TMR/OUAT Crossover AU Prompt

Part Two

As the days went on, Frank was taking frequent trips into town; during the day and sometimes in the middle of the night. Only Nico and Bert really took much notice, but Frank assured them he was going for good reason. One early morning, when Frank returned from one of these trips, he wasn't looking or feeling at all like his usual self: Black branching lines crawled across his pale and clammy skin like they were trying to suck and snatch the life out of him. His eyes were dark and bloodshot in red-purple sockets. The angry thoughts racing through his mind were enough to make even Henry scared.

Eddie, minding his own business, was walking through the forest – Isaac had told him to 'go and do something useful' rather than ask answerless questions. Suddenly Frank, overcome by anger and something unreasonable, charged at Eddie, shouting and snarling like a rabid dog. He knocked Eddie to the ground and attempted to punch him in the face. "What the shuck is wrong with you?" Eddie shouted, trying to fight him off. They scuffled, all the while Frank shouting over and over again 'I saw you!' and Eddie trying to get away with his life. Isaac was the one to run over and help; whacking Frank in the head with a wooden pole and pinning him down while Eddie caught his breath.

"What the bloody hell are you doing?" Isaac asked as Bert and some of the other Gladers hurried over.

Frank craned his neck and, with crazed dark, bloodshot eyes, stared at Bert, "Alby, listen to me-..."

"Lift up his shirt," Bert instructed, calmly but sternly – not revealing whether or not he was confused at being called 'Alby' – surely enough, there was a spot on Frank's torso from which black, branching veins were sprouting.

"Holy shuck," someone said.

"He's been Stung."

"Yeah, and I think we all know who did it," Fred stated, "Evelyn Book."

~

Evelyn Book was sitting at a table in Granny's Diner, drinking coffee with her friend (and colleague), Jacob Rat. When Nico, Eddie and Isaac stormed into the diner and stood, arms folded, by their table they weren't at all as surprised as everyone else in the diner was – Granny ushered everyone else out. "We know what you did to Frank," Eddie sneered.

~

A girl with blonde hair ran through the forest, giggling as her brother – who was two years older than her – tripped over a tree root in his pursuit of her. "You can't catch me, big brother!" She chanted.

"Lizzy!" The boy shouted, before laughing himself. When the girl came to a stop, the boy reached her and looked ahead of her. There was a group of people wearing black armour and carrying crossbows called 'Launchers' (which had magical arrows that could cause someone to fall to the ground helpless; twitching and shaking as if they had been struck by lightning). "Who are they?"

"They work for the queen. But they must work for a secret organisation, or something – look what's embroidered into their arms." Lizzy explained. Surely enough, embroidered into the shoulders of their armour were the four letters: W-C-K-D

These letters were short for World Catasrophe Killzone Department. Unbeknownst the boy and Lizzy at the time, they would become a vital part of this organisation in the help to create a cure for the Flare virus (which Queen Regina had accidentally conjured and regretted the existence of).

~

"Frank came to us asking for help he believed he couldn't get from anyone else," Jacob Rat began. "He wanted his memories of who he was before living in the glade of the forest."

"He wanted more than just to be told, however," Evelyn Book added, "he wanted to remember: and with no other way to do that than to inject him with the Flare serum, we disagreed, telling him he'd be far better off living life as he was."

"He settled with this for a few days, until he clearly decided that being told wasn't enough," Jacob stated.

"Early this morning, there was a breach in our security; we saw Frank run off in the direction of the forest." The Gladers listened, tears glistening in some of their eyes, as Evelyn continued, "one of our serum needles was declared missing. We couldn't stop him: by the time we reached the outskirts of the forest, we knew it was already too late... the needle, used needle, had been dropped on the ground," Evelyn explained, remorse in her voice. Some of the Gladers matched her sadness, until two people said:

"You're lying."

The Gladers whipped their heads around to see Sheriff Emma Swan at the open door of the diner, her arms folded across her chest. The other person who had spoken was Bert – but he wasn't the current concern. "I'm sorry?" Jacob sneered.

"You should be," Emma replied. "My son saw you both chase that boy, pin him down and stab him with the serum. I'm arresting you both upon suspicion of murder." At that point; in that one moment when the Gladers thought their problems would be solved, and that the two people who brought them into this mess would be brought to justice, the mayor walked into the diner.

"Sheriff Swan, what the hell are you doing?"

"Henry said he saw these two stabbing one of the Gladers with a serum that brought him to his death, so I am arresting them on suspicion of murder and until I get enough evidence that says otherwise, you can't do anything to stop me," Emma explained. The Gladers gravitated towards her, insisting on helping take Jacob and Evelyn to the station. A couple of them went with her back to the office to check for evidence of the duo's bad intentions.