remained willing to stand against the Evil King and his army. The Evil King commanded the largest the realm had ever seen. All men and women eligible to join the King's army often did. It was better to join the army then starve to death as a villager.

The Aurum Kingdom did not have as large an army by any means. Its army was half that of the Evil King's. What the Aurum Kingdom had was the loyalist of subjects; villager and bureaucrat alike, the fairest of laws, the promise of aide, the fiercest of warriors, the support of the Fae and far away Kingdoms the Evil King had never set foot upon the soil of. But what the Aurum Kingdom had, what they prided themselves above all else that kept the Evil King from breaching the borders with his massive army was: the Swan Queen.

If there was one person the Evil King feared could defeat him and erase all he had done, it was the Swan Queen. The Evil King feared all-out war with the Swan Queen and her allies. The woman was as powerful as the tyrannical King with greater a cause then his. The Swan Queen fought for her people. The Evil King fought for himself.

The Swan Queen promised the type of rule the people were accustomed to before the Evil King gained power. She would revitalize and restore what he had diminished and torn down.

Both monarchs were too hesitant to attempt a confrontation between their armed forces. So they used Guerrilla warfare. They undermined the other's authority. They formed bridges and treaties with other Kingdoms. They sent assassins, spies, and kidnapped enemy supporters. They drew battle lines and wiped them out of the sands they'd been drawn in before drawing new ones. For eleven long devastating years they had fought a silent war against the other. Each side losing and gaining ground as the seasons continued to pass.

The war between the Evil King and the Swan Queen arched as long as the Evil King's reign began, perhaps even before.

The Evil King stole rulership of the Kingdom he now called his own out from under the Swan Queen's nose. His underhanded tricks came with no declaration of war. No warning. He rose from the woodwork, strong, determined and dedicated to his cause: domination, dominion.

There hadn't been such a reign of terror since Regina the Evil Queen had seized control over the White Kingdom from Snow White and that had been several decades ago now.

By the time the Swan Queen realized what was happening in the underbelly of her own Kingdom it was too late. Her army and supporters were murdered in cold blood. Assassins had been sent to kill all those loyal to the fair Queen.

He hadn't even waited till the dark of night. The sun had been shining brightly over the expanse of the former White Kingdom when the ground became soaked with the blood of innocent men and women. It was as swift an overtaking as ever before. It had been done from the inside, leaving an easy ascension to the throne. An ascension the Swan Queen, then Princess, had been the rightful heir to and had been fighting to regain for the last eleven years.

It was with the promise of aiding the Swan Queen retake their once beloved Kingdom that many ran, promising to return to the families they left behind with aid, an army, one day that would once again shine light down on the once glorious White Kingdom.

Amongst the runners was a woman who saw a fallen child before her. He was only a few yards ahead of her. She had been left behind when she'd tripped up by the weeds. She had finally gained on her group of nearly twenty.

Groups weren't always safe. Some might say it was stupid to try and escape with a group but there was safety in numbers during a shift change. A group of ten could overpower one or two guards to break past the barricades. It was when the horse patrols chased after you that groups became a disadvantage. Groups were easily spotted.

Still the woman wasn't as heartless as some of those in front of her whom completely bypassed the boy. He was stumbling to his feet. He must have hit his head when he fell as he held his hand against it tightly. He was just moving up from his knees to his feet calling out for someone named "Emma" when she came upon him.

She didn't waste a moment. She hooked her arm under the boy's and hefted him to his feet. "Must keep moving boy." She instructed him through pants as she practically pulled-dragged him with her. She held him close to her side as she maneuvered them inside the pack of refugees. Better to be in the center then on the sides if the riders caught up to them.

The boy stumbled the first few steps but he was quick to follow after her. He seemed displaced as he looked all around them in the dark shadowy woods. He was groaning in pain but continued to run with her.

She wondered where his mother was. She had no children of her own, but she couldn't imagine his mother allowing him to fall so far behind her. Children often times got left behind, she'd heard stories, but never thought she'd see the devolution of humanity where a mother would abandon her son to his fate. A fate she probably forced on him by making him run, the choice never his to begin with.

"Emma…uh..where's Emma?" He asked his voice raspy. His voice held a bit of a whine to it. She couldn't see his face but she imagined it was covered in tears.

"Shh, we'll find your Emma soon." She promised. "Just a bit further. Keep on, child." She urged him as they neared the final barricade between them and freedom.

It was as the distance lessened between them and the third barricade that the riders came upon them and chaos broke out.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Henry wasn't sure where he was, what was going on, or where Emma or David or Neal were. He'd lost Emma when they were falling. He didn't know what they were falling down but he could only imagine it was similar to the rabbit hole that Alice fell down to make it to Wonderland. Or the portal that Emma and Mary Margaret fell into that brought them to the Enchanted Forest. He was just glad that they both fell into the same thing. That meant Emma had to be around here somewhere, didn't it?

He just wasn't sure. And part of him didn't care. About anything.

He woke up in the dark on the ground. Alone.

It was kind of like the woods in Storybrooke but he couldn't see the wishing well. The well was the first thing he looked for. Because his mom was still by the wishing well before he and Emma had fallen into…whatever it was they fell into.

Tears sprang to his eyes at the thought of his mother.

She was dead.

He didn't even know how. She just was. And it was his fault.

It was his consequence. He made a wish with magic and his mother had paid the price, his price.

His hands were filthy. Covered in dirt and blood and accountability. He'd tried to wipe it off on his clothes but that just made him dirtier, made him sadder.

Around him people were crying too. He wasn't the only one. There were a whole bunch of men and women and some kids. They were all packed into an old rusty caged wagon.

He knew when he saw the clothes the people around him wore and the horses the people who put them in the wagon rode that he wasn't in his world anymore. The men on horses were dressed as guards. Some of them wore armor while others wore capes. They all had weapons, bows and swords and daggers and axes. No guns, like Emma or David.

He wondered which world he was in. He knew there were a lot of different worlds. Not just the Enchanted Forest or Wonderland like the book talked about. The book mentioned there being a lot of doors to travel through inside Jefferson's hat. After all Dr. Whale came from another world then the three Henry knew existed.

Without anyone with him to help figure things out he was left with questions, a lot of questions and no answers. He wasn't even sure he wanted answers. Not by the way he'd arrived here, wherever here was.

He just wanted his mom. He wanted her to hold him and make everything better to kiss the top of his head and make him feel safe and loved. Like he'd felt before she had fallen. The whole world around them was shaking and falling apart but he'd felt protected, safe in her arms. Then it all fell apart. And she didn't know. She didn't know just how much he loved her. How much he already missed her and how he needed her in his life. She didn't know. That made him cry harder.

The lady that helped him back in the woods sat next to him. Her hand was shaking as she gripped his knee. She had offered a watery smile when they were corralled into the wagon. The men on horses yelling and pushing the group he'd been pulled into. The men on horseback hurt the 'peasants'. They used their swords to cut them. He tried to forget the sight of the swords swinging down to cut the people. Blood had splashed on his face when the man to his right had been cut. He'd wiped it away and the sight of black and red on his hands set him off.

He'd started to panic. His heart had raced against his chest so fast he was afraid it was going to burst right out of his body. He wouldn't need anyone to try and grab it from his chest; it'd pop out on request. His hands had started to shake and breathing was hard. Almost as hard as it was the time he'd had an allergic reaction to strawberries. This time his mom wasn't going to run to his rescue though.

He was scared. More scared then he'd ever been in his life. Was this what his dah—Neal felt like? Was this how scared he was when he was pulled into a world he didn't understand? Had Emma felt like this when she finally started to believe in the magic all around her? Had his mom felt like this when she came to their world? Had she felt as alone and scared as he did now when she lost her mom, no matter how evil?

He didn't know how to be brave here. He'd wanted to be the hero in his own story more than anything for a long time but now that he had the chance he'd failed. He hadn't saved anyone. He'd started out with good intentions. He'd wanted to stop his mom from hurting Mary Margaret so that everyone could be happy. Now all he wanted to do was take it back. He just wanted to forget this ever happened. He was no hero. He hadn't saved anyone.

He tried to forget the blood on his hands and smeared on his face. He still felt sick to his stomach and he'd only just gotten his breathing under control. The tears were steady streams, starting and stopping whenever they pleased.

The wagon jerked as it came to a stop and a start. The movement made him nauseous.

"Sleep now, child." Henry wasn't sure he could sleep. The whimpering noises all around him put him on edge. The cramped cage was uncomfortable and stuffy and his mind wouldn't stop circling around and around.

He wondered about things. How could he be a hero now when he felt like a villain?

How did he become brave? What was he supposed to do now? He was locked up in a cage like in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang with the kid catcher except there were adults locked in here with him too.

Where were they going? They were traveling somewhere, but where? Why had they been put in this cage? He hadn't done anything. At least anything that these people would know about.

Why had the guards just come and taken them all and killed those others? They hadn't even warned them about doing something wrong. The guards just rode up and started hurting people. Guards weren't supposed to do that. Were they? It didn't make any sense.

Where was Emma? Did she get sent to a different world then him? Or was she here trying to find him? Was she with Neal and David? Had they all been put in the same place? Was he the only one to be left alone? What was he supposed to do? His mom was dead and he'd made a wish without finishing it. He hadn't been specific. Mr. Gold said to be specific and he'd been stopped, his mom had interrupted him.

For a moment he was angry with her for arriving when she did, his hands clenched at his side and he glared at the darkness across from him. If she had just been a few seconds later then none of this would have happened. He could have finished making his wish and they'd all be happy.

The wagon jerked and he felt sick again. How could he be angry with her? It was his fault she was dead. He should be angry with himself, not her. He dropped his head into his knees and cried again. The woman's hand sifted through his hair to try and comfort him, but it wouldn't help. He was responsible for his mother's death. He wasn't a hero. He was a murderer, and murderers never got their happy ending.

He'd only be a hero, and deserve a happy ending if he could save his mom. Could he find a way to do that? There had to be a way didn't there? Maybe he just needed to find her true love. If he could find her true love then they could save her. That was it! He needed to get back home so he could kiss his mom's forehead. Just like Emma kissed his. He could be her true love. He could love her truly enough to make her better. That way he'd save her, he'd be a hero, and they'd all have their happy endings, because he couldn't have his happy ending without his mom.

As he thought of ways to travel to different worlds so he could get home and save his mom his eyes closed on their own accord and he fell into a fitful sleep.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Henry blinked, groggy as he heard noises.

"The King will display you all for show. Make an example of you lawbreakers."

People around him were moving. The cage was rattling like weight was being shifted from side to side. The metal groaned and people shouted while others cried in fear and pain. His eyes opened as someone's foot kicked him in the side. He groaned in pain. The pain made him wake up faster, become more aware quicker.

"Come boy, get up."

Henry followed the woman's instructions as she helped him down from the cage.

"What's going on?" Henry asked as he looked around him. Several yards away from him was a large brick wall that was as tall as the clock tower back in Storybrooke.

There were wooden houses and huts and people with carts and horses all around them, passing them by as if they weren't even there. The guards surrounded them, keeping them in a circle of sorts, trapped.

"We're going to die, that's what's going on kid." A bruised and battered man who was sickly looking he was so thin, spat at him.

Henry cringed and drew away from him. The woman who'd helped him in the woods pulled him closer to her side and glared at the man. Now that it was light out he could make out her face. She was just as thin as the man who'd grumbled at him. He could practically see the bones of her arms she was so malnutritioned.

"This is it. He's going to kill us." Someone said to his right.

Henry looked to the woman to ask her who he was, but his question died on his lips when the guards came towards him menacingly. He froze as they grabbed his arm, yanking him forward. He didn't move, hardly even breathed as they tied his hands up with rope.

When the burly guards stepped away he stared down at the worn binding. He felt a pull on the rope as the guards tied the woman behind him and those behind her together. They were all shoved to make a straight single file line, just like in kindergarten. Except this wasn't as fun because the people around him were crying and seemed defeated in a way he'd only ever seen once before.

Even with death looming over the people around him the only one to fight the guards off as best he could was the man that'd been gruff with Henry. He was thrashing against the guards, threw himself against their arms to try and break past them, he didn't get far. He was being dragged back by his foot and hauled to his feet as Henry watched, unblinking.

Henry was grateful when a female guard three times the size and muscle mass of the woman behind him—whose name he still hadn't gotten—turned him to look forward.

Henry didn't see what happened. By the sickening sounds coming from the man's dying lips he didn't want to see what'd happened. Then the agonized sound stopped and his heart was racing once again. It hurt as it pounded roughly against his chest. His eyes gazed every which way as he began to panic.

He was going to die. He couldn't die. He needed to save his mom. He needed to become a hero. He needed to get away from here.

He was pulled forward by the rope around his wrists. The thick scratchy thread cut into his skin as he stumbled to follow after the people in front of him. He tried to pull his arms into himself as tight as he could to become as small as possible, but he couldn't.

As he followed after the people in front of him he looked around them. They were being led into a castle. A real castle!

He craned his neck up as far back as he could to see to the top of the castle tower but it was too big and he was already being pulled inside. The sky above the castle tower was covered in grey clouds. The air was heavy. It looked like a storm was coming.

They were lead through the halls of the castle, pushed up against the wall to allow those who worked in the castle to move freely around them. This wasn't anything like he thought it would be. Coming to a world like the Enchanted Forest—if this was a world like the Enchanted Forest—was supposed to be completely different. The first time he ever stepped foot into a castle was supposed to be his grandparent's castle. He was supposed to be welcomed as a Prince. Not as a prisoner.

Two large doors were opened and the twenty or so people tied to one another were led into a large hall with brick and stone pillars, the ceiling taller than any building in Storybrooke. He snapped his head down to look in front of him when one of the guards walked by him, checking and tightening his rope.

"Stand tall and await judgment for your crimes." A chancellor of some sort spoke from the throne.

The other prisoners were starting to cry once again but none tried to escape. They all knew the consequences of those actions.

Henry met the kind woman's eyes who'd helped him back in the woods. She had tears falling from her eyes but when she looked at him she tried to regain some courage. He appreciated her attempt.

The sound of a door opening somewhere in the hall and the introduction of a King Derrick of the White Kingdom boomed through the room.

Henry's eyes widened, White Kingdom? This was his grandparent's castle?

It couldn't be, could it? Who was King Derrick? He didn't recall any family members named Derrick from the book or the stories that Mary Margaret and David told her. His grandfather's name was Leopold and before Leopold there was King Richard. So who was Derrick and why was he ruling over his family's Kingdom as King?

Henry watched as a man who wore a golden crown glided through the room towards the raised throne. His clothes were covered in jewels and embellishments made of the finest threads. Henry couldn't help but stare. The King looked familiar. He wasn't very tall for a man, maybe 5'8 or 5'9. He had wide shoulders, was muscular and had choppy dirty blonde hair and dark green eyes. He almost looked like David except different. Henry watched King Derrick very carefully, trying to piece together what made him look like David and what didn't. Movement just behind the King caught Henry's eye.

There was a dancing grey skinned man at the King's side that as Henry looked closer, immediately recognized. Even with the grey scaly skin and the manic smile, Henry would recognize Mr. Gold anywhere.

Except, he wasn't Mr. Gold anymore. No, this was Rumpelstiltskin, just like in his book. But what was he doing here? Was this really the Enchanted Forest? If it was where were his other grandparents? And Emma? Who was Derrick and why was the White Kingdom rounding up people and killing them like this?

What world had he fallen into that his grandparents Kingdom wasn't ruled by his grandparents or Emma but by a King Derrick who seemed to trust Rumpelstiltskin?

"It has come to my attention that you lot have broken the cardinal rule of my Kingdom." Derrick's voice was a deep baritone that moved through the room into the high ceiling as it echoed around them. Derrick seemed displeased as he shook his head sadly at the group gathered before him. "Have I not been a generous King? A fair King? I only ask that you follow my directives."

Henry heard someone scuff at the King's description of himself. King Derrick must have heard it as well because his eyes zeroed in on the woman who'd been unimpressed with his lies. King Derrick gestured to a guard who then moved towards a set of women who stood beside each other, one of which had 'insulted' the King.

Henry was too busy trying to see what became of the women to notice how Rumpelstiltskin stared at him for a few moments too long.

The imp tilted his head to the side as if considering something as he stared at the young boy amongst the crowd of law breakers. He scratched at his chin as he slithered away from the dais so he could move behind the group, his focus still upon the boy.

Derrick watched as Rumpelstiltskin appraised the group, knowing the imp saw something of importance in one or two particular prisoners. It wasn't often the dark mage circled the ensnared commoners like a stalking tiger did its prey. Derrick attempted to see what his Advisor did, but saw nothing but raggedy looking commoners who would soon meet their deaths.

Ignoring his Advisor's odd behavior Derrick addressed the prisoners once again.

"You have been found guilty of treason. Guards!" Derrick called out, and every guard within hearing distance stood at attention. "What is the punishment for treason?"

The Guards answered in unison, "Death!"

"See to it then. Hang the heads of the men along the borders to deter any others from seeking out their fate and feed the bodies to the wolves."

Henry gasped as his eyes widened at the King's punishment. This isn't how things were supposed to go. There was supposed to be a trial where people were found guilty! He'd seen it on TV. His mom was a lawyer or a fake lawyer and there was something called due progress or something that kept people from being found guilty without a trial.

"And the women Sire?" The Captain of the guard asked while his men held firm to the grip they had on the prisoner's rope. Some of those men sentenced to death uneasy with their fates. It was one thing to know death was on the near horizon it was another to hear it decreed so heartlessly.

Derrick seemed to ponder the fate of the many whimpering females. "That one!" He pointed to the woman next to Henry. "Keep her." His eyes were glazed as he stared at the woman whose tears had stopped and shoulders were back with her head held high, she had gumption. He liked a woman with a bit of fight in her. It was almost that much more entertaining when he broke her. "Burn the rest." He commented offhandedly, waving his hand through the air, bored already.

Henry nearly fell over when the people attached to his rope began pulling savagely at their bindings. The guards were separating the men and the women. And two came over to take the woman who'd saved him from the rest of them.

When the guard cut the rope that held him to the women on either side of him he lashed out, his fists still tied up as he body checked the unsuspecting guard, knocking him over.

"Leave her alone!" Henry yelled at the fallen guard, putting himself between the woman and the growing contingent of soldiers.

The woman's eyes widened as she watched the boy put himself between armed guards and herself. Her eyes traveled quickly from King Derrick, the guards, before resting on the boy. Her heart lurching inside her chest at the bravery the child held and the loyalty he exhibited towards her.

Henry's heart pounded against his chest as his eyes looked from one armed assailant to the next. He was outnumbered and he had nothing to protect himself with. There was just something inside him that told him he couldn't let the King have his savoir. He needed to protect her.

Behind the ruckus Henry caused the other prisoners were led out of the hall while Henry pushed himself and the woman back until they'd hit the wall, trapping them. The woman looking helplessly from Henry to Derrick and then the guards. Her appealing gaze lost to the King as his attention was grabbed by the imp.

Rumpelstiltskin made good use of this commotion. He approached behind King Derrick and whispered into the King's ear.

"Allow me to keep the boy."

Derrick's eyes widened, his gaze snapping to the boy in question and Grace, back to his advisor. "Why?" The King questioned.

Rumpelstiltskin's eyes darkened as he glared at the impetuous King. The magic that touched Derrick's skin caused him to shiver and bow his head in contrition, but only for a moment, and just the slightest bit. He was still King. Rumpelstiltskin served him. He was now the master, not the student.

"Very well. Take the boy." Derrick looked away from Rumple quickly, "Save him yourself. I will not appear weak."

Rumple grinned, rubbing his hands together. "Gladly."

Rumple disappeared from Derrick's side with a silent transportation. Once the mage was gone Derrick turned back to see Lieutenant Thomas still upon the floor. The boy's elbow having caught him in the groin.

"Thomas, have you been bested by an infant?" The King questioned with a sneer as he watched one of his better guards quickly make his way to his feet as he continued to cringe.

"No, Majesty." He growled as he pushed his way to the front of the group surrounding the boy and the woman he stood between. "I'm going to take great pleasure in killing you boy, just so your mother can watch."

Thomas stepped forward menacingly, a dagger pulled out from his belt.

"Ah, ah, ah…" Rumpelstiltskin put himself between Henry and Thomas, an eerie grin upon his face. "The boy is mine."

Rumpelstiltskin put his hand upon Henry's shoulder and disappeared, leaving the woman to fend for herself against the oncoming guards.

Henry thrashed against Rumple's grip as soon as they appeared somewhere. His head was light, dizzy. He'd never 'poofed' somewhere before. It was just as jarring as falling into a portal. His stomach was twisted as he fell to his knees, his legs weak.

"Hmm…" Rumple hummer as he watched Henry try and crawl away from him.

"Stay away! I won't make any more deals!" Or wishes, Henry thought as he crawled towards the damp stone wall. He slowly pulled himself up using the stone. He tried not to think about how slimy it was as he did. After all his own hands were still a filthy, gory, mess.

Rumple's eyes brightened, frightening Henry. The boy knew who he was and what he could offer. What caught the imp's attention was the boys insistence that he wouldn't make 'any more' deals. The implication behind the statement sweet to the mage's taste buds.

"You are a desperate soul. I can help you find what you've lost or gain what you've never had. You just need agree."

"No!" Henry shook his head, realizing too late that doing so would only make him feel sicker. He swallowed to keep himself from getting sick. "No." He whispered as he finally looked around the room he'd been brought to. It wasn't a room per say. It was a cell, another cage. It looked like the dungeons that his mom had put Prince Charming into before Snow had bitten into the apple from his book.

The thought of his mom instantly made his eyes water as he tried to remain strong and brave.

"You're evil here." And maybe Rumpelstiltskin was evil in Storybrooke too, and he'd never seen it because he was too focused on how evil his mom was and how cool it was to have another grandpa.

"Here?" Rumple giggled with excitement, dancing a little gig as he fluttered his fingers extravagantly. "You're not from, here, are you boy?"

Henry's eyes widened suddenly. He thought about what he'd said and what he hadn't and realized he had said too much. He'd never been very good at keeping himself quiet. He always felt he needed to prove he wasn't as dump or stupid or blind as people thought he was, like his mom thought he was. He knew, he'd known for a long time exactly who she was. Then again, as he looked at how evil Rumple was and how different he was in Storybrooke, maybe his mom wasn't evil. At least not as evil as he thought, because the woman she was in his book wasn't the same woman who'd raised him.

The Evil Queen certainly wasn't the one who would stay up with him rubbing his tummy and his back when he had a stomach virus or hold a wash cloth to his head when he felt hot or had a headache. The woman in his book was much darker and would have liked to see him or anyone in pain. His mom was different. She always had been, he just hadn't realized it until now. Until it was too late.

"Oh, don't be so frightened boy. I knew the moment I saw you that you weren't from here." Rumple explained as he stared at Henry. Around Henry were bright streams of light that only a trained eye could catch. They were ripples that crashed around him while others expanded from within him. He didn't belong here. He was out of synch with this world and the 'ether' where his magic and magic in this world came from recognized that and showed itself with the tides of ripples that didn't meld together.

"Don't be shy, boy! I may be willing to help you—ah" Rumple stopped Henry from commenting seeing the boy open his mouth to say no, to refuse him before he'd even pleaded his case. He hated that in customers. "—for free."

"You never do anything for free." Henry spoke knowingly. It always served his purposes. Even when Rumple gave him the coin he did it to pay off his debt to his mom. Though now that Henry thought about it, which mom had Mr. Gold meant? Hadn't he known something like this would happen? He could see the future and the past after all. Had Mr. Gold wanted his mom to die and for him to disappear with Emma and David?

No, no he couldn't, could he? He'd lost Neal all over again, Neal was pulled into the portal with them too. Could that be it? Neal was here as well, somewhere—at least so Henry thought—and here in this world Rumple had all his magic and power unlike while in Storybrooke where magic was different and he was weaker. So was that it? Was this Rumpelstiltskin's plan all along? To have Henry make this wish so that Neal would be brought to him in the Enchanted Forest while he was still all powerful? If there was one thing that Rumple loved more than his son it was power.

"You seem so sure."

"I am sure! You always get something out of it. Always. Even if it doesn't seem like you do, you do. You always win in the end."

A cloud passed over Rumpelstiltskin's face for a moment, his eyes peering off into space. Henry wondered what he was thinking about.

When Rumple finally snapped out of his daze he peered angrily at Henry, suddenly no longer willing to play games.

"If I cannot convince you now, perhaps a few days in this cell will help you understand your situation." His voice was grave the sound of it evil.

Henry's eyes widened, looking around the cell in horror, "What? No!" Henry tried to grab onto Rumple but the imp was already gone, leaving him alone in the darkening cell, the only light coming from the torches outside the iron bars. "No! No, let me out! Let me out!" He had to find Emma, and David, and Neal. He couldn't stay here. He had to find a way to save his mom! He had to help the woman; the King was going to hurt her.

He grabbed onto the bars and tried to shake them. They didn't budge even as his whole body moved forward and back with the effort he exerted in his escape attempt. He stopped what felt like hours later when his throat was sore from all the yelling and his arms straggly from the yanking he'd done.

He peered through the opening in the bars and looked right and left. There weren't any guards as far as he could see but there were dozens of other cells like his. He fell onto the floor in huff as close to the bars as he could get. He dropped his head into his knees as he pulled them up to his chest. Hiding away as best he could.

"Finally! I thought you'd never shut up." Henry knew that voice.

"Leave him alone, shortstuff!" Grumpy! It was Leroy, but his Enchanted Forest alter ego-Grumpy! "He's just a kid." And that voice, he'd recognize that anywhere one too!

"Annoying is what he is, fleebag." Red, the woman in the cell was Ruby! "Not like his screaming done anythin' but give me a headache."

"Give him a break; he just had to deal with the Crocodile."

"Yeah, better him then us."

"You're just pissy because you missed your anniversary with one of those flying twits."

"Bet your fur covered hide I am, sister."

"Red? Grumpy?" Henry sat up onto his knees as he tried to look out the bars again to the left where both voices were coming from.

"Shit, another spy?" The two bickering adults stopped suddenly, "Who are you?" Grumpy asked, both realizing they hadn't said their names aloud. The kid shouldn't have known.

"He's just a child, and you heard the Crocodile. He wants something from him. He can't be a spy."

"Yeah, well did you see the Croc leave his cell or arrive with him? Could just be magic! Another trick." Grumpy was instantly suspicious.

"No, I heard him, he thinks the kids not from here." Of course Red could have heard their conversation the cells were wide open in front and the hallway was wide enough and made of stone that it would echo even without her wolf hearing aiding her.

Henry could imagine Grumpy rolling his eyes, "What's that translate to in normal people speak exactly?"

"How am I supposed to know?"

"Well you're the People Eaters bitch, I figured you'd know."

"Damn it, Grumpy! Don't call them that!"

"Aww, have I hurt your feelings, puppy?"

Red growled loud enough that Henry could hear her, even inside his cell.

Henry must have made a sound or done something because suddenly their attention was back on him again.

"What's your name kid?" Grumpy was the one to ask him something again.

"Henry. My name's Henry."

Grumpy whispered something soft enough that Henry couldn't hear him but he could hear Red's negative 'no' as a response.

"Alright then, Henry, how did you know our names?" Grumpy's voice was rougher than normal, almost like he was trying to be as intimidating as he could without actually seeing Henry or Henry seeing him.

"Lucky guess?" Henry said unsure if he should tell them how he knew them. Would they believe him if he said.

"Damn lucky guess." Red muttered with a nervous chuckle.

"Too lucky." Grumpy gruffly replied. "Tell us the truth kid."

"I, I am. I, my name's Henry. I swear!" Henry didn't know why they'd find his name so unbelievable. "Henry Mills."

"Mills?"

"You're a miller's son?" Red asked. Red was gentler in her interrogation.

"Uh, yes." He figured he was the great grandson of a miller, so that had to count, didn't it?

"Oh horse shit!"

"Grumpy!"

"What!?"

"Can you at least pretend to be civilized?"

Grumpy huffed, obviously not dignifying that question with a response.

"Henry, Miller's son, why was the Crocodile so interested in you, hmm?"

"Crocodile?"

"Oh for the love-ah, the imp. The scaly beast you were chatting with moments before!"

"Rumpelstiltskin?" Henry asked, finding it odd that they'd call Mr. Gold a crocodile. His skin looked more like a snake's skin then a crocodile's. Though as Henry thought about it, that could be an accurate description as well. Both were scaly looking.

"Shhhhh! Jeeze, kid you don't say his name! Don't you know anything?" Grumpy stated impatiently.

"Just, what did he want from you?" Red asked trying to ignore Grumpy.

Henry could just make out Red's fingers wrapped around the iron bars of her cell, three cells down from Henry's. Grumpy was probably in the one next to Henry or the one closest to Red, which seemed odd. If they were his prisoners he wouldn't put them so close together unless he had something else planned.

"He wanted me to make a deal with him."

"What kind of deal?" Grumpy's voice wasn't as stern as it had been. He almost seemed genuinely curious now. "You didn't make one did ya?"

"No! Never again."

"Again?" Red questioned before Grumpy could. "You've made a deal with him before?"

"Kinda…" Henry sighed, thinking back to the coin that had helped get him here in the first place. "It was a mistake, an accident. I didn't mean for anything bad to happen. I just wanted to help my family." Henry grew desperate for Grumpy and Red to understand why he'd done what he had. He needed someone to tell him it was okay—as okay as it could be. He didn't mean it. Even though it was his fault he needed someone to tell him that they understood that they didn't blame him as much as he blamed himself.

Red frowned in her cell; even Grumpy did at the sound of despair lacing the boy's voice. Red could practically smell the sorrow on him, as well as the blood. She wondered if it was his, his family's or someone else's.

"He's tricky like that…" Red didn't know what else she could say. She didn't know the boy's story. She didn't know what had happened to his family when he'd only sought to help them. She could only imagine how horrifying it had been, just like it had been for countless others.

"A soulless trickster is what he is." Grumpy added, angry, but on behalf of the child the imp had taken advantage of. If he wasn't a spy. If Henry was a spy, another of the mage's apprentices in disguise, then he'd kill whoever it was himself. He was tired of being fooled and tricked. He wouldn't put anything passed the Crocodile and his bastard King.

"So you said no. He didn't seem happy about that." Red tried to get them back on topic. They needed answers. They needed to know what Rumpelstiltskin was up to now that he was making deals with children. He'd never stooped so low as to go after children before, even that was a line he hadn't crossed. He'd let children die at the order of his King but he'd never tricked a child into making a deal that cost the lives of his or her family. If Rumpelstiltskin was escalating their rebellion was going to face a great deal of difficulty matching him.

"No, he, he wants my help. But I won't help him. He's evil. I'm not evil. I'm good. I am."

Red winced, knowing Henry's personal attempt well. She often had to convince herself she was good, that her past deeds didn't make her evil, that it was what she did knowingly that counted and made her good. "I believe you, kid." Red admitted, softly hoping to ease some of the boy's pain. As much as she could, every little bit helped. She would know.

Grumpy opened his mouth to say something to the other two when the guards came back into the hall and banged their swords on each of their cages.

"Away from the bars. No talking." They ordered as they went by each cell.

Henry was quick to move so his back was flush up against the back of the cell as far away from the guards as possible. He knew what happened to people who didn't listen to those guards. He was sad though because even though Grumpy argued with the guards for a little while he stopped after an hour or so, leaving Henry alone with his thoughts and nothing more. Lately his thoughts were scarier than ever.

Everything was shaking. The ground and the air itself seemed to move from side to side and back and forth. It wouldn't stop. Everything was moving and it was hard to stand. Right as he felt like he was about to fall someone grabbed him and wrapped their arm around him. They whispered, "I've got you." It was a promise. They wouldn't let him fall. They wouldn't let him go. He was safe in their arms. The world could continue to move and shake and flip upside down but so long as their arms were around him, everything would be okay.

There was a lot of noise and people were screaming, someone familiar was screaming for him, and for the person that kept him anchored. They were angry and scared and confused. Everything was just so confusing, but it would be okay. Everything would be okay because they had him, held him tight.

Until they didn't. Their arms fell away. Something warm splashed against his face everything around him turning red, dripping it down from the sky itself like a bucket of paint was thrown on a beautifully painted landscape. Then things went black and there were flashing lights of color. Some were white and others were green and brown and blue, like something was trying to come through. But couldn't.

His hands felt wet and sticky and he tried to wipe it away on his pants but it only made it worse. Suddenly he was being pulled away. Tugged around the mid-section flying up into the nothingness around him as he reached out blindly for the slowly dripping red paint that began to take shape of a figure, a woman, lying upon a the ground. Around him a loud 'bang' filled the deafening silence and echoed in his ears over and over and over again.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

And then something slumped forward and the arms holding him were gone. They were gone and he was alone and being pulled away while staring at the red broken figure just out of reach.

Henry screamed as warm arms wrapped around him and breath ghosted across his ear, whispering a broken promise: "I've got you."

"No, no, no. Mom!"

"Henry….Henry. Henry!"

Henry's eyes shot open at the sound of his name being called. For a moment he thought he saw his mother standing in front of him staring at him oddly. She was starting to fade away before his eyes. She was dressed in funny clothes, a ragged dress with messy hair. She seemed confused as she stared at him but her arm was outstretched towards him. Her lips moved, sounding out his name, 'Henry'. But he couldn't hear her and she was fading, he could see through her now but could just make out her outline.

He reached out slowly to try and take a hold of her hand but just as his fingers 'touched' hers, she disappeared completely. She was nothing more than a mirage.

He sniffled, choking back his tears as he pulled his knees up to her chest and rocked back and forth.

Bang!

Henry's head shot up, the sound from his dream echoing loudly around him, making the ground beneath him tremble.

He jumped up to his feet as the sound of swords connecting echoed around him. Something was happening.

The castle was under attack.

Henry heard the jingle of keys and then a key turning a lock. He rushed to the iron bars of his cell and saw several cloaked figures opening Grumpy's cell, Red's already open. The rescuers were handing Red her cloak, which she put on as soon as she was handed it. His eyes widened, they were being broken out. The bangs must have been some kind of weapon because as he looked down the hallway there was still smog covering the area.

"Come on, let's go! We don't have much time." One of the hooded figures ordered as three others stood guard around the former prisoners.

"Wait!" Red objected to leaving, "Give me the keys."

"What?" They questioned, obviously confused. "Why?"

"Just give me the keys." Red grabbed the keys from her hooded rescuer and came towards Henry's cell. He smiled. He had just been about to plead to let him go with them. Red came right up to his cell and opened it. "Come on, Henry." She opened the cell door and held her hand out to him.

He smiled and raced to grab onto her hand, hardly paying attention to the objections that were ringing out from the group that'd come to save the two prisoners.

"I'm not taking that kid!"

"He's a spy!"

"He's just a boy."

"We can fight about this later. After we get out of the castle grounds. We'll drop him off on our way." Red promised those around her.

The group turned to one of their comrades for an answer. They wore a black cape with their hood up just like the rest of the rescuers, but they were obviously the leader. Henry wondered if it was Snow.

They waved their hand, indicating that they should all get moving. Since it wasn't an objection Henry smiled and followed after them, moving as fast as he could.

"Stick close, kid." Red ordered as she kept Henry as close to her side as she could.

Grumpy was given a weapon, his pick ax and he took up the rear. The group of three in front, and two behind him and Red cut through any of the guards that tried to stop them on their way through the halls. The guards didn't stand a chance. There were only ever one or two guards that got in their way, surprising Henry. Those bangs had been very loud and there were over a dozen guards that had held him and his group when they were tied up. So where were they? Why were there only two or three coming out at a time? Was it a trap?

Just as Henry was thinking it was a trap they came upon a hallway that one of the fighters promised would lead to the smithies. It was empty for about thirty feet, but at the end of it there were over a dozen guards rushing towards them and several more standing behind them, bows drawn.

They released a volley of arrows and Henry gasped, there was nowhere to go to hide from the deadly weapons. Red put herself between the arrows and him. He squeezed his eyes closed, his fist tightening into Red's cloak. He felt a tingling sensation against his palm as he held tightly to her. With his eyes closed he missed how one of their rescuers dropped their cape to reveal Nova.

The fairy was just as tall as the rest of them but as she dropped her cape sparkling wings appeared and the wand in her hand glowed with her magic. The air around them warmed as the winds began blowing against their backs towards their assailants.

The arrows that flew towards them turned to flower petals with a flick of her wand and the wind blowing at their backs grew stronger and stronger until it became as strong as a stone wall. It broke apart around them before slamming back together. It crashed against the charging guards, knocking them over and plowing through them, creating an escape route.

"Run!" Nova ordered as she waved the rest of them through, Henry's eyes widening at the sight of her and the magic she was capable of as he and Red flew down the hallway—Red practically carrying him with one arm as she held all the guards pressed immobile against the castle walls.

Once they reached the end of the hall Nova appeared at their side, transporting. She waved them to the right down a different hallway.

"Damn!" A cloaked figured cursed as they ran down this hallway, obviously it wasn't the one they'd wanted. Still, it was their only choice.

Henry was clueless to the layout of the castle, having only seen some of it in his book and not enough to know how to escape while being perused. He wondered how his grandfather did it so easily when it was taking so much effort from six talented individuals to escape.

Henry was out of breath, his heart racing in his chest as he followed the group out into a semi-open courtyard where many of the castle workers parted at the sight of the fleeing prisoners, none willing to risk their lives to stop them.

"Almost there Henry." Red promised as they made it to the outside of the castle, the stone floor or tile or cobblestone or whatever it was, now rocky dirt that kicked up dust as they ran.

It was funny what Henry did notice as they ran. He noticed above them the moon was full and bright as it fought to be seen through thick cloud cover. He noticed that there weren't many commoners outside but there were a lot of guards rushing towards their locations. He noticed what it sounded like to hear someone release an arrow and feel it whiz by just to his right or left or above him, Red ducking to keep from being hit. He noticed how the weapons of the 'good guys' dripped with blood and how their blades shined in the moonlight. Their black cloaks otherwise making them appear invisible in the darkness.

Henry felt like he was dreaming as their group made it to where there were six horses waiting for them. "Cut their ties!" Someone ordered and one of the cloaked figures sliced the rope that held the horses to their posts, these were obviously not the horses that the group had come with.

They were stealing horses. The good guys were stealing. But it was from the bad guys so that still made it okay, didn't it?

He didn't have much time to analyze his thoughts. Red was tossing him up onto the horse's saddle and jumping up behind him. Thank goodness he knew how to ride. He grabbed onto the lower part of the reins as one of Red's arms wrapped around his waist and pulled him against her as she spurred the horse on.

She kicked her shins against the horses' sides and they were off. Someone screamed behind them but Red didn't even stop to look who it was. Henry did. And he noticed that one of the cloaked figures had an arrow sticking out of their back and they were falling from the horse to the ground, the horse still running to keep up with the other four. Guards were on the fallen figure immediately. Henry's heart was in his throat as he tried to convince himself to say something, to tell the others to go back and get their fallen comrade, but he couldn't. He couldn't say anything.

"Hurry!" Someone screamed, making Henry look forward again.

Henry gasped as he saw the draw bridge of the castle coming down; they were going to be trapped inside. The horses started galloping faster and faster so that they just made it under the draw bridge trapping the guards inside the castle gates as they continued to ride into the night.

As the group continued farther and farther away from the castle their hoods fell away from their heads, the wind pushing it off as they urged their stolen horses to continue forward. One hood blew back to reveal short spikey dark hair, a pierced ear, Henry recognized his profile. Hook. Captain Hook.

Nova was already riding without beside Grumpy and they'd lost a rider back inside the gates that Henry didn't know the identity of. That left one more rider, the one at the head of their formation leading the way towards the forest. Henry willed the wind to blow that hood back so he could see who was leading this group, to see if he was right and it was Snow White but his body was exhausted and couldn't wait much longer.

Henry's heart pounded against his chest so hard it hurt. He could hardly breathe either and the air he was getting in was cold and sharp on its way into his lungs, making his chest ache more.

It was all just too much and as the group made it into the forest and someone said, "We're safe." He passed out in Red's arms, the dark night around them becoming darker as his lost consciousness.

End Chapter One

(Edited May 2014)