Evergreen │Once Upon A Time Fanfic

The poor toaster feels Emma Swan's wrath

That little piece of news back there? That hit me hard like a slap to the face. It hurt, even more, talking to Henry about Graham's death. Henry told me that Graham was the huntsman and that his heart was with Regina. So, he and Emma had gone to Mills's crypt to retrieve his heart (even though Emma believed that Graham was crazy) from Regina. Emma told me that there was a huge fistfight between Emma and Regina. And when Graham and Emma left for the Sherriff station, Graham just dropped dead at the office. Doctors said that it was a heart attack, but Henry kept denying that. He said that Regina crushed Graham's heart (quite literally). I believed him, of course. I had learned about the Evil Queen ripping out peoples' hearts when it was beating and then controlling them with it. Yup. Real dark, I know. 

But... Emma was heartbroken, and she made me promise that we will never talk about Graham again.  Henry was guilty and sad. He thought that all of it was his fault, no matter how many times I tried to console him. He was convinced that he should stop with all the 'breaking the curse' thing. Oh well. I didn't fuel him much more. Sure, I wanted the damn curse broken, but not at the cost of my best friend getting hurt; physically or mentally. Regina will do anything to keep her "happy ending".  

I kept on scrubbing the plate I have been scrubbing for the past 15 minutes until it broke with a clang. 

"PIPER!", Granny shouted at me. "Don't break my china!"

I sighed. I should not be thinking while working. "Sorry", I mumbled. 

Granny came over to me and laid a hand on my shoulder. "I know, dear. Knowing about the sudden death of someone you knew, it distracts you.", she said softly. I nodded, not knowing what else to say. "Why don't you wrap this up and call it a day?", she asked me kindly as I put away the broken plate.

I shook my head fiercely. "No. It's okay. I'll finish this."

Granny sighed and nodded. She walked off to the cash register. And I kept scrubbing, trying to keep my mind off of this shitty life. 

***

An hour later, I had dragged myself back to the apartment. I wanted to just go pick up a book and read till I fell asleep. But, nooo. Life won't even give me a moment of peace, will it? I entered the apartment to hear loud music blasting from the speakers. I could hear the music from two flights down.  I rolled my eyes and closed the door behind me. 

Emma was clanging on the toaster, while Mary Margaret stood there, scrunching her nose. From the looks of it, Mary Margaret had just arrived. I walked over and switched off the boom box. 

I looked at Emma. "Why are you murdering our toaster?", I asked her.

"Regina fired me so she can keep one of her puppets as the Sherriff!", she said, clanging the toaster on the counter.

"Oh. which one?", I asked.

"Sydney Glass", Emma said with disgust.

"Okay, Regina does some pretty dumb stuff to win, but this is a whole new level", I said, grabbing a pack of chips from the pantry. 

"What's the new passion for the job, Emma?", Mary Margaret asked.

"I just want it back"

"There must be a reason.", Mary Margaret said, when a knocking was heard on the door. 

Emma moved to open it. "I just want to beat her." She opened the door to reveal Mr. Gold. I rolled my eyes, mumbled a quick 'excuse me', and went up to my bed, grabbing my pack of chips. I was not in the mood to talk with an old guy who steals babies for a living.

I flop down on my bed, still eating the chips. Emma came up about 45 minutes later, looking dumbfounded, but a look of victory evident on her face.

"What did Mr- steal- your- kid want?", I asked, throwing the packet in the dustbin.

"Apparently, he came to help me.", she replied, sitting beside me.

"Help you? With what?", I asked her. I just hope Emma didn't strike another deal with that idiot.

"Well, he just brought the laws to my notice. The town Charter clearly states that once the Sherriff is... gone, the Mayor can nominate a candidate for the position. Which means, it calls for an election", she said, smirking at me.

"Oh, how I love democracy", I said, smiling and getting into bed. 

Emma was gonna kick her ass. 

***

I woke up the next morning and got ready for school. I had no idea where Emma was. I went down the stairs, grabbing a glass of orange juice. Something caught my eye on the counter. It was the local newspaper and the main headline was 'Ex-Jailbird – Emma Swan birthed babe behind bars'  

I went over and picked up the newspaper, setting my glass down. Mary Margaret, who was sitting on the couch, said, "Regina really did it this time, huh? Henry is not going to like that"

"But how is that even possible?", I asked, throwing my hands in the air. "Emma told me that it was a sealed adoption. All this stuff", I said, shaking the paper. "It isn't supposed to be known to anyone. Much less should it be in the newspaper."

Mary Margaret sighed, walking over to me. "Well, Regina plays dirty, dear. And there's nothing we can do about it. Sometimes, we just have to let it go."

"Yeah well, I may not know much, but, I do know good always wins. And Emma is good. And I know she will win, no matter how many dirty tricks Regina throws at her.", I said, determined. I shouldered my backpack and started walking to the door.

"Piper", Mary Margaret called after me. "I am really glad I adopted you. You know that, don't you? And I love you.", She said, smiling at me.

"I love you too, Mary Margaret", I said, smiling and walking out the door. Did I just give a hope and everything- is - sunshine- and- rainbows speech to Snow White who was the master of giving hope and everything- is- sunshine- and- rainbows speeches? God, Mary Margaret was rubbing off on me.

***

I came back from school to see Emma sitting on the couch, downing a mug of hot chocolate. She looked sad and... tired, I guess. She was staring at today's newspaper, the one displaying Henry's birth in jail. I sat beside her and nudged her with my shoulder.

"Hey, you okay?", I asked her, concerned.

"Of course I am not. Henry saw this nonsense, Piper. He asked me if it was true", She said glumly.

"And, is it true?", I asked, softly.

"Yeah. And he told me not to take Gold's help. He said it was too dangerous. He said to stay away from his mother. But how can I? She just dug my past and displayed it to my son. Henry will be ashamed of me."

"Don't say that. Henry wont be ashamed of you. He knows you. Regina did this. So go, confront her. Do what you need to do to win. Show Henry that good can win too. And don't be scared of the old guy, I know you are strong. You can protect yourself from him, you can even stand up to him. I know you can.", I said, trying to get the old fire back in her.

"Whoa there, kid. I am impressed.", she said, a playful smile on her face. "You really are wise for a 14 year old."

I smiled. "But seriously, Regina has no right meddling in your personal business. And don't worry about Henry, he can sieve the right from the wrong."

"Do you... you know, see me as someone bad or as a... wrongdoer?", She asked me.

"Are you crazy? Why would I see you as a bad person? You didn't do anything wrong! Regina is the one who did something wrong! Stop sitting here and wallowing in despair! Go! chop, chop!! Go kick her ass back to hell!", I said, pushing her out of the couch.

"Okay, okay ,okay", she said and walking towards the door, grabbing the newspaper. "Thank you, Piper", she said, looking at me and smiling. "I owe you one now. When you feel down, come to me. I will push you back onto your feet."

"Roger that, Swan", I said, smirking.

***