Once Upon A Time: Goldilocks comes to Storybrooke

Chapter 23

"Of course I still do!" Regina ran from in between the two buildings, carefully took the toy bear from Goldilocks and cradled it in her arms as if it was the most precious thing in the world.

Emma, Henry, Mary Margaret and David had come out of the hiding place too, and together they explained to Goldilocks what they were doing, and their plan.

"I can't really blame you," Goldilocks shrugged. "I have been kind of secretive."

"Yeah, maybe just a little," Emma said, alright sarcastic.

"So you are the real Goldilocks?" Mary Margaret asked, trying to keep up with everything.

"Yes. Yes I am," Goldilocks said. "Why, you didn't think I was a fairytale character?"

"Goldilocks," David said. "If - it's okay -" he looked at his daughter before continuing, "- we would like to know where you have been the past thirty plus years. You and Regina were the same age: best friends at the age of fifteen, yet she has grown older - no offence -" he glanced at Regina. "- but you haven't aged a bit! What happened? Where were you?"

Goldilocks was silent for quite some time. Her head was hung low, and she thought carefully. Everyone was silent. Emma seriously considered saying: "please, do take your time" as sarcastically as she could, but she managed to hold her tongue.

Finally Goldilocks spoke. "I have caused a lot of trouble for you all. You deserve to know," she whispered. She looked up at them all, and carefully examined their facial expressions before continuing, speaking at a normal volume. "Just please don't get mad.. When the Evil Qu- Cora, opened up the portal that I fell through -"

"So she pushed you?" Henry butted in.

Goldilocks shook her head. "No, she didn't push me at all. She just opened up the portal with a magic bean, about this big." Goldilocks used her thumb and forefinger to estimate the size of the bean. "I don't want to blame Cora for pushing me, because she didn't. She was only doing it for her daughter."

Goldilocks looked at Regina before continuing. "I fell for what seemed like forever, before I finally ended up on this beach, in a place called Neverland."

"Neverland?" Emma and the other fairytale characters exchanged nervous glances. They had been to Neverland to save Henry when he was kidnapped by Peter Pan.

"Yes. Have you been there?" Goldilocks asked them.

"We've heard about it, yes," Mary Margaret said.

Goldilocks nodded. "I only thought I had been there a few weeks. It turned out it was actually a few years!" She laughed shakily. "Anyway, after a while - a while being a few years - Peter Pan - a boy who lives in Neverland -"

"Yeah we know who he is," David said.

"Oh okay. Well, me and him became friends -"

"Just friends?" Regina raised an eyebrow.

"Shut up," Goldilocks rolled her eyes and Regina couldn't help smirking.

Goldilocks thought for a moment. "So me and Peter were talking one evening, and he felt a dark presence come into Neverland. It was the Evil Queen - I mean Cora. He gave me a necklace that would turn me into a mermaid so I could escape from her, because I knew she was still after me. I only thought I was a mermaid for a week or two, but it was actually two years!"

"You're not very good with time are you?" Emma commented.

Goldilocks shrugged. "I never went to school. So I got back to Neverland to find a note waiting for me, by Peter. It said that his plan hadn't gone quite as he had planned. But he told me had heard of a place called Storybrooke, and that he was going to make it the new Neverland. He left me a magic bean, so I used it to travel here, and here I am."

"Wait," Emma's mind was swirling. "So you met Peter Pan, and he told you he was coming here?"

"Yes," Goldilocks replied. "He's not going to be too pleased I told you his plan, but I need your help. I fear something has happened to him, because I have looked literally everywhere, and I can't find him! Do you know where I could find him?"

Emma nervously looked at her mother, and then her father, and then Regina. Mary Margaret closed her eyes and exhaled slowly. Regina looked the other way, and David looked back at Emma, with the same facial expression as his daughter. Henry nervously bit his lip. How were they supposed to break the news to Goldilocks?

"Is everything alright?" Goldilocks asked them.

"Well," David began. "We ourselves have been to Neverland. It was us who went when you turned into a mermaid."

"You were travelling with Cora? The Evil Queen!" Goldilocks asked.

David took a breath. "The Evil Queen wasn't Cora. It was Regina."

"You're never going to drop the "E" word are you?" Regina sighed.

Goldilocks shook her head. "Regina was the Evil -"

"Long story," Henry commented. Goldilocks nodded, still confused.

"Anyway, Peter actually came back to Storybrooke with us."

"So he's here?" Goldilocks asked eagerly, grinning. "Do you know where I can find him? I've been thinking, because I've met so many lovely people here, I'll going to try talk to him, and ask him not to turn Storybrooke into Neverland! I bet I could get through to him."

Everyone exchanged worried glances.

"What's wrong?" Goldilocks asked, slowly whispering. "Is Peter okay?"

"Goldilocks," Emma took a step forwards, took a deep breath and spoke. "I'm afraid Peter Pan is - dead."