Once Upon A Time ~ Book 1

Chapter 35 - To Save The Farm

Mary Margaret stood in her kitchen, scrubbing dishes.
"You may want to ease up or that Brillo Pad's gonna press charges." said Emma who stood near the door.
Mary Margaret looked up at Emma. "The dishes were just piling up."
"This have anything to do with David stopping by?"
She looked up quickly.
"I saw him sulking his way as I pulled up." explained Emma.
"We just........ He just........." she stuttered.
"I know what your both 'just' and you did the right thing."
"He made a pretty compelling case."
"But he's still married. I know. I was just at the party."
"What do I do?"
"You need to stop cleaning and have a drink."
She walked to the press and took a bottle of scotch whisky.

Emma poured the whisky into two glasses and Mary Margaret sat down.
"Here's the thing. I don't know a lot about relationships, other than having many that failed." she closed the bottle and sat down. "But generally speaking, if you think something you wanna do is wrong, it is."
Emma bent her head, disappointed.
"So you gotta stay strong, and he has to figure out his life." Emma held up her glass and Mary Margaret did the same. "Cheers." Their glassed clinked and they drunk.

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David sat in his living room, looked at photos. The room was still littered with food and glasses from the party.
"You look different." said Kathryn walking over to him and sitting down. "Your hair. It's longer." she rubbed his hair and smiled. "You used to always have a buzz cut. You used to complain that long hair was itchy and hard to take care if." she went on.
David still looked through the photos, one by one. "I guess it grew while I was in there."
She changed the subject. "So, I was gonna go to bed. Do you want to join me?"
David turned and looked at Kathryn. "You mean 'go to bed' go to bed or...... 'go to bed'?"
She smiled, looking into his eyes. "Whatever you want."
He hesitated. "Why don't we just sir and talk some more?"
She waited for a moment then leaned forward and kissed his lips. David placed the photos back on the table and put his hands on her neck. He quickly broke away, Kathryn looked at him, taken aback.
"This..........isn't right."

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James chased a little lamb through the fields, laughing as he ran with his stick. "This way. Come on. Come. Come on."
The lamb began to near the small cages made of sticks.
"Hey."
The little lamb ran into cage and James closed the little gate behind him. "Didn't see that coming, did you?"
"Honey!" said a woman's voice from near by.
"Mother, how was the market?" asked James as a aging woman with greying brown hair and a kind face walked towards him, carrying a sack of vegetables and bread. "It was......interesting." she replyed.
"Interesting? Normally you come back cursing the prices." he fixed the cage so that the flock of sheep wouldn't escape.
"Well, that's still the case."
"In there." he said to the last sheep.
"But this time, I had a very interesting talk with the grain merchant."
"Grain? We don't need any grain."
"He has a daughter. She's ready for marriage. He thinks the two of you would make a great couple."
"Mother!"
"I know, I know. I hate myself for even bringing it up."
"Let me guess? She has a dowry that would save the farm?"
"We are running out of options."
"Mother, please. As poor as we are, love is one thing I can afford." he held her arms. "I will find a way to save this farm. But I won't do it by marring for riches. When I marry, I want it to be because I choose to spend the rest of my life with someone I love."
"When.are you going to learn?" she touched his cheek. "You can't have everything."
"Well, perhaps he can." said a voice near the cottage.
Rumpelstiltskin stood near the cottage, grinning.
James's mother looked a little frightened at him.
Rumpelstiltskin chuckled evily.

James and his mother stood next to the cottage. "A twin brother? And you gave him to that man?" his eyes shot towards Rumpelstiltskin who sat near by drinking from a little flask.
"We were poor, barely surviving." his mother said. "Then he came along with an offer." she looked at him and he turned his head towatds them. "One of you for the farm."
"Why didn't you ever tell me?"
"The deal forbade us from ever speaking of it. Your father regretted the decision the minute that man took your brother. He carried the guilt with him to his grave." she took his hand.
"Hate to interrupt this tender moment. Time is of the essence." said Rumpelstiltskin.
"Mother, wait in the house while I deal with this."
His mother stepped into the house and walked towards Rumpelstiltskin.
"What do you want from me?" asked James.
"Not me, dear. The King."
He stared at him, inquringly.
"He needs a Prince to slay a dragon."
"I'm not a dragon slayer."
"No, but your brother was. This newfound kinship will be your salvation."
He looked at him a little perplexed.
Rumpelstiltskin went on. "Simply play the part..... The king's knights will take care of everything else..... All you must do is deliver the dragon's head to Midas." he finished dramaticly.
"What's in it for you?"
"What's in it for me is my business. You should be asking yourself what's in it for you. You do this, your poor mother....... Well the King is gonna make sure she never wants for anything ever again.... Your farm will be saved...... And you, should you survive, you shall come home the conquering hero." he finished dramaticly again.
James said nothing.
"Now don't tell me you don't want that."
He sighed and looked around him. "I don't have a choice, do I?"
"Everyone has a choice, dearie. Just make sure it's the right one."

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Mary Margaret sat in Granny's reading the Storybrook paper.
"I'm a hell of a doctor, huh?" said a voice from behind her.
She looked around to see Dr. Whale.
"No way he wakes up on someone else's watch." he went on.
"Hello, Dr. Whale." she smiled and nodded.
"So I heard that you resigned from the hospital. I hope it wasn't because of me."
"Why would it be because of you?"
"Well, our date. I never called you after."
She stared at him and raised her eyebrows.
"Yeah. I know. I know, it's not classy. And I'm sorry. But if you can find a way to get over it, you know where to find me."
She nodded.
"Have a good day." he turned and walked to the door and Mary Margaret went back to her paper.
As Dr. Whale stepped out the door, Regina walked briskly inside.
"Miss, Blanchard, may I have a word?" she said to Mary Margaret and sat down opposite her.
Mary Margaret folded her paper and set it down. "Of course."
"I wanted to talk to you about my friend, Kathryn."
She looked at her, a little confused.
"But more specifically, I wanted to talk to you about her husband, David." she leaned forward. "You don't belong together. He's not yours. He's taken. find somebody else."
"I haven't done anything."
"Really? So he just up and left his wide on a whim?"
"He did what?"
"You don't know?"
She shook her head.
"Well, I suspect you soon will. So listen carefully, dear, because it's in your best interest. Stay away. He's in a fragile state."
Mary Margaret shook her head and opened her mouth but didn't say anything.
"He doesn't know who he is or what he's doing. And you are this close to wrecking multiple lives." she held her fingers up close.
Mary Margaret looked down, thinking to herself.
"So before you do something that can't be undone, let him remember who he was." she stood up and walked briskly out as Mary Margaret watched her go.