Cursed Hearts

Finding Caroline

At first, he didn't think it was a big deal.

Caroline wandered around Storybrooke all the time- she knew where she was going, and she knew she couldn't pass the line. It was obvious in his mind that she either went to Emma or Ruby's apartment, Will's house, or the Charming's loft. But, when all of his phone calls ran cold, Roland began to get worried. The thought of going out there to look for her grew more and more intensely in his mind, almost making him forget about the incident earlier with Alex. He was currently locked away in his room, not wanting to chance being questioned by his parents. After the fight they had, Roland wanted nothing less than to awkwardly get in the way of things between them.

As far as Robin and Regina knew, Caroline was safe and sound back at the house with him- if they knew she was out there somewhere, roaming the streets all by herself, they would practically throw another fit. The less they knew the better. All Roland had to do was find her and bring her back before they noticed- he was surprised neither of them had come to check on them already.

Glancing down irritably at his phone, Roland scanned his options in his head. If he was going to sneak out and look for her, he knew there was no way he could do it alone- not if he wanted to keep it a secret from his parents. There was only one other option.

He was still mad at him, nothing except time could change that. Nevertheless, Roland knew he had to suck it up, even if it were for only one night.

"Please pick up..." He muttered, tapping his phone with his fingers impatiently as it continued to ring. By some miracle, he did.

"Roland? What do you-"

"Caroline's missing again," he interrupted his brother, putting it out there, "I- she just got upset and walked out. I called practically everybody, and she's not anywhere-"

"Why didn't you just go after her?" Henry asked, currently situated on Will's couch.

"Because Mom and Dad were yelling at each other, and I can't let them know she's gone. I'm surprised they didn't notice her leave- she's good at that though, slipping out of places without being seen."

He could hear Henry groan on the other side of the phone line. "Alright, well I guess I'll have to come get you in the truck since you can't drive by yourself yet. We can drive around and see where she could've done off to."

"It would be faster if we could split up," Roland reasoned, "we both know I can drive fine on my own."

Henry chuckled. "Yeah, but not legally- you don't have a license."

That he did not want to be reminded of.

"Fine. Whatever. I just have to get out without Mom and Dad knowing. From what I collected Mom is still locked away in the study and Dad is outside hacking wood into pieces. Their fight was pretty intense."

Somehow, the twenty two year old knew what they had been fighting over- him.

"Sounds like it," he signed, glancing over his shoulder, "look- just climb out the window or something. I'll drive over and pick you up, and we can get our sister back in no time."

With all the positivity Roland had gotten from him, he almost forgot about all the hateful things he had said just a few days prior. Here Henry was, his big brother, going out of his way to make sure Caroline was safe back home. Maybe he wasn't such a self entitled prince after all.

--

The silence was starting to get to her. She had told herself that it would be a fast and easy walk home, but that soon was compromised. The woods were completely dark, and even she had to admit that she was a little bit scared. She didn't like to go out in the dark by herself- Henry used to take her out there to watch the stars where the branches didn't cover up the sky. This time, however, when Caroline looked up, she only saw darkness. She knew she wasn't going home her usual way; somehow she must've fallen off the trail she always took. There was no way she could get lost in Storybrooke- she knew she would eventually find the road if she kept on walking.