After the Portal...

Chapter 2

When the ground stopped shaking, we got in the car & dashed home.

"Did you guys feel that earthquake?!" Henry exclaimed as we walked into the apartment.

"Hello." Regina said to Henry.

"Mom? What are you doing here? Is something wrong?" He asked. I looked over at my parents. By the looks of their faces I could tell something defiantly was.

"Henry, Ruby is going to come pick you up shortly." Regina said to him. Tears started welling up her eyes.

"Come here." She said holding her arms out. Henry went over to her and embraced her. He whispered something in her ear. Her countenance immediately fell. She got up and, unexpectedly, hugged me.

"I'm sorry." she whispered. Henry must've told her about Neal. If there was one thing Regina understood, it was lost love. The ground started shaking again, but a lot more violently than the last time. Plates and mugs were hitting the floor and shattering into millions of pieces. Without a word, Regina and Mary Margaret left. I went to go follow them but David grabbed my shoulder to stop me.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Emma, I'm going to need your help with-"

Ruby walked in and signaled for Henry k follow her and she left.

"What's going on?!" I yelled as I turned around.

"The town's gonna blow." He simply responded. That's all I needed to hear.

We drove all around the town directing everyone to the docks.

"Why was Regina crying?" I asked.

"If we fail to get out of the town before the trigger kills us all, Henry... He will be left alone." He said looking at me with sorrow in his eyes.

"Alone?" I said holding back tears. He nodded his head.

"Then let's hurry."

We made sure everyone was at the docks. I found out that Regina & Mary Margaret went to go get a bean. A bean that could get us away from here, to a new land. Every square inch of the Jolly Roger was filled with people. Once everyone was on, we set sail. There's not much time. According to Regina, the black diamond only needed about an hour & a half to accomplish what it needed to do. And it it had already been working for about an hour and fifteen minutes. I handed Captain Hook the bean. He throws it far out & it opens up a swirling green portal, just like the one that swallowed up Neal. I blinked back tears. Now is not the time to be mourning. Captain Hook starts sailing toward the portal, but I sense something is wrong.

"Hook, wait!" I said touching his shoulder

"What is it, love?" He asked.

"Something... Isn't right." I said turning around toward the docks. I saw a small figure standing there. Squinting, I realized it was Henry.

"HENRY!" I yelled. Henry wasn't on the ship. My dad, being the smart man he is, ran towards the spare boat signaling me to follow him. I yelled over to Regina, Mr. Gold, and Mother Superior to put together their magic and somehow "pause" the portal.

Once we were in the water, my dad started rowing as fast as possible. Once we were close enough, I yelled at Henry to jump into the water and start swimming towards us. Thankfully, he heard me and he jumped in. He swam out about thirty feet & started sinking. His bookbag was weighing him down. I yelled at him to take it off. He heard me, but didn't obey & his head went under. My dad noticed & he immediately jumped in, swimming as fast as he could. I grabbed the oars & started rowing. My arms ached. A voice inside me told me to just quit, but this isn't about me. It's about Henry. And I'm not about to lose him. I already lost one man I loved. I'm not about to lose another. Two heads popped out of the water.

Thank God. I thought to myself.

David climbed into the boat pulling Henry in behind him. To my horror, he started performing CPR on him.

"What happened?!" I yelled rowing back to the Jolly Roger. Henry coughed up the water but was still unconscious. He must've blacked out in the water.

We made it back to the Jolly Roger just in time. The people on the docks pulled us up in ropes. The three practitioners of magic released their magic and we were sucked into the portal.

We hit the other world. But didn't exactly know which one. So we decided to stay on the ship until we had the simplest idea of where we were.

After an hour, Henry finally woke up. I asked him why he wasn't on the ship.

"When Ruby saw you guys she told me to go over to my mom & I disappeared into the crowd, but then I ran home because I ran back to my mom's house and got my storybook. When I came back, you guys were already leaving." He explained.

"Well, you almost gave me a heart attack." I said giving him a hug. I understand why he wanted the book. Without it, he wouldn't have known about the curse. And he wouldn't have ever found me. He got up, went to his bookbag, & pulled out his storybook. It was completely soaked, & the ink was a bit smeared. Regina came over & with a wave of her hand made it new.

I heard my dad call my mom over. She started crying with the unmistakable tears of joy. When I looked over I saw a huge castle. I recognized it from when I was here with my mom.

"Is that-?"

"Yeah, Emma, it is." My dad said.

So that's what land we're in.

The Enchanted Forest.