Season 6 Once Upon a Time

Chapter 1-I Wasn't Prepared For Parenthood

Storybrooke, Swan House - Recent Past

Emma's eyes fluttered open amidst the dark corridor as her body rose of its own accord. The unsettling familiar feeling of the area filled her with fear and uncertainty; draining the energy from her bones as a parasite would drain the blood from her veins. She couldn't see clearly, even with her keen eyesight, but she could faintly make out the doorway that waited for her at the far end of the hall.

A blue light emitted from underneath the doorway. It called out to Emma, but she remained motionless with what she could only comprehend as fear.

Beast of flame and ash,
Gold drunk monster,
As beautiful as you are strange,
Selfish and filled with greed, you are...

The voice rang out into Emma's ears and it made them throb painfully. The words were most catastrophic, however, causing Emma to close her eyes in desperation to try and wake up from whatever nightmare she must have stumbled upon.

She begins to move down the corridor, towards the glowing light as she gulped down the bile that rose in her throat.

Feast upon the flesh of your loved ones. For you know that you can not protect them.

Destruction follows you where you go. And all you love with be reduced to just that.

Death and destruction.

That is the curse of your kind.

A burden that only you can carry.

Emma wanted to cry out; yell at the voice to just "Shut Up." But her voice was incapable of functioning. No matter how hard she tried to scream or at least whisper something there wouldn't even be a peep that escaped her.

That's when she heard it. If not for her keen ears, she would have missed it; a cry for her. Her name echoing above the chaos of her mind and shaking the very corridor that she resided in.

In an instant, Emma jerked awake in her hammock; back in her and Happy's room. The exceed was flying next to her bed, a look of concern crossing his feline features. It was clear even in the darkness of the room; the moon their only source of light.

It made her feel guilty, seeing her friend so upset over her well-being. She was a foster child with many of terrible memories to haunt her at night, and Happy would always be there to comfort her during each one. At times it felt as though he was the parent in their relationship rather than she is his.

"That dream again?" Happy questioned, already aware of that which troubled his companion; a dream which had been troubling her for the past two weeks. "You were mumbling again. Worried about the kids and Regina, too. Like something was going to hurt them."

"Yeah." Emma sighed, glancing away in shame as she leaned back on the hammock. "The same damn corridor, the light. Regina didn't call out to me this time though. There was this... demonic or godly voice spouting some stupid words or a poem."

Coming clean to her companion made her feel even worse. She couldn't ever lie to him, not ever. That meant she bothered him with fat more than he deserved to carry on his shoulders.

Happy clenched his jaw. "Do you want me to do a fly by again? Check on the Missus and the kid?"

Since the nightmares started, Emma sent Happy to check on Regina and Henry whenever they didn't spend the night at the Swan House. It did not only set her at ease, but it did wonders for the feline as well. He too seemed to be troubled with what went on inside Emma's mind.

"No." Emma said, shaking her head. "I'm just being paranoid. The dragon in me is just playing tricks again, trying to get me to lose my control and focus."