Once Upon a Dream:

Page 23: Beans and Much-Needed Conversations:

That night, Gold's date with "Lacey" went from awkward to terrible when he found her kissing Keith, who was the sheriff of Nottingham back in the Enchanted Forest, by the dumpsters. Meanwhile, Regina, who was suspicious of Emma and hurt by Dream's words, waited by Granny's when she saw Anton and the dwarves getting out of the back of David's pick-up truck while he sat up front with Mary Margaret.

"Sure, you don't want to grab some grub with us? Tiny's buying." Leroy said, walking up to David's door. "I am?" Anton asked, making Leroy look at him. "New guy always buys," Leroy said, making David and Mary Margaret smirk.

"No, you guys go ahead. We're gonna... We're gonna head on home. See you tomorrow." David said when the dwarves and Anton waved, heading towards the diner.

"But I don't have any money... No, really--" Anton said to Leroy while David drove off.

Regina watched them leave before walking into the middle of the empty road. She bent down, placing her hand on the street, using magic to show David's tire tracks. She got in her car, following them out to the empty field. She pulled over, getting out to see why they were out by a vacant lot. She looked around, confused, until she kept walking, waving her hand to reveal the bean field. Magic beans? Regina walked over, picking one of the bean pods before taking a graft to her office and destroying the rest of the area.

"Hey, Dream?" Neal asked when he saw Dream walking over to him, Tamara, and Henry. Tamara was making a phone call while Henry was on the playground. "Hey, Neal..." Dream smiled when she walked over with her hands in her pockets.

"You seem upset; what's wrong?" Neal asked when he moved down the bench to let Dream sit.

"Can we talk about something?" Dream asked when Neal nodded. "So, you don't have any magic powers, do you?" Dream asked, making Neal chuckle at her.

"No... No, I don't. Why?" Neal asked with a little chuckle.

"I don't know... I feel like I'm just out of place. You know... This whole finding out about Gold being my dad... And then, my mom lied to me. Then my grandmother and Hook... I just--"

"You feel lost? Like you have no one who understands..." Neal said when Dream nodded, sighing as she looked over to Henry.

"I think Henry is the only one who understands, but then, again... It's just different. I mean, I feel like I have this pain building up and don't know what to do." Dream shrugged when Neal moved to pat her thigh. "I get it... When Dad turned into the Dark One, he did it to save me from going to the ogre war. But I lost the father that I knew. He became obsessed with power. And I lost my mother..." Neal sighed when he paused for a moment.

"Milah, right?" 

"Yeah... Well, I was angry at him. Then, the anger just grew when he went back on a deal to leave the Enchanted Forest, which is how I ended up in this world." Neal sighed when Dream nodded, looking down at her bracelet. "So, how do you control your angry feeling toward Dad?" Dream asked when she looked back up at him. "Can't say... I've had many years to replay that moment in my mind. Asking why he left me... But you seem to have a closer relationship with your mom, from what Henry and Emma have told me." Neal said when Dream nodded.

"Yeah... But I can't trust her. She lied to me for nineteen years and kept things from me. But she's my mom... So, I have to forgive her, right?"

"Yeah, it seems like the right thing." Neal shrugged when Dream sighed, looking over at Henry before looking back at Neal. "Did you ever forgive your mom? You know, for leaving you for a new life?" Dream asked when Neal moved in his seat, uncomfortable. "I'm sorry... I did not mean--" Dream went to apologize, but Neal stopped her.

"No. It's okay. I actually haven't forgiven her. But, you know, that was a long time ago... And you just got to find things to get your mind off of the things that cause you the pain and anger... Like love... and the family that did not disappoint you." Neal shrugged when Dream nodded, moving to hug her big brother. "Thanks..." Dream smiled when Neal hugged her back. 

"Anytime... It's what brothers do." Neal smiled as they finally got a big sibling bonding experience.

After a bit, Neal knocked on the Charming's loft, and when Emma opened the door, Henry passed out on Neal's shoulder. "What, did you tranquilize him?" Emma asked with her eyes widened at the sight. "Just gave him a couple bourbons. Kid's a real lightweight." Neal joked when he walked in to set Henry on the couch.

"It sounds like you guys had a full day," Emma said, closing the door while watching Neal putting Henry on the couch. 

"Spent most of it at the park. He's getting pretty good with those wooden swords. I guess that makes sense, considering where his family's from." Neal said, backing up as Emma covered Henry up with a blanket. "What?" Neal asked, watching Emma look like something was on her mind.

"You ever thought about going back?" Emma asked, walking to the small dining table while Neal followed her. 

"Back where?" Neal asked when Emma shrugged, moving to sit at the table. "Home. Where we're from..." She said, crossing her arms as Neal looked confused. 

"Uh... I spent most of my life trying to forget that place. I didn't exactly have a fairy-tale childhood. You know what I mean..." Neal said, sitting next to Emma. "Why do you ask?" Neal asked, wondering why Emma and Dream were asking him questions about his old life.

"No reason..." Emma sighed, leaning onto the table.

"August came by the park today. He and Henry seemed to really hit it off." Neal chuckled, changing the subject. 

"That is gonna take a while to get used to." Emma smiled when Neal continued to chuckle, scratching the back of his head. "You know, I gotta say, he's actually a lot cooler as a kid. He steals less of my money." Neal added when Emma sighed again.

"He'd be way cooler if he could remember what he was trying to warn us about before he got..."

"Rebooted?" Neal asked when Emma nodded.

""Storybrooke isn't safe." Isn't safe from who?" Emma asked when Neal shrugged, looking at the table. "He always had a knack for being cryptic... Don't worry about it; you'll figure it out. If there's one thing I know about you, you don't stop till you find what you're looking for." Neal said, smiling at Emma, who returned it.

~season 2, episode 19: "Lacey"~

~1132 words~