Long Lost | Once Upon a Time (EDITING)

XIII. Witch Hunt

The missing year...

After heading in the opposite direction of the Queen's castle, the group followed Robin Hood and his Merry Men through the woods to Sherwood Forest where they would find safety for all the people. As Grace walked, she noticed her mother walking just ahead of her and wanted to ask her a question. She fastened her pace a bit to catch up with her before slowing back down to match her speed.

Snow turned in her daughter's direction with a smile. When Grace went to word her question, she stumbled at what to call her. Certainly not mom--she felt that was too early for the girl to even say, so she went the safe route. "Um, Snow... Is there anything left at your castle? Like... stuff you had for me?"

Snow looked down in thought. She remembered when coming to the Enchanted Forest with Emma, they visited her castle, but a lot of it was left in ruins. It saddened the woman at the thought, that the place where Emma and Grace were supposed to grow up was destroyed forever. However, she didn't let it show and instead looked back up at her daughter with a smile. "There was the nursery still. Most of it was destroyed, but some of it was still there. Maybe we can take a look together sometime."

Grace returned the expression and nodded. "I think I would like that."

Snow suddenly looked over at the teen in thought before shrugging as she mentioned, "You know, you can call me mom..."

At that, Grace paused in her trek momentarily before sighing and resuming forward. She didn't want to upset the woman, but she herself wasn't yet ready. She expressed this by saying, "Yeah, I know, it'll just take some getting used to."

Snow nodded in understanding. "It's alright, take all the time you need. It took Emma a while before she finally accepted it," she said before looking down at the thought of her other daughter. "I hope Regina gave her a good fresh start." Grace nodded in agreement and looked at her mother when she said, "You know, this is a fresh start for you, too... Who knows, maybe you'll meet someone?"

The teen raised a single eyebrow up at her in question. "Someone?"

"Yeah, you know, someone you might like," Snow said with a cheeky smile. Grace couldn't hold back a laugh at what she had been implying.

"Yeah, right," she let out with a humorous chuckle, "I've seen what love does to people. You won't see me catching feelings anytime soon, believe me."

Snow eyed the girl knowingly. "Love happens unexpectedly... It did for me and your father. It's not something you can predict or control."

"Well, we'll see about that," Grace said confidently.

As they all continued on forward, a sudden screeching sound flowed through the air, along with something that sounded like a bird flapping its wings, only much larger. The group stopped and all looked up in the air with a frown. "What the hell is that?" David let out, him asking the question that was on all of their minds. Grace turned her head when she heard the sound get closer, though she couldn't pinpoint exactly where it had been coming from.

Before she knew what was even happening, she heard a gasp before her mother shouted, "Grace, look out!" This ultimately caused Grace to turn towards her to see her eyes locked onto a figure not far off in the distance. The teen narrowed her eyes as she followed her line of sight, only to see a creature flying through the air--and it was headed straight for Grace.

"Huh?" was all she could get out as she stood there like a deer in the headlights. Before she could get her bearings, there was a sudden impact at Grace's side, earning a loud grunt from the girl as she was hurled to the ground. She landed flat on her back and onto some rock. She groaned in pain as the same force that had rammed into Grace landed directly on top of her. "Ow, shit!" She cried out as she brought a hand up to her now sore head.