ALL THE SIGNS that Storybrooke's heroes had gathered, led them to believe that the unknown enemy messing with their memories and happiness was The Wicked Witch of the West, who for some reason carried spite for them and their little town. Wilma was somewhat amused by this, and she wanted to laugh, but couldn't — it was quite upsetting, after all, but she had trouble with understanding how she too was real, not just a fictional character from Winnie's childhood. Emma had struggled with the same, but Killian had quickly reminded the Savior who she was, and how she was the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, which did make it easier for Emma to comprehend the strange situation. For Wilma, it wasn't as simple, but reminding herself that she could see the future helped a little bit, to be honest.

Still, she didn't join David, Hook and Emma when the three headed out to search for the witch, nor Regina, who offered to keep an eye on Henry and spend some time with him in the process, despite the boy's lack of memories regarding even his adoptive mother. No, instead of going with any of them, Wilma had decided to take some time for herself, and with that in mind, she headed to Gold's shop, which had been taken over by Belle — just who Wilma was looking for. When Pan had told Wilma about her ability to predict the days still ahead of them, the woman had made a silent note to herself to find Rumplestiltskin and ask him about this weird talent one day, but before she could, the man had made a noble sacrifice and died along with his father. So, now that Wilma couldn't ask for Gold's help, she was going to Belle, in the belief that she could help her just as well.

With a ding, the door opened as Wilma pushed it, and as soon as her eyes landed on Belle, who stood on the other side of the counter with a smile, the brunette broke into a happy expression. It had been a while since the two got to spend some time together, and frankly, things had drastically changed ever since — Wilma could still vividly remember sneaking to Killian's ship with the woman and then getting caught by the pirate, which had been a wonderfully bittersweet moment. And now, it was but a distant memory, and Wilma smiled to herself as she realized how things had truly escalated between her and Killian ever since. The flirting and the unsure feelings had developed into what he had called true love — however, that was a topic she was yet to poke and discuss with him. She liked it, though.

"Wilma!", Belle beamed with joy as she left the counter to rush over to her friend and pull her into a quick, but tight hug, one that made Wilma snicker. "How can I help you?", the beauty then asked as she let go of Wilhelmina, who cleared her throat nervously — indeed, she had come there in the need of some help, but only now she understood that she still needed to explain the situation to Belle, and pray that she wouldn't be spooked by Wilma's unnatural abilities. Then again, Belle did care for the one man that people rarely did, and that gave Wilhelmina the courage she needed in order to speak up.

"Well... It turns out I can, kind of, see the future?", she tasted the words on her tongue whilst Belle walked back to the counter, and Wilma remained on the other side, awkwardly tugging on the sleeves of her trench coat. Internally, she sighed — clearly, David's company was having an effect on her, that was the only reasonable explanation to the increasing habit of saying kind of. "And I could really use some help. I still don't know anything about it, except that it's... there. It's in me. And right now, it's kind of scary, and uncontrollable, so I guess—I guess I'd like to control it, you know?", Wilma stuttered, looking over to Belle with hope that she didn't think any less of her now, and concluding from the smile on her lips, Wilma was an idiot for even considering the possibility.

"Of course. Come on, we'll find some books in the back", Belle gestured with a simple nod towards the back of the shop, and inhaling sharply, Wilma stepped forward and followed the princess to where she was leading her. A deep sigh slipped from between Wilma's carefully painted lips as she looked around the large shop and all the treasures hidden within, but inevitably, her curious eyes landed on Belle as the woman climbed up the ladder resting against the tall bookshelves, and as someone who had clearly done so before, Belle easily located the right books and pressed them against her chest before coming back down and dropping the heavy stack on the table separating her from Wilma. The latter was still evidently fidgety and nervous, but Belle couldn't blame her — instead, she shot Wilma a comforting smile, and placed her hand atop Winnie's shaky one to reassure her that she didn't need to worry.

"Whatever we find out, just know, you won't have to deal with any of it alone. I'm here for you, and I'm sure you'd be surprised by just how many people will be ready to help you, if necessary", was what Belle told Wilma to calm her down, and surprisingly, it was effective — Wilma found herself breathing steadily again as she shrugged off her trench coat and seated herself by the table, which encouraged Belle to do the same, before the two found books to get lost into.

Belle was right. Wilma was used to being afraid of being alone, people disappearing from around her and leaving her by herself in the big, scary world, but the truth was, she wasn't alone. She had so many friends, she had family, she had a home in Storybrooke, and that was why some of her fear vanished even if she had no idea what the yellow pages of the mysterious book in front of her withheld.

Hours passed as the two women read and did their research, studying everything there was to be discovered about the ability of seeing the future, and with each passing page, Wilma felt more at ease — as odd as it was, knowing was a serene sensation, and it felt good to shed some light in all the shadows lurking in the corners of her magical mind. At first, she had thought that discovering who she really was would be terrifying, so utterly scary, but instead, she ended up reaching a somewhat calm state, and seeing the good in her talent. She, too, had a little bit of magic in her, she was special, she could be a hero. It wasn't all that bad, was it? If only she could learn to control the visions, then maybe Wilma could also learn to embrace this new side of herself.

And just like that, Belle found something worth their while.

"It says here that, simply put, you merely need to concentrate. That you need to reach a state of peace and quiet, and you'll be able to connect yourself with the future, touch the images in your head and feel the upcoming", Belle explained, her finger following the lines as she read, and once she reached the end, she looked up at Wilma with a careful smile. "Want to try? I could... guide you through it?", she suggested, and unable to form proper sentences, Wilma nodded with a loud gulp breaking the silence she had welcomed into the room.

Belle instructed Wilma to take a comfortable position, as if she were to sleep — which actually made sense, as each time she had visioned the future, she had been asleep — and the brunette tried her very best to relax. She ended up lying on the table, her hands folded against her heaving stomach, her chest rising and falling with a steady pace and her eyes nervously staring at the ceiling, which was slowly starting to spin. Frankly, she felt almost sick, nauseated by the thought of willingly going into this, but she needed to get a grip of the ability instead of letting it roam free and wild in her head. She needed to set boundaries, and take control. And with that in mind, she closed her eyes and exhaled heavily.

"Just breathe, Wilhelmina. Relax, focus. Find a state where you are comfortable, resting, peaceful — as if you're taking a nap. Open your mind to welcome any dreams or images, invite your imagination in and let it guide you further. Take steady breaths...", Belle guided Wilma, and slowly, and incredibly so, she started to drift away. It wasn't a slumber that she fell into, more of a haze, really, and as Belle's sound faded into the background, Wilma found herself entering some alternate realm, and as her eyes flew open, images began to flash before her, too quick to even grasp, too loud to pay too much attention to.

It was like watching a movie on rewind, passing by with just snippets, only fractions that caught her eye for a split second before another sight had replaced the former one. But once Wilma remembered Belle's words — breathe — the brunette could finally put the pieces together, and form a big picture, see the whole chapter of the story she ended up falling into, name the people and recognize the surroundings. And frankly, it was quite overwhelming. So much, that Wilma ended up jolting up, sitting on the table as she gasped and let her eyes widen.

With worry, Belle placed a hand on the woman's shoulder, and as Wilma tried to catch her breath, the princess questioned if she was okay. "Wilma? What is it?", Belle asked, "are you okay? What—what did you see?", probably scared to even find out the truth, and it seemed Wilhelmina was quite shaken too. And with wide eyes and parted lips, she turned to look at her friend, unsure how to form a sentence anymore, but eventually, the words just tumbled off of her tongue.

"I saw Rumplestiltskin", Wilma breathed out, "he's back."

———

AFTER WILMA SAW a vision of Rumplestiltskin in some dark cellar, spinning straw into gold, the woman had had quite enough — she had thanked Belle and then ran off, but granted, the princess herself seemed quite shaken by what Wilhelmina had seen. After all, she had witnessed the love of her life die, only for Wilma to now inform that she saw him in a vision, meaning that perhaps all hope wasn't lost. But it was terrifying enough for Wilma, who then made her way to her room in Granny's inn and proceeded to hide under the blanket and think about everything.

But luckily, she didn't have to deal with her burden all alone. A knock on the door of her room reminded her of that, and slowly, she got up from the bed and tiptoed to see who decided to pop by, and frankly, she wasn't disappointed — on the other side of the door awaited Killian, smiling dreamily, pursing his lips and his eyes twinkling with something profoundly happy when they locked with Wilma's brown ones. And despite everything, Wilma broke into a smile — he had that effect on her. By just standing there he made her happy, looking more perfect than anything Wilma could think of, radiating like a star on the night sky, yet carrying a sense of attractive darkness that felt addicting, impossible to get enough of. Nonetheless, whether it was his piercing eyes, or those inviting lips, or the fact that his presence was Wilma's favorite thing, she stepped aside to grant him access to her room.

"Evening, love", Killian's voice was smooth like velvet, yet as he called her love his tone instantly acquired some lower shade, rough and tempting and making Wilma shiver as she bit down on her bottom lip and let her gaze drop from the pirate to her nervously shuffling feet. Killian shut the door behind him, and Wilma exhaled deeply at the realization that it was just the two of them now, closed in the same room, wrapped in the thick air that his presence always turned much heavier and deeper and hotter. However, before she could get lost in the creaking floorboards, he had stepped closer, shutting the space between their bodies and casually placed a finger below Wilma's jaw to lift her head up, just enough for him to ignite a gentle kiss as a proper greeting.

"I missed you", he murmured once his plump lips reluctantly broke apart from Wilma's trembling ones, his voice but a hot whisper against her mouth as he broke into a careful smile. And in the awareness that it was the only reasonable reaction, Wilma mirrored the smile and returned the hint of a compliment, saying that she had missed him as well, perhaps even more than he could imagine. Suddenly, she remembered what Belle had reassured her with — that she wasn't alone, and with that in mind, she inhaled deeply and found a seat on the lumpy mattress, where Killian quickly joined her.

"How was your day? Did you find the Wicked Witch?", Wilhelmina questioned, and her curious eyes flickered over to Killian's blue ones, causing her to locate happiness from them as she fell into a deep gaze. Without even realizing, she ended up smiling and resting her head against Killian's shoulder, the feeling of leather and the strong scent he radiated with occasionally reminding her who she was leaning on — but it was ultimately the feeling of safety and home that kept her by his side.

Inhaling, Killian cleared his throat, as if he hadn't expected her to ask that — as if people didn't usually ask about his day, or how he was doing. And it made Wilma's heart sink, but she couldn't think more of it when he had already spoken. "We did not, but we found a farmhouse we believe belongs to her. And a creepy, dark cellar — actually, we think that... the Crocodile— Rumplestiltskin, might be back", he explained, his tone thoughtful as he recalled all the things he had seen and experienced that day, before adding a chuckle, "oh, and I think David is rather upset with me, for taking such a interest in you", his lips twisting into an amused, adorable smile.

Wilma couldn't laugh with him though — all she could think about was his previous words, that they had found the witch's cellar and now believed that Rumplestiltskin was back. She couldn't believe it. What Belle had taught her... It actually worked. She had seen the future, and it was overwhelming her to a point where she forgot to answer Killian, sparking worry within him as he took her hand and looked over to her with a concerned gaze, questioning if everything was okay.

Gulping, Wilma turned to face him. "Gold is definitely back. I saw it in a vision. Belle is helping me control them—I—I still don't, but I saw him. He's alive", she confirmed, her eyes locked with Killian's, and for a second, she held her breath in — it had become a habit, really. Every time she mentioned her ability to foresee the upcoming, she expected Killian to flinch, pull away or react somehow negatively, but he never did. It took her a while to realize that, but whatever she said, couldn't scare or push him away. He was going to stick by her side no matter what, and the slight squeeze he gave her hand convinced her of that. Worrying that he might leave her one day, it was pointless. Because it wasn't going to happen — at least not out of his own desire.

"Are you okay? I mean, seeing the future... Do you wish to talk about it?", Killian's voice was careful and quiet in the dimly lit room, but Wilma heard him nonetheless, and in response, she merely shrugged. She was still so very confused by so many things, but she did appreciate Killian being there for her. It brought her relief to know that he was ready to listen whenever she needed it.

"I don't know. It's weird. It's scary", Wilma inhaled, "I think I'll be able to live with it, though. But Pan, uh, told me that magic is what got my mother killed, and that my father didn't really murder her. I mailed him a letter the other day, saying I'm sorry", and faintly smiling, she gave Killian a look, which he returned rather fondly. Squeezing her hand, Killian nodded to assure that it was the right thing to do, before clearing his throat as a sign of speaking up.

"I'm sorry too, you know. What you've gone through... You've dealt with loss, more than anyone should", the man whispered, his piercing eyes meeting Wilma's softly and carefully, clearly sympathetic for the woman before him — the woman he loved.

"Yeah— and now that Neal is... somewhere...", Wilma sighed out, her stare dropping from Killian, who just repeated her sigh and pulled her into his chest. He didn't say anything more, because he knew that nothing he was planning on saying could put her mind and heart at ease, even though he did have that effect on Wilma — calming her down, with just one touch or look, but Killian also knew that sometimes, things just... sucked. They couldn't be turned into something better by giving false hope, so instead, he just held Wilma, and prayed to God, for her sake, that Neal would show up alive somehow.

Eventually, their hug led them into falling onto the mattress, and they melted closer, falling asleep on each other's arms. Wilma was the first one to pass out, and when she did, Killian moved just enough to grab the blanket and pull it over their connected bodies before closing his own eyes, and holding Wilma just a tad tighter. And they slept like that — soundly, safely, together — until sunrise.

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