Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Thwack! Whap.

Thwack! Whap.

The Frisbee was different from a traditional one; the sides were harder to withstand impact better. It could be used for a game of Frisbee golf, but its user was throwing it against a brick wall, and catching it upon return.

He threw it again, and it hit the wall with a sharp sound before flinging back. He jumped up and caught it one-handed. The Frisbee was black, accented in red-orange and cyan.

His other disc was white accented with blue.

He wore black leather gloves to dull the impact of catching it, but after playing with the disc for so long, he was used to the feeling of catching it.

"Trevor! Hey Trevor!"

The man caught his disk one last time and turned to face the boy running towards him. "Henry?" He asked, looking at the boy. "What are you doing here?"

"I found my Mom! My real Mom!" He exclaimed excitedly. "She's here! She came back to Storybrooke. Now she'll break the curse!"

Trevor nodded patiently, then he saw someone out of the corner of his eye and growled low in his throat.

"Don't growl at her, Trevor." Henry said. "That's just my Mom. Her name is Emma. Emma! Over here!" He shouted as he ran off, waving as he did.

Emma was already halfway into the clearing when Henry caught up to her, and pulled her over to where Trevor was standing. "Emma, this is Trevor. Trevor, this is my Mom, Emma. She's going to break the curse."

"It's nice to meet you," Emma said politely. "I'm Emma Swan."

"Trevor Ward." He replied.

Emma looked at Trevor. He was wearing dark pants and black leather jacket with a grey tetramino design of four squares that formed the letter "T" on the front left side, along with black gloves. His hair was brown, and his eyes were blue. There was something in his eyes, a look, that she couldn't quite decipher. She looked around, at the wall, which was still standing, and around at the other buildings not far way, that were clearly abandoned long ago. "So, what is this place?"

"Electronics factory." Trevor replied.

"Has it been abandoned for awhile?" She asked.

He shrugged in response.

"So, what do you do here, if there's no one around?" Emma asked.

"I'm a security guard here." Trevor replied.

Emma looked at the buildings, which weren't overgrown, and at the trees around the place. The buildings were set a short distance away from the town center; from where she was standing she couldn't see any other buildings through the trees. The only thing there was the library spire, rising above the trees.

"Do they really need a security guard out here?" She asked.

Trevor just looked at her.

"Is there anything out here worth stealing?"

"I don't know. But they hired me to do the job." He said as he turned away. As he turned, she noted the scar that crawled up one cheek, trailing down his neck to vanish under his jacket collar.

Emma watched him walk away, then turned to Henry, who had been patiently watching her. "Let's go Henry."

When they had gone back to the road, where Emma had left her car parked, she spoke again, "Your friend seems a little…strange."

"He's really nice." Henry replied as they got into the car. "He doesn't mind me talking to him. I'm trying to figure out what character he is, though."

Emma just shook her head.

The simple sign hanging outside the door read 'Computer Programming & Repair.'

"It's all ready to go, Madam Mayor." Clem Melville said, sliding the computer tower across the counter and taking the credit card she handed him. He was dressed in black as well, black pants, and a black vest, black boots, as well as an orange-gold dress shirt and tie.

"Did you get the system upgraded?" Regina Mills asked as she looked over the machine.

"Of course I did." Clem said as he swiped the card and handed it back to her. "It will run better than it ever has before."

"Thank you." Regina said, sliding her credit card into her pocket and picking up the tower. "I'll let you know if I have any more problems with it."

Clem nodded but said, "I don't think you will." And his gold eyes followed her until she left the store.

Thwack! Whap.

Thwack! Whap.

Thwack!

The disc was thrown too low; Trevor jumped to grab it and ended up rolling to a stop a moment later, ready to jump back up. Instead he stood back up and looked at the disc.

A rustling in the bushes caught his attention a moment later, and he looked up just in time to see Henry dart out of the undergrowth.

"Henry? What's wrong?" Trevor asked, since it was hard not to notice that the boy looked upset.

"Everyone laughed at me today for saying that my Mom is going to fix this town. Emma, I mean. My Mom's the mayor."

Trevor nodded patiently.

"I don't think anyone believes me." Henry finished with a sigh, dropping his backpack to the ground and pulling out his Once Upon a Time book. "See, here's what I was talking about when they started laughing."

And Trevor, who had seen the book dozens of times before, watched and nodded as Henry flipped through the book and explained his theories about the town.

"I can't believe Henry ran off like that." Emma fumed as she marched around the trees, followed by Regina.

"He does that." Regina said, with an air of one who had experience with this sort of thing. "But if he was laughed at by the class again, I know where he went."

It was then that Emma realized that she knew where they were going, too. This was the way to the abandoned electronics plant.

The sound of a Frisbee hitting the wall and rebounding was the first thing that greeted them when they got closer.

"Trevor!" Regina called as they came in sight of the building, and the security guard caught the disc as it rebounded towards him and turned to face them. "Where's Henry?"

He pointed to a tree not far away, under which Henry was sleeping, still holding his book.

Regina went to collect him, Emma stopped and watched Trevor throw and catch his Frisbee.

"You're pretty good at that." She noted.

He nodded briefly. "I practice a lot. But I liked it better when the disk would come back to you on it's own."

Emma looked at him suspiciously. "Frisbees never came back on their own. I know; I played with them when I was a kid. Are you thinking of a boomerang?"

"No?" He replied listlessly, looking at the disc. "I guess I'm wrong."

And then Regina had gotten Henry up and was ready to go. Emma gave Trevor one last look and then turned and went with them.

There was a disc golf course at the very back of the park, leading off into the forest a little ways.

Sometimes, on his days off, Trevor liked to go to the park and play the course. He played it frequently, so he often used tricks like bouncing his disc off of trees or back-flipping while throwing the disc to make things more interesting.

This time he had bounced it off two trees before landing it in the target exactly as he had planned. As he was retrieving his disc from the target, another disc came flying by, just barely lodging itself into the target, and then landing in the basket underneath.

Its owner appeared a moment later, and though Trevor thought the man seemed familiar somehow, he couldn't place him.

"I didn't hit you, did I?" He asked as he came up to the target.

Trevor shook his head.

"Good. I'm sorry; I didn't know anyone was down here." He replied. "I'm Clem Melville."

"Trevor Ward."

"It's nice to meet you, Trevor. Do you play often?"

"Sometimes, when I have the day off or something." The other man replied. He didn't know why, but he didn't feel he could trust Clem.

"Would you to play a round? I don't play often, but even so I'm not half bad at it."

"I have to get going. I have other errands to run today."

"Alright. Maybe we could get together sometime and play a game." Clem offered. He couldn't say why, but there was something familiar about Trevor.

"Maybe," Was Trevor's only response as he picked up his Frisbees and walked away. Behind him, Clem watched him go.

"Listen, you're one of very few people in this town who remembers that this town isn't exactly supposed to be here. You might keep your voice down about it, though, if you don't want something bad to happen to you."

"I can't! Don't you see what this means!? I don't know what that purple wave was, but it brought us here…Clu's not in power here!"

"Yes, but the Evil Queen is, and you're inconsequential to her plans, so don't do anything stupid. Just keep your head down and your mouth shut."

"If I'm here, then Tron must be here somewhere too! He's one of the most important programs on the Grid! He has to be here!"

The man shrugged. "Regina likes important people -well, she likes to control them, anyway; she probably took him, too."

"Jefferson, will you help me find him?"

"No."

"What? Why?"

"I just told you why. No one in this town knows who they used to be. That's the effects of the curse. Be careful, Yori, or you're going to be in big trouble."

Dr. Archie Hopper preferred private practice, but sometimes he was asked to evaluate a patient in the Storybrooke hospital mental ward, and he never turned down those requests.

For what felt like years now, he had come to the hospital the last Wednesday of every month to have sessions with this patient.

He smiled at her as he took a seat. "How are you feeling today, Yori?"

"I feel well." She replied cautiously. She did not trust him.

"That's good," Archie said soothingly, "How are things going for you?"

"The same as ever."

"Do you still think about the Grid?"

"Sometimes." Yori admitted reluctantly. "I'm trying not to, though." She lied.

Archie made a few notes on the pad of paper he was holding. "Alright. How often do you think about it? A few times?"

"Yes, just a few," Yori replied, hoping she was being convincing.

"That's good. It means you're moving past the delusions." Archie told her, and she had a hard times keeping the smile off her face, "But you're not ready to leave yet." The smile that was trying to creep out died. "I think the therapy is working to help you past your delusions, and that's a good sign. But we still need to keep going with the treatments."

Later, after the interview was over, Archie wrote out his opinion.

Patient Has shown much improvement since her arrival at the hospital. Her delusions of the Grid have diminished since medication and therapy have begun. However, it is my opinion that the course of action should be continued until such a time in the future as delusion of the Grid are more infrequent.

I believe that with continued therapy and treatment, at some point in the future the patient may be released. Until such a time as patient can be successfully released back into society, she should remain under close supervision and medications should be enforced.

Chapter Text

Every day people brought in electronics that needed to be fixed or computers that needed to be repaired. Clem ran the only known computer repair place in town, and he was more than a little arrogant about the fact that he was very good at his job.

He enjoyed order and prided himself on the fact that his shop was always neat and organized. Most computers that were brought in were cleaned and defragged before they left the shop. Most of customers appreciated the extra effort.

Clem had seen a lot of encryption in his time as well, but if there was one thing he knew, it was how to break a code. Most files had only basic encryption and were beneath his notice, but some of them were heavily encrypted.

Like the spreadsheet he had copied off of the Mayor's computer when she brought it in for repair.

All the files pertaining to how the town was run were in a clearly labeled folder with basic encryption that was left on the desktop. So what could be so important that the Mayor would go to such great lengths to hide it?

Clem didn't know, but he intended to find out.

He had just pulled up the file to start working on it when the door opened and the town newcomer walked in. Emma Swan, he remembered a moment later as he minimized the file so she wouldn't see it if she peeked over the counter.

She looked around the office and then looked at him. "You do computer programming, right?"

"Yes."

"Do you have any hacking skills?" She asked.

Clem raised an eyebrow. "Do you honestly think that if I did, I would admit something like that to the sheriff?"

"I need someone who can hack. No one in this town knows how to access security cameras," Emma told him.

"And why would there be a need to hack security cameras?"

"Because a woman named Katherine Nolan has gone missing and we need any clues can get to help find her. Will you help us? It's not like we're going to hold your…hacking…against you."

Clem considered it for a moment. "I suppose," he said. "Let me get my coat and I'll meet you…where do you want to meet?"

"The sheriff's office," Emma said. "I'll see you over there. I have to go talk to some people first before I head back." She finished as she turned and went back out the door.

Clem looked back at the computer for a moment, then went to close up the shop.

Cracking the file would just have to wait.

No one ever drove down the road to the old factory; they usually parked on the main road and cut through the forest.

So when Emma came speeding down the drive to the factory, Trevor knew that something was wrong. He had heard her car long before she ever showed up, and was to the drive by the time she threw the car into park and jumped out.

"I need your help," She gasped. "Do you know your way around the forest?"

"Yes," he replied.

"A woman – Katherine Nolan – has gone missing. We're trying to organize search parties to look for her. We're gathering everyone who can search up at the sheriff's office, and then we'll divide up and look for her," Emma explained hastily.

"I'll help."

"Thank you. Do you need a ride back? I need to go further and see who else I can get to help."

Trevor shook his head as he crossed the drive to a storage garage and slid it open. "I have a ride."

Inside was his motorcycle and mirrored black helmet.

Emma nodded. "Thank you."

Five minutes later a car and a motorcycle turned off of the driveway that led to the electronics factory. Both headed towards the center of town.

Emma turned her car off onto a side road. Trevor kept going straight into town.

The next time Trevor saw Emma, she was sitting outside the sheriff's office, watching the traffic go by. The search for Katherine had been unsuccessful; there were no records of her on any security cameras nor was there any sign of her in the woods.

"Are you all right, Emma?" He asked.

She looked up suddenly, as though she hadn't heard him approach. "Mary Margaret's been arrested. She was having an affair with David, who was Katherine's husband, so it seems she killed Katherine to keep her out of the way. I just didn't want to believe Mary Margaret had done it, was the thing. I don't see how she could have! She always seemed so sweet and nice."

Trevor nodded and tried to think of something he could do to help. "Can I give you a ride home?" he offered after thinking about it for a minute.

Emma looked about ready to turn him down, but instead said, "It's going to rain."

"That doesn't bother me," he replied.

She considered it a moment, then nodded. "What the heck. I could use the air. I don't have a helmet, though."

A few moments later, just as the sky broke open and the rain began, Trevor pulled his motorcycle away from the curb and headed out onto the road. Emma buried her face in his back. Through his coat, Trevor could feel her sigh.

"Thanks for the help today," she said.

If they had been going any faster, he wouldn't have heard her over the sound of the motorcycle and the rain beating on his helmet. "You're welcome."

"Next time you come to town, let me know. I'll treat you to lunch or something at Granny's," Emma told him.

"You don't have too, but thank you."

That the security camera search had turned up no clues made no difference to Clem. He did the job he had been requested to do and went back to his shop.

A lot of other townsfolk had showed up to help search for Katherine, some of whom he recognized as customers or acquaintances. And Trevor had been there as well. Every time he saw the man, it gave him a feeling of déjà vu, as though there was something familiar about Trevor and he ought to know it but he couldn't place it.

He didn't bother to reopen so late in the day. As the rain beat down on the windows, he took his laptop and unlocked a door in the room, behind which was hidden a flight of stairs that led to his apartment over the shop. Once he was in his living room, he turned the laptop back on and plugged it in as a precaution. Breaking open encrypted files could take time. As soon as it was on, Clem pulled up the file and set to work cracking it.

The rain stopped and the moon and stars were out before he entered the last variant of the password and the spreadsheet finally opened.

Clem closed his tired eyes for a moment before opening them and glancing at the spreadsheet before staring at it.

Listed were most all of the prominent citizens of the towns, with other columns labelled Name, Real Name, Location Then, and Location Now.

What exactly was Regina Mills up to? He wondered as he scrolled through the document.

Either she was very mad to think that David Nolan and Mary Margaret Blanchard were Prince Charming and Snow White, or he had just stumbled on to something enormously wrong with the town.

And then he saw three familiar names, and stopped.

Trevor Ward – Tron/Rinzler – The Grid/Security – Security Guard

Clem Melville – Clu – The Grid/Programing – Computer Repair/Programming

N/A – Yori – The Grid/Simulations – N/A (Storybrooke Hospital, Mental Ward)

In a flash, everything came back to him.

The effects of the curse on the Grid…

The wave of purple that came just as he was to recombine with Kevin Flynn…

Rinzler's Betrayal…

"It seems to me you've been hiding quite a lot from the people of this town, Madam Mayor," he said icily as he closed the laptop.

The only question now was what to do with the information.

Emma was as good as her word, and the next time Trevor came to town, she did indeed treat him to lunch.

Even if all the food had to be boxed and bagged up to go because he couldn't stay long enough to eat it.

"Well," Granny said philosophically as she pushed the plastic bag filled with Styrofoam containers across the counter. "Maybe next time you can sit down and eat. Without the helmet on, of course."

Trevor nodded. "I have to go, or I'll be late getting back to work," he said.

In the back of the restaurant, another meal was concluding, this one rather tense.

"So what?" Regina asked, staring her companion down across the table. "So you think you've discovered that everyone in this town is a story or computer game character? You'd better be careful, Clem, or people will start to think there's something else wrong with you besides your obsessive-compulsive personality disorder."

"You went through Hopper's files," he accused.

"Quid. Pro. Quo." She replied, emphasizing the words. "Don't snoop through my files, and I won't snoop through yours. Go ahead, tell everyone in town that you think that you're a computer program and that they are all fairy tales. See how well it works for you. It sure didn't work for Henry."

Clem pushed his empty plate away, and began to neatly stack his silverware and cup onto it. "You aren't going to get away with this, Madam Mayor," he said, carefully emphasizing her title. "I will find some way to get this information out. You took my world. I want it back." He stood up and dropped some money on the table. "Lunch is on me." Then he left, paying no attention to the fact that Emma and Trevor were standing at the counter.

He stormed out to his car, almost bumping into David Nolan, who was just coming up to the diner.

"Hey, watch it."

"Sorry," Clem muttered. "Long day."

David snorted. "You're not kidding. Hey, do you play that Frisbee game they have on the park?"

Clem paused and looked at him. "What makes you ask that?"

David shrugged. "I thought I saw a disc like one of those little Frisbee golf things in your car. Uh, that is your car, isn't it?"

"It is." While he preferred his motorcycle, the car seemed to be a better method of transportation and besides, he thought it fitting that he owned one.

"So you do play?"

"Not often, but yes, I can play. Fairly well, actually."

"Will you show me how it's done? I'm looking for a hobby."

With a half-hidden sigh, Clem pulled open the back door and plucked the disc from where it was sitting in the back window. There was no one and nothing on the street that he could hit, so what harm could it do?

"Alright, one throw."

He pulled his arm back, took aim, and launched the disc.

Several things happened almost simultaneously after that, but it felt like things happened in slow motion. First, the door to the diner opened and Trevor and Emma stepped out. Emma was talking about her plans to leave Storybrooke and go home, and she looked up as she saw the disc go flying by, watching it's trajectory. Trevor slid the face plate on his helmet down and pulled out his keys.

And Henry came around the corner, calling for Emma, shouting about how she couldn't leave Storybrooke, not noticing that he was directly in the path of the oncoming disc.

Emma screamed Henry's name. Trevor noticed immediately what was going to happen, dropped the bag of food and his keys and ran forward.

Henry came to a dead stop, now aware of the incoming projectile, and just before it could hit him full in the face, a hand snatched it out of the air.

And Trevor twisted in midair, landing just to the side of Henry, off the sidewalk and on the road. He landed kneeling, facing away from them. He had run forward and vaulted in front of Henry just in time to twist around and grab the disc before it could hit him.

Emma gasped and ran forward, followed by David and Clem.

"Henry! Are you hurt!?" Emma demanded as she dropped down to look him in the eyes.

"No. Trevor saved me," he said, looking up at the man as he stepped back onto the sidewalk, still holding the Frisbee.

Emma jumped up and hit Trevor with enough force to knock him back as she hugged him. "Thank you!"

"You're welcome," he said uncertainly, eying Clem with a low growl in his throat before handing the disc back to him.

"I'm so sorry," Clem said. "I didn't think Henry would come around the corner like that."

"It's probably my fault, too," David said. "I asked for a demonstration, so it's partly my fault."

Emma glared at the pair for a moment, then sighed. "Well, at least Henry's okay."

The group headed back down towards the diner, and Trevor stopped to retrieve his motorcycle keys from where he had dropped them.

"Oh, I'm sorry about your lunch, Trevor," Emma said, noticing the spilled food all over the sidewalk.

"It's fine," he replied.

"I don't think it is," Clem spoke up. "Come on, I'll buy you lunch this time, since it's my fault you lost yours."

"It's my fault too," David said firmly. "So I'll pay for part of it as well.

"Well…" Trevor began, but Emma grabbed his arm and pulled him in the direction of the diner.

"I know you think you're going to be late, but at least let them get you some more food before you go."

Jefferson waited until the stern nurse collapsed, then went to the first door and sent Belle on her way. Then he saw another door in the mental wing, marked with a familiar name. "So this is where she's been…I told her to keep her mouth shut," he grumbled as he pulled the door open.

Yori was sitting on the bed inside the room; she gasped in surprise when she saw who was standing there. "Jefferson?"

"Say it."

"Say what?"

"I told you you'd get into trouble if you went around insisting that the town wasn't real. So say it."

"No."

"I'm not going to let you out unless you say it." It was mean, but Regina had just refused to uphold her promise to get Grace back for him, and Jefferson wasn't feeling generous.

"You can get me out of here?" Yori asked excitedly as she stood up.

Jefferson rolled his eyes. "Yes, but not unless you say it."

"Fine," Yori sighed. "You were right. I shouldn't have tried to tell people that the town was fake and we were all under a curse."

"I told you so," he said as he opened the door wider. "Clu remembers who he is. Tron doesn't. It took me awhile to figure it out, but it seems that Regina brought Clu here because she looked into your world and thought that if she needed someone like him, for electronics or things like that, she would have him here to help her."

"Then why did she bring Tron and me?" Yori demanded as she stepped out of the room.

"I don't know why she brought you," Jefferson said. "It could be that the Curse was acting apart from her. What's the connection between Tron and Clu?"

"Clu brainwashed him into being his top enforcer."

Jefferson nodded. "Well, maybe that's why Tron is here," he said as they began walking towards the exit. "If Regina needs Clu's help, she has to make it worth his while, so she'll give Tron back to him."

"As Rinzler," Yori realized, and felt sick. Jefferson just shrugged.

As they walked, they passed a glassed-in room where Yori noticed a boy asleep on the bed, surrounded by doctors and nurses. Monitor by the bed were beeping and flashing. "Who is he?"

"Someone very important to a lot of people in this town," Jefferson replied. "A lot of things are going to change very shortly and very quickly. I have to go. Tron's name in this world is Trevor Ward. Good luck finding him before Clu does."

And Yori took off running.

Clem was on his way to the electronics plant when he felt the wave like a gust of wind pass by him, and he knew what it was.

The curse had just broken.

Thwack! Whap.

Thwack! Whap.

Trevor was practicing with his disc when the wave of magic came by. It was like a cool breeze washing over everything.

At least until it had passed.

Trevor stumbled forward, dropping his disc, bracing himself against the wall of the electronics plant as memories overwhelmed him...

"Flynn, go!

"Rinzler! Take the shot! Finish the game!"

"I fight for the Users!"

For a long moment, he stayed leaning against the building, eyes closed and hands pressed to his head as he tried to reconcile all of the memories.

"Rinzler!"

Trevor jerked back to awareness as a pair of hands grabbed him by the shoulders and turned him to face Clem. "Rinzler! Rinzler, listen to me."

And Trevor did, feeling his hold on the world release and he became Clu's enforcer again…

"Tron!"

Trevor snapped back to awareness and shoved Clem away, then turned to see who had called for him.

Yori came to a pause on the top of a small ridge near the edge of the forest. She was out of breath from running, and holding her side where she had developed a stitch. "Tron," She repeated, and this time it was gasp, not a cry.

"Yori," Trevor replied, and ran forward to meet her. He lifted her up and spun her around, and she leaned against him. "I thought you were dead." He whispered. "But not here, in the Grid."

"I wanted to find you. I waited so long." She replied, before leaning up to kiss him.

And Clem realized that he had lost this round of the game.

But that didn't mean the game was over…

Chapter Text

Their screams carried, and though they could not see his face, he could see the horror and terror on their faces.

What had they looked like as they descended? Surely by now the ISOs knew they were targeted, but they waited, trying to live in peace, trying to negotiate with Clu.

And then he and the black guards had fallen like avenging angels from the sky.

All around him the sounds of battle carried on. He pulled out his disks and felled more of the ISOs.

One of them saw him coming in time to beg. "No, please! The creator said we could all live in harmo-"

A disk through the face cut the program off.

Trevor jerked awake and sat bolt upright in bed, breathing heavily.

A dream, he realized after a moment. It had all been a dream.

Next to him, Yori stirred. "Tron? What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he said, lying back down. "It was just a dream."

"Okay." The blankets rustled as the two settled back in. "Do you think Emma and the others have figured out what to with Regina yet?" Yori asked sleepily.

"I don't know," Tron replied. "We'll find out tomorrow. And find out why the power keeps surging on and off, too."

After a quiet moment, he asked, "Yori, do you know if Flynn is still alive?"

"No," she said sadly. "Clu imprisoned me after his coup against Flynn. I don't know much about what happened after that."

"Mmkay."

As he drifted back to sleep, Tron realized that there was one person in Storybrooke who might be able to answer that question.

It was not a conversation he looked forward to having.

"What happened to this place?" Yori asked and Trevor carefully wound his motorcycle around the debris strewn liberally across the road the next morning. "It looks like it's been derezzed by half."

Yesterday it had been a nice little city of Users, as User cities went, she supposed.

"I don't know. But I know where we can find out," Tron replied as he parked the motorcycle and shut it off. "We'll have to walk the rest of the way."

They left their helmets with the bike, and holding hands, they picked their way through the debris and Tron led the way to town hall.

Inside was pandemonium. People were clamoring for information, asking after missing friends and family.

"This is getting out of hand, Ruby," the Blue Fairy said

"I'm sure our Prince is working on something."

"Ruby!" Both Ruby and the Blue Fairy turned to see Tron and Yori coming towards them.

"Trevor?"

"Ruby, what's going on here?"

"We're waiting for our Prince to get here and help us figure that out," she said.

"What happened to the town?" Yori asked.

"There was a wraith released on the town last night," Mother Superior replied.

"And it took Mary Margaret and Emma with it when it left," Ruby added gloomily.

"Emma's gone?" Tron asked.

"Yes."

He absorbed that information, and then Yori tugged his hand. "Tron, look," she said quietly. "It's Clu."

Sure enough, the former leader of the Grid had just entered Town Hall.

"I want to talk to him," Tron replied.

"Be careful," Yori replied.

Clem had seen the other man approach. "Tron."

"Clu. Where's Flynn?" The security guard demanded.

"How should I know? I've spent the last twenty-eight years under a curse, just like you," Clem retorted.

Behind them there was a commotion; David had just stepped into the building and been accosted by the townsfolk. Yori came over and stood near Tron, who looked like he was processing something in his head. "Yori, we're going to leave and find Flynn."

"If he can be found," Clem amended for him.

Trevor turned away from him to face Yori. "If he can be found, he'll be in San Francisco, California."

"And you know where that is?" She asked.

"Yes," he replied. He didn't know how he knew; presumably the curse had given the knowledge to him when he had been brought to Storybrooke.

Just then to doors to the town hall were flung open again and Leroy came rushing in. "Terrible news!" He fairly shouted.

He had everyone's attention as he pulled another dwarf to the middle of the room. "What's your name?"

"Why do you keep asking that?" The other dwarf replied. "I'm Tom Clark, owner of the Dark Star Pharmacy."

A titter of whispers ran through the crowd. "What does this mean?" Ruby asked on behalf of everyone.

"If you cross the town line, you forget who you are all over again," Leroy exclaimed.

There were cries of disappointment as the realization that they were neither home nor free dawned on those present. Noting Tron's dismay, Clem couldn't help but observe. "It looks like you're going to have to rethink your travel plans."

Trevor didn't answer, instead turning away, pulling Yori along with him as he cut back through the crowd and headed for the door.

That afternoon the pair of them helped clean up the town, inasmuch as there were any clean-up efforts going on. Most people, it seemed, had taken the news badly enough that there was a feeling of fear in the town, of a need to flee from something, and most of the townsfolk had hidden away in thier homes.

Tron had had a tight look on his face most of the afternoon, but if he was upset, he didn't say so, and together they picked up debris and cleaned up damage as best as they could.

And that was what Ruby found them doing when she came running up to them. "Trevor! Have you seen David?"

"He went that way," Trevor replied, pointing down the street. "What's wrong?"

"He didn't come to that meeting he called and now people are going to leave Storybrooke," Ruby replied.

"Leave? Why would they leave when they know they'll lose their memories if they cross the town line?" Yori asked.

"I don't know. Maybe they want to forget," Ruby said as she turned away and set off down the road at a quick sprint. After a moment, Trevor and Yori followed her.

The trio found David just about to take off after a man in gray scarf. Before the prince could go any further, he ran into Ruby.

"Ruby, what are you doing? Move!" David demanded.

"David. Regina has her magic back and she took Henry," Ruby said firmly. Noting the look of shock on his face, she went on. "And did you forget about the town meeting? Everyone panicked when you didn't show up and now they're leaving."

"I'll deal with it when I get back," David said, annoyed.

"Back to what? This town is about to come apart," Ruby retorted. "I know you're worried about Mary Margaret and Emma but right now everyone in this town needs their prince."

David looked hesitant, and after a moment Trevor spoke. "Sometime you have to put your duties first."

The prince looked at him, and nodded. "Well, let's go."

After he and Ruby had gone, Yori said, "I hope things work out for them."

Neither she nor Trevor talked about memories that one would rather leave forgotten.

In the days after the spell on the town was broken, David was quickly learning that it was a difficult thing to balance his efforts to get Emma and Mary Margaret back with his job of running the town.

Ruby was helping him handle day-to-day issues in the town, but she had her job at Granny's to think off to, and he needed someone who could help him with the law and order aspects of the town as well.

So, after he thought it over a little while, he went to find Ruby and told her what he was thinking.

"If you need someone to be a deputy, why don't you ask Trevor?" she suggested. "He's been working security for," she paused and considered what she knew about him. "Just about forever now. He'd be a good fit for the job."

"Good idea. Thanks Ruby. I'll go talk to him."

He found Trevor at the old electronics plant, strapping a box of what must have been the contents of his locker to his motorcycle. "Quitting?" David asked.

"There's nothing here to guard," Trevor said, checking the straps around the box.

"About that. Are you interested in a new job?" David asked.

"What kind of job?" He answered the question with a question, his voice rasping as he spoke.

"I'm taking over Emma's role as the sheriff until she gets back. But I can't run the town and protect it, too. Can I interest you in a job as a sheriff's deputy?"

Tron paused and thought about it. It had always been his job to protect something. But after what had happened on the Grid…

"I don't think you want me for a job like that," he said as he reached for his helmet and strapped it on. "I wasn't very good at it last time and someone might get hurt."

"Look, um…" David paused. Most everyone in Storybrooke had sort of traumatic background and though he didn't know what Trevor's was, he could that something was there. "I know you didn't hear what I said to the town the other day, but it doesn't matter what happened in the past. It matters what happens now. We are both - the same before and after the curse. You've protected people before, right? I'm sure you can do it now. And if things didn't work out last time you did it, then you should try again. And now's the perfect time to do that."

"Alright," Trevor said after a long moment. "I'll help you."

David gave him a relieved grin. "Thanks. I'll see you at the sheriff's office tomorrow morning."

"You always knew who we were, didn't you?"

"Yes I did," Jefferson said, adding more sugar to his tea and staring straight ahead, as though the other man's presence made no difference to him. The sun was shining, and it was a perfect day to sit outside and enjoy a hot cup of tea, as far as Jefferson was concerned. "What do you want, Melville?"

"I want the Grid back."

Jefferson sipped his tea and snidely remarked, "It's nice to have wants. I can't help you."

Clem looked like he was about to say something else, but before he could, there was a cry of "Jefferson!" And Yori came over, shopping bags hanging on her arms.

"Well look who decided to get some clothes of her own instead of raiding her boyfriend's closet every morning," Jefferson said dryly, having recognized the store names printed on the bags. "I'm very proud of you, Yori."

"Don't be so mean, Jefferson," Yori said as she took a seat at the table. "I hear you've got your daughter again."

"Yes. We're going to go to the park tomorrow since she doesn't have school," Jefferson said quietly. "We'll do father- daughter things."

"That's great! Don't look so perturbed about it. You know she doesn't hate you so what are you worried about?" Yori asked.

Jefferson looked at his teacup and mumbled something under his breath. He looked up and suddenly seemed to realize that Clem was still standing there. "I don't have anything to help you with and I wouldn't anyway."

Yori glanced up, noticing Clu's presence for the first time, and looked angry as she looked away.

A motorcycle came rumbling up to the curb a moment later.

"My ride's here." Yori said as she picked up all her bags and stood up before going to meet Tron, who had parked the bike and began helping her load her purchases onto it.

He was quick about it, and a moment later they were both on their way.

Jefferson stood up and threw some money down on the table. "I have to go. It's time to pick up Grace. I don't know what you're still standing around for," he said, glaring at Clem. "I can't help you."

Clem narrowed his eyes. "Cant, or won't?"

"Both," Jefferson snapped. "Even if I had any power, I wouldn't give it to you. Yori's a nice girl," If not a little stupid sometimes because he must have warned her a million times not to tell anyone about life before the Curse and what did she do? Tell enough people to get herself locked in the psych ward at the hospital, "regardless of her shortcomings, and I won't ruin her happiness."

Jefferson glared at Clem again. "So don't come bother me about this again. The truth is I like Yori a lot better than I like you." And with that, he stormed off to get Grace.

Chapter Text

There had been so much Yori had wanted to do after she came to the User's world. She and Tron used to talk for hours about what they would see and do if they ever made it out.

Flynn had offered once to take them after he got the Grid completed to the point he could show it some others, but then had come the ISOs and Clu's betrayal and everything after that, and it had never happened.

When they did get out, courtesy of Regina's curse, Tron was nowhere to be found, and it wasn't as much fun enjoying the User's world without him.

Perhaps that had been why she had been able to sympathize with Jefferson. He had finally reached a world without magic, without his daughter to share it with, while she had finally reached the User's world, without Tron to share it with.

But when Tron came to the User's world, he never had any idea he had ever been anything but a User.

It was really too late to be thinking these kinds of things, Yori realized, and sighed as she rolled over in bed, facing Tron who was already sound asleep. After a moment, she laid her head on his chest and listened to the growling rumble low in his throat. She hadn't asked him about that yet, though she suspected it had something to do with the scars across his chest and neck that run up onto one cheek.

There was a lot she hadn't asked about. And with the thought that some questions might have answers she wouldn't want to hear, she laid awake for a long time that night and finally drifted into an uneasy sleep early that morning.

Mid-morning of the next day found Yori exhausted and tired before noon, and having walked the main street of Storybrooke in hopes of finding a job and turning up nothing, she finally made her way to Granny's diner for a cup of coffee and a snack.

As she took a seat at the counter, she noticed the other woman sitting there seemed familiar. "Hello. Have we met before?" Yori asked.

The brunette shook her head. "I don't think so. I'm…sort of new here."

"But I have seen you…" Yori mused, then it dawned on her. "You were in the hospital, weren't you?"

"I don't like to talk about it," The other woman replied.

"Me either," Yori said with an apologetic smile.

The other woman turned to face her suddenly. "You were there?"

"Yes. I can't blame you for not wanting to talk about it," Yori said.

"I'm Belle."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Yori."

"What are you doing today?"

"Well I was looking for a job," Yori said. "I used to do computer programming, but there doesn't seem to be too much need for that around here." And she would certainly not go to Clu's shop and ask him for a job.

"I've been thinking about the library," Belle confessed excitedly. "I'd love to reopen it. But it will take a lot of work."

Her enthusiasm was contagious. "If you ever find a way to open it, and you need some help, let me know," Yori said. "I'll give you a hand if you need it."

"Thanks!"

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Trevor asked Granny.

"Just set the food over there." Granny replied. "And yes, I am."

Trevor obliged, setting the armload of food down on the counter just as David walked into the room. "What's all this about?"

"What's it look like?" Granny asked.

"A cage. Why do you need a cage tonight?"

Ruby came by, her arms full of food. "Because tonight is the first full moon."

"Ruby, don't you think that's a little unnecessary?" David asked.

"It's been twenty-eight years since I last changed." Ruby said, loading Trevor down with multiple pans of frozen lasagna. "I might be a little rusty."

"I don't believe this."

"I know," Granny, who had seen him looking at the food Trevor was carrying out, said. "No one would believe me if I told them my lasagna was frozen."

"I didn't quite mean that," David muttered, then looked at Ruby. "Are you sure about this?"

"It's just a precaution. Just for tonight."

One really had to wonder if having a car double parked really warranted sending out the Sheriff.

But someone had called David, who had called him, and that was how Tron found himself pulling up in front of the cannery on the other side of town.

An interesting problem presented itself almost immediately: who were they going to call to tow a tow truck?

Trevor looked around, wondering if perhaps the owner would be back soon. There was no one to be seen on the street, so he decided to step into the cannery and see if anyone was in there.

He pushed open the door to the building and found a man lying on the floor in the center of the main room, looking as though he had been ripped in half by a wild animal.

Trevor took a deep breath, then turned and stepped back outside. He was glad he was still wearing his black leather gloves; any prints on the door handle could be lifted. He pulled out his cell phone as soon as he was outside. "David, you need to come down to the cannery. It's…very urgent."

He'd seen worse on the Grid and yet, in some ways, that wasn't true. On the Grid, people derezzed and became voxels; they didn't lie around in pieces like this.

He put the thought out of his head and walked back over to his bike to wait.

David pulled up fifteen minutes later, Ruby and Granny in tow. "What is it?"

Trevor nodded at the building behind him. "I think you had better look for yourself."

The trio went in while Trevor waited outside. A moment later, he heard a shriek, and ended up running in after them.

He met them as they were coming back out. Ruby was nearly hysterical. "I did this! I got out last night and did this!"

"Ruby, you wouldn't do something like this," David told her. "I know you."

"You don't know what I'd do without my hood. You can't prove I didn't do this!"

"And I also can't prove that you did!"

By now the sound of arguing had begun to draw attention and people had begun to peek out of doors and windows. Some were starting to gather in the street.

"Trevor, will you dissipate the audience?" David asked.

The deputy nodded quietly and went to politely but firmly urge the gawkers to move along.

"Ruby, don't worry. We'll figure this out. I'll keep you safe until then," David promised.

"David, I'm going to turn into a wolf again tonight," Ruby told him.

"Are you sure about this?" Trevor asked as David escorted Ruby into the jail.

The prince just shrugged, and Trevor fell back to the desk on the other side of the room and held his peace as David locked Ruby in a cell. "You'll be safe here until we can figure out who's responsible for this." He told her.

Behind him, Trevor gave a low, rumbling growl. David turned to see what was going on and saw Albert Spencer standing in the doorway. "I think you need look no further for the culprit of this murder. It's clearly this she-wolf's fault."

"No. It isn't," David retorted.

Spencer shook his head. "Your emotions are clouding your judgment. Hand her over to the people of the town so that she can face justice."

"That's not going to happen," David said flatly.

Spencer turned to Trevor. "And are you going to be a party to this? This woman is a threat and she needs to be dealt with."

"I've never seen a mob make a good decision before," the deputy said, his voice low.

Spencer turned without a word and left.

"Seems friendly enough," Trevor muttered.

"We can't stay here," David said with a sigh. "He's got a grudge against me, and he's coming back."

"I'm sorry Trevor…I couldn't find David's number and I didn't know who else to call," Belle apologized. She was chained up in the library. Granny and David had left on a hunch and Ruby had vanished earlier, mentioning concerning things about how if the mob wanted a wolf they would find a wolf.

"It's fine," Trevor replied. He was perched on the desk Belle was chained behind, patiently picking the lock. Apparently David had taken the keys when he left.

"I guess it's a good thing I didn't lose Yori's number," Belle had called Yori, who had in turn forwarded her message on to Trevor. "I didn't know you two were together."

"You'll know who to call next time," he replied quietly. She had noticed that his voice was always low and often rasping. She had guessed the scars had something to do with it, but was polite enough not to ask. He was definitely a strange man, regardless. She'd never seen someone wear so much black before; the brightest part of his leather jacket was the tetramino design on it and even his gloves that he hadn't taken off were black.

"There," he said a moment later as the lock clicked open and the chain fell away.

"Where did you learn that?" Belle asked, rubbing her wrist.

"I had to pick a few locks sometimes when I worked at the electronics plant," Trevor told her, then they both heard something outside and fell silent.

"The mob," Belle said after a moment. "We might be able to get out the back door."

And they heard a howl. "That's Ruby!" Belle exclaimed.

Trevor wasn't listening. He turned and hurried away, looking between the shelves of the library and behind the desk. "Is there a utility room here?" He asked.

"Yes."

"Show me."

She took him to the room in the back of the building and waited as he rifled through everything he found in there, stirring up a cloud of dust until he found what he wanted: two wide, flat, circular pieces of metal. "These will do," he said, and hurried back to the front of the library.

"Do for what?" Belle asked, trailing along behind him.

Outside, Spencer was starting to lead the mob down a side alley outside the library, where they could all see the crouched, growling figure of a wolf. The District Attorney raised his gun, aiming it at the wolf…

…and then had to jump back as a metal disc cracked the place in the pavement he'd been standing before. The growl behind him told him exactly who was there.

"You will not administer justice this way," Trevor warned, coming down the front steps of the library.

"It looks like we've got an animal problem in this town," Spencer spat. "First the wolf, and now Charming's little attack dog. We will administer justice to this murderer. She must pay for what she's done."

"Like I told you before, I've never seen a mob make a rational decision," Trevor said, hefting the other disc up.

"You're not going to be able to stop us with that. You've only got one shot left."

"I won't miss."

There was the nearly too-brief-to-hear whoosh of an arrow flying by, and the gun that Spencer was holding was on the ground a moment later.

"And neither will she," Trevor finished, satisfied.

"The next one goes between your eyes!" Granny shouted at Spencer as she held her crossbow at the ready.

David came in between Ruby and the mob next, armed with Ruby's red cloak and the information about who the true murderer was. The mob began to dissipate.

And then they realized Spencer was gone.

Ruby looked at Trevor. "Did you free…?" She trailed off, noticing Belle who had hung back near the door.

He answered her question anyway. "Yes."

"Let's go find him, then," David said, and he and Ruby took off after the dishonest D.A.

Granny came up to him next. "Thank you, Trevor."

"Just doing my job, Ma'am," he said as he turned, heading for the back of the library where he'd left his bike parked. Yori had told him before he left that she wanted to hear all about how Belle came to be locked in the library when he got back. He'd really have a story for her now. "See you later."

It was time to go home.

There was a knock on the door, and David pulled it open, relieved to see that it was Trevor. "You made good time."

"You said when you called it was urgent."

"It is. Listen, I've got to get a message to Emma and Snow, and the only way I can do that is to put myself under a sleeping curse like the one Snow was under. And I won't wake up until I find her and get True love's Kiss from her. It shouldn't be long. But just in case, I'm appointing you temporary sheriff until either Emma or I get back," David said.

'If you're sure' seemed to be his new catchphrase lately; he decided not to say it. Trevor could tell from the look on David's face that nothing was going to stop him from finding and rescuing Snow and Emma, no matter what. So instead he said, "All right. Good luck."

"Thanks."

Trevor took his leave, and when he was back on the street again he stopped. He pulled out his cell phone and made a call. "Yori, did you ever find a job?"

"No, no place I looked was hiring," she replied.

"Would you be interested in working dispatch for the Sheriff's station?"

"I would love it!"

Trevor smiled. "Alright. I'll swing by and pick you up on my way over there. You're going to want to hear what's happened."

"Yep! See you in a few."