CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
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i. death of a chirping conscience !

storybrooke maine .

— REGINA'S ENTRANCE TO THE DINER CAUSED A SULLEN HUSH OVER THE ROOM, dampening the spirit of the party significantly with her presence as happy, smiling faces quickly turned sour and cold.

The town had planned a little 'welcome back' party for Emma, Snow, and Christopher, complete with a brilliant multi-coloured banner, and Winnie's delightful baked goods- including a double tiered chocolate cake that Christopher himself had helped bake, after he'd gotten a very large helping of well-deserved sleep.

"What's she doing here?" Leroy asked in an accusatory tone, protectively brandishing a knife from a block on the counter.

Winnie pulled her attention away from her gentle fussing over a small smear of chocolate on David's face.

In fact, she'd been fussing over just about everyone in her quiet excitement that her son and friends had returned, safe and sound.

No one said a word when she insisted on fixing Archie's tie, or when she absentmindedly straightened the collar of Emma's shirt. Everyone simply observed her kind and generous nature with a certain soft smile on their faces.

"I invited her." Emma stated firmly, glancing briefly at Winnie, who grinned and moved to hug Regina, helping her in setting up the lasagna she'd brought.

Winnie decidedly ignored the low, poorly-disguised argument that Emma's phrase had sparked, instead choosing to focus solely on Regina.

"How are you, love?" She asked gently, keeping her voice quiet as she moved about, swiping the knife away from Grumpy and cutting into the lasagna as Regina waited to plate some for her son.

"Could be better." Regina admitted, her eyes flitting anxiously around at the crowd.

Winnie laid a soft hand on her dear friend's shoulder, offering a small bit of comfort in such an awkward time, as Regina handed the now lasagna-covered plate off to Henry, who grinned happily before turning away to find a familiar face among the crowd.

Regina picked at the wrinkles in her shirt as the boy ran off, immediately returning her attention to the sunshine-smiled woman at her side, "How are you?"

The muted happiness on Winnie's face only brightened as she peeked over at Henry and Christopher, who had claimed a bench seat for themselves and were whispering back and forth excitedly, Pooh snoring quietly between them, "I'm good. Really really good."

Regina knew that infectious grin was due to the small boy in a yellow sweater, who was now giggling through his story as he held up his fingers in the visual aid of an invisible slingshot.

Though Regina could also see the distant hint of sadness in Winnifred's gaze, telling of a grief she wouldn't voice herself.

She missed her children- all of her children. Having Christopher back was one thing, but locating her two missing cubs was another.

Regina wished she could tell Winnie that she had found them- that hope wasn't as lost as she had begun to believe. Yet, she couldn't. It would incriminate her immediately as having been the one to steal their hearts in the first place, and Regina just couldn't handle another angry, disappointed face turned in her direction.

Especially if that face was Winnie's.

Never again, could she stand to bare such an earth shattering sadness.

So she forced a sympathetic smile, leaning down slightly, due to the height her heels added, in order to give Winnie another warm, regretful hug.

Winnie hummed contently as they pulled away, her gaze being forced to the front of the diner as a small bell above the door rang out happily, announcing the presence of a newcomer.

No one paid Jefferson any mind as he and his daughter, Grace, stood nervously, side by side, scanning the sea of faces for a particular someone or two.

Winnie turned to Regina, holding her hands tightly, "I'm gonna go speak with Jefferson, if that's alright..."

Regina nodded and smiled tightly, not giving away to the fact that Winnie's presence was the only thing keeping her around at this unwelcoming 'welcome home' party.

"Stay strong, darling." Winnie uttered, tilting her head towards the other people scattered about the diner. "They'll come 'round eventually... Just- hold onto all that love and goodness that I know is in your heart... don't let anyone take it away from you again."

Regina exhaled slightly, as if a small weight had fallen from her shoulders and plummeted into what felt like a constant abyss that surrounded her.

She had the faith, and trust, and truest of loves from one of the only people in her life that really, honestly, mattered.

How could anything other than her own worst self contaminate something so pure?

She had Winnie. She always had Winnie.

Reluctantly, Regina allowed Winnifred to pull her hands away, and watched as she rushed to greet Jefferson with a squishy, squeeze-y sort of hug before leaning down to give the man's daughter a similar embrace.

Feeling as though she had nothing more to stick around for, Regina gathered her outerwear, shuffling past the trio and out the door, being followed closely by a certain blonde saviour.

storybrooke maine .

— THE NEWS OF ARCHIE'S DEATH SPREAD LIKE A FESTERING DISEASE. A disease that had only one symptom. Heartbreak, for all who knew him.

He was, in every regard, a kind and generous man. Thoughtful, forgiving, bearing a very proud purpose: to help people. To remedy their woes and offer a shoulder to cry on.

Winnie's very soul felt crushed when the information met her ears, falling into her couch cushions and tugging off her glasses as Emma sat with her and cried.

Just two nights before, she'd been fixing his tie, adjusting the knot so it was closer to his neck but loose enough to breathe, successfully tidying up his look.

He smiled at her, thankful as he was, and uttered a small, "I appreciate that, Winnie, thank you."

She remembered responding with an adjustment of her glasses and a teasing quirk of her lips, "Pay me back by coming in and getting a loaf next week. I'll make the gluten-free ones you like."

Archie laughed at her theatrical wink, "That doesn't sound much like paying you back, you hardly ever make me pay."

"It'll give me piece of mind that you're actually eating something, dear doctor." She shook her head, "Too consumed with your work, you are, you need to start taking care of yourself."

"I'll try, Winnifred."

She knew, had he lived to see the next week, he would have come around to the bakery to get that loaf of bread he loved so much- if only to settle Winnie's bothersome brain. He'd argue lightheartedly over paying her his dues, and she'd push him on out the door, silently hoping he'd come back for more if she didn't charge him a cent.

She worried often about people. It was just a fact of her nature- and she worried when she'd noticed that Archie didn't often eat much- instead favouring cups of coffee or tea for lunch, or even dinner, despite the late hours.

She supposed the days of sending him oven-ready lasagnas were now over.

The realization felt like there had been a knife plunged cruelly and unforgivingly into her chest.

What furthered her pain, twisting that devilish blade inches towards her heart, was Emma's utterance of suspicion.

"Mary Margaret and David think it could have been Regina..." The blonde whispered. "I spoke with her the other day about him, at the party, and- she didn't seem happy- Ruby even saw them arguing yesterday..."

Winnie used her sweater sleeve to brush over her cheek, wiping away a few stray tears as she pushed her glasses back over her nose.

"And what do you think?" She asked, dreading the answer.

"I think she's innocent."

Winnie looked up in awestruck surprise at Emma's honest, sad smile.

"Really?" Winnie asked hopefully.

Emma nodded, "We brought her in for questioning and I could just- tell. She wasn't lying. I don't think she did this."

A relieved breath escaped the brunette when she realized her friend wasn't being wrongfully convicted. She knew the accusatory fingers would always point to Regina, in a similar fashion to how a compass would always point North.

Winnie was glad Emma was finally on Regina's side- or at least on the side of believing that someone can change for the better.

"So, what now?" Winnie asked, "D-d'you have any idea who it could have been?"

It was a subject that she, quite honestly, didn't want to think about. She liked to believe that there wasn't a single person in Storybrooke capable of having extinguished such a wonderful presence.

Still, she had to know.

"I'm not sure yet..." Emma muttered, a reflective look on her face. "Everything really does seem to be pointing to Regina but- I promise, I'm keeping a open mind... Just-..."

The way Emma trailed off, Winnie knew there was something she was reluctant to bring up. Something Winnie herself could have understood if she had only seen the hesitant, scared glint in the blonde's eyes.

"Just- please don't hate me if it does turn out to have been her... if I end up having to arrest Regina- I don't want that to ruin us..." Emma whispered brokenly.

"Oh, dear." Winnie uttered, moving to pull Emma into a hug, "It couldn't ever do such a thing... I know you have a job to do, and I respect every bit of you that is this town's sheriff... Though, I do have one request."

Emma hummed gently, a sure sign that she was listening as she pulled away from the embrace.

"No matter how much evidence piles up against Regina- no matter how incriminated she may become... Promise, you won't stop looking for the truth. She didn't do this, Emma."

"Winnie, I-" Emma tried to argue, but was quickly silenced when Winnie regretfully interrupted her.

"I know. It's difficult to believe in someone who's once had such an aggressive stance against a world that was always far too unkind.. but this? This was not her. Your culprit, however hidden they may be, is elsewhere."

It took a moment for Emma to register what had been said, but soon she nodded, with a gentle 'okay', sealing away her promise.

They sat in contemplative silence for minutes, one quiet mind mulling over clues and possible suspects, the other debating how in the world she would break this horrible news to her son.

"I should get going, we were supposed to meet over at Mr Gold's shop before Henry gets out of school..." Emma pushed herself off the comfortable couch.

Winnie agreed, standing to walk Emma to the door, startling Pooh who had been napping on the other side of the living room.

"I called Jefferson earlier." Emma revealed, causing Winnie to be momentarily pulled from her thoughts. "He's gotta get his daughter from the bus anyway, so he's gonna pick up Christopher for you- and he insisted on coming over and making dinner, so I guess you'll have company tonight."

Emma didn't necessarily like Jefferson all that much- but she didn't want Winnie to be alone right now and knew that despite the many flaws of the assumed madman, his love for Winnie rivalled that of her own.

She was safe with him.

Winnie, of course, saw right through Emma's nonchalant statement, knowing that this particular company on this particular night after she'd received such awful news was an easily crafted ploy. One that would ensure Winnie wouldn't be by herself.

It was a very much appreciated act.

The winds of Storybrooke were changing. It seemed as if, more and more, the very town itself was trying to inflict every kind of pain and heartache imaginable upon the gentlefolk that lived there.

Winnifred was ever so frightened. Just as things had been looking up, just as she finally felt she could smile freely without the usual tumbling rockslides of despair gripping at her emotions- just as things were beginning to look okay, all of that came crashing down in the form of one most hellish act, barbaric enough to ruin any good person's faith.

Murder had always disagreed with Winnie... but this- this seemed particularly cruel.

author's note

hello my loves I'm sorry I took so long omg I've been busy working on some original stories and life has been a bit everywhere bUT I promise I haven't given this up, I likely never will, I love it too damn much 😭 also can we just applaud the fact that I wrote this at 5am with a slightly injured hand-
the grind never stops 😌

anyway, sorry about this chapter being a bit of a nothing burger, I wasn't sure how else to go about Archie's 'death' since I kinda forgot about it when I was planning the plot 😅 I promise there are MUCH better things to come

I have so many questions for you, honestly, but for the sake of keeping this authors note short(ish), I'll settle for: how are you?!! tell me about the stuff you've been up too, it's been too long since I got to check up on you guys ):

I'll have to respond to comments in the morning since it just hit 6:30 and I should get some rest but as always, I can't wait to chat with you (:
thank you for sticking around,
I love you all so much ♥️