Everybody wants to be a cat

Pros And Cons

As the family fussed over their lack of memories, desperately trying anything to remember. The cat stuck to Henry, each keeping the other company as Emma and the others searched the town for an answer. Unfortunately for them, nothing seemed to be the answer, but after some investigating, the town line was revealed to remove memories once again.

Leroy made the joke that every time he neared the line, he felt like someone was watching him, but nothing ever happened, so long as no one crossed the line. A barrier went up across the countless roads leading out of town, forbidding anyone from crossing.

Rumours echoed through the town of people being plagued by a creature in their nightmares. Some residents turned to the drink to cope through the night, or pills to combat the exhaustion they faced from countless days remaining awake.

Three days after Emma and Henry arrived, Snow sat with Henry and the cat. The woman was fussing over the contents of the baby book in her hand when the diner's bell chimed to announce the arrival of Regina, the woman's eyes dark as she scrabbled towards the booth containing the trio.

Her eyes locked on Henry instantly as she scanned him for any sign of injury. "Are you alright?" She managed to gasp out. "I had a terrible nightmare."

"Ugh. Tell me about it sister," Leroy groaned from his seat at the bar. "That thing needs to be banished."

"Banished?" Henry repeated as his brows furrowed. "Like magic?" The cat watched Henry's eyes light up at the thought of the phenomenon as the two women in the booth fussed over an answer. They needn't have bothered, for as soon as each thought of an answer that contradicted the other, the bell chimed once more, signalling Emma's arrival.

"Uh, Henry, could I borrow your cat?"

The boy looked down at the fluffy feline for a moment before nodding slowly. "Have her back before dark?" He said as more of a question.

"That's a decent hour, good parenting," Snow praised as she hinted at the book in her hands. "Why don't we go into the library and look for some more books to borrow?" Henry nodded as the cat jumped from the booth and followed Emma through the door.

Emma and the cat walked through the town towards the town hall, followed closely by the rather exhausted Regina. "Swan, what do you possibly need with the cat?"

"You'll see," Emma said as she opened the door of the hall wide for the cat and the mayor to enter.

At the sight of the gaggle of lost boys at the front of the hall, the cat bolted forward, mewling loudly. All the boys rushed forward to meet her in the middle, each boy talking loudly over the other as they told her of their time alone.

Emma crossed her arms and watched the interaction as Regina's gaze locked on an array of whiteboards and piles of books at the front of the hall. "Swan?"

"The creature in everyone's nightmares. The boys couldn't find you, but they found me. It's called a kobaloi or kobalos." She gestured to a crudely drawn picture on the left whiteboard that gave Regina the chills. The cat's eyes drifted also to the picture, causing her hackles to raise as she hissed at the sight of the creature. "They have been known to steal items, but this particular one has evolved to steal dreams, and quite possibly, peace."

Regina stepped forward and pulled the cat into her arms, the contact easing both of them into a calmer state. "How do we stop it?" Regina cast her gaze from the depiction of the creature to the woman beside her. "Swan?"

Emma looked at her friend, then pointedly at the group of boys. One in particular came forward, his fingers twisting together as he bit his lip tight. "This research wasn't ours, Mayor Mills."