Mary Margaret seeks Newt's help, and Emma and Regina grow suspicious over a new stranger in town.

***

Harry had mentioned that even though he and Draco were the heirs to Slytherin and Gryffindor respectively, they had been Sorted into the other's house while at school. Harry had also pointed out that Hermione had shown characteristics of every house, just like Neville had Gryffindor tendencies while he was the Heir of Hufflepuff.

As Henry approached Storybrooke's newest visitor, who was working on his motorcycle at the end of the Mills' driveway, he figured this was the epitome of being a Gryffindor. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

The man barely looked up from his work. "Fixing my bike."

"No," Henry shook his head. "I mean in Storybrooke."

The man glanced at him before returning to working on the gears. "Just visiting."

Henry eyed the lockbox on the back of the bike curiously. "What's that?"

The man patted the top of it. "A box."

"What's inside it?"

The man pursed his lips, but Henry refused to apologize for asking questions. OK, maybe there was a bit of Ravenclaw in him, too, but what was he supposed to do when no one usually visited Storybrooke? "Just something I need to do what I came here for," the man answered.

Henry frowned, watching the man put on his helmet. "I thought you were just visiting."

The man shrugged and climbed onto his bike. "Doesn't mean I don't have something to do."

"Henry?" Regina called, her voice faint from the door of the house.

"You better get to school," the man told him, eyeing the gray sky when it rumbled. "Looks like a storm's coming."

The man drove off just as Regina hustled down the sidewalk, and she wrapped an arm protectively around Henry's shoulders. "Henry, who was that?" she demanded.

Henry merely shrugged in response.

***

" . . . and then there's Slytherin," Harry was saying, Ava and Nicholas hanging onto his every word as Emma, Michael, Newt, Queenie, Remus, David, Mary Margaret, and Victor watched from the next table, Ruby lingering nearby as she worked to clean tables during the breakfast rush. "The house of the cunning and the ambitious. My best friend, Draco, is in Slytherin, but really, he's a Gryffindor, too."

"So you're placed in your house when you're only eleven?" Ava wrinkled her nose. "What happens if your personality has completely changed by the time you're done?"

Harry shrugged. "I dunno. But I know not everyone matches the house they're placed into."

Nicholas snorted. "That's not the stupidest thing to me. Why is the symbol of Ravenclaw an eagle?"

Emma snorted into her hot cocoa, and Newt snickered. "I fear that question will never be answered," he said.

"It irritated the hell out of Lily," Remus chuckled. "She, Sirius, and Cissa spent so much time trying to come up with the wildest theories."

"And what theory won?" Victor asked curiously.

Remus made a fancy gesture with his hand. "Magic."

That made Emma choke on her next drink and sent Newt and Queenie into laughter. "Of course," Emma coughed, clearing her throat. "Of course, magic was the answer."

Remus shrugged, hiding a grin behind his cup of tea. "Well, what other answer did you expect, Emma?"

"So the school Harry attends now is the same school you three and his birth parents went to?" Michael asked.

"Oh, not me," Queenie shook her head. "I was schooled here in the United States."

"But yes, Remus and I both attended Hogwarts, though not in the same year," Newt said.

"And which of these houses were you in?" Michael asked curiously, watching Harry wave his hands about as he explained more of Hogwarts.

"Gryffindor," Remus grinned. "Home of the brave. I was almost put in Ravenclaw."

"Hufflepuff," Newt answered simply.

"It fits him," Queenie smiled. "Never anger the badger by getting in the way of his creatures."

"Queenie!" Newt gave her a wounded look as Emma pushed her drink aside and buried her face in her arms, her shoulders shaking as she laughed.

"Creatures?" Mary Margaret asked with a frown.

"Newt here is our resident animal whisperer," Queenie patted Newt on the shoulder. "There isn't a creature out there that he can't help."

Newt ducked his head, his cheeks flushing red. "Queenie," he repeated with a whine.

"He's very humble about it," Emma added helpfully, her voice muffled by her arms.

Newt gestured exasperatedly. "Well, there aren't many to help here in Storybrooke, are there?"

"You could help out at the pet shelter," Ruby suggested. "Unless you've got a job as David's understudy at the sheriff's office."

David laughed. "Hey, they've been working together longer than Emma and I have."

"And to think I once preferred being out of the action," Newt muttered, then he sighed as Queenie giggled. "Perhaps once we've found our place to settle. I can think of some creatures to bring here from back in New York." He wrinkled his nose. "Perhaps that should wait until I know I can bring them in under the good mayor's nose."

"Good idea," Emma agreed.

"These aren't dangerous creatures, are they?" Michael asked with a concerned look towards his children.

"Not in Newt's hands," Queenie assured him with a smile. "Unless, of course, they perceived someone as a threat to Newt."

Emma chortled. "Arete wouldn't hurt a flea."

"Arete is perfect for me, thank you," Newt narrowed his eyes at Emma. "Just because Achilles matches you perfectly with your snark - "

"Khione is awesome!" Harry chirped from the booth, making both of his guardians blink at him, not having expected him to contribute. "You should've seen her when Dumbledore tried anything with me or Uncle Theseus. I swear, Uncle Theseus looked ready to let her at him."

Newt coughed and scratched the back of his head. "Yes, well . . . there's a reason I gifted her to Theseus."

Mary Margaret and Michael exchanged confused looks, but Remus smiled reassuringly at them. "You won't have anything to worry about from her," he promised.

Mary Margaret nodded slowly, then she checked her watch. "Oh, but look at the time," she said, finishing her coffee and standing. "Michael, how about I take the twins to school?"

"Thank you," Michael nodded thankfully. "We'll see Harry later, alright?"

"Thanks, Dad!" Nicholas grinned, hauling on his backpack and hurrying to join Mary Margaret.

The smile on Michael's face made Emma chuckle. "You'll ride a high from that for a while," she warned. "I swear, I never stopped smiling for months after Harry first called me his mum."

Ava paused to hug Michael tightly and wave to Harry before bounding to join her brother, and Mary Margaret departed after them. "I can understand why," Michael smiled. "Thank you again, Emma, for helping us. Not just reuniting us, but also the financial help."

"Oh, please," Emma waved away his gratitude. "That was nothing. It's really Harry's money, and he practically begged me to help. Not that he needed to beg, but that's not the point. We both wanted to help, so we'll help however we can. Don't be afraid to ask. You won't even really be taking a penny from his accounts."

"It's weird to think of him being that rich," Victor murmured, then he winced when Ruby smacked him on the back of his head. "I didn't mean it that way!"

"Trust me," Emma said dryly as she finished her cocoa. "Wait until you meet the rest of the group in Britain. Harry isn't the only one with an ancient family line." She flipped through her wallet and handed Ruby her payment and tip. "And on that note, David and I need to get to the station. Don't hog all of Remus's time, Whale. My son still has a few things to learn before the next school year."

Victor chuckled and raised his coffee in acknowledgement. "Heard, Sheriff."

***

Newt hummed to himself as he scanned the notebook in front of him, absently writing in it as he glanced between his writing and the bottomless bag in front of him. "I could have sworn we had more Burn-Healing Paste," he frowned, scribbling down a list of ingredients. "Or maybe that's the Fire Protection Potion I'm thinking of . . . "

"Newt!"

Mary Margaret's panicked call made Newt's head snap up, and he quickly tugged on the bag's strings to close it, hiding the potions from view. "Mary Margaret?" he asked in concern, setting his notebook onto the bench next to him. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"I was heading to the pet shelter, but I saw you here first," Mary Margaret panted as she hurried up to him, cradling something in her arms. "And I remembered what we talked about this morning, and I just thought . . . "

She trailed off, and Newt's eyes widened when he saw the dove, tangled in a black net, in Mary Margaret's arms. "Oh, no," he whispered, carefully removing the dove from Mary Margaret's hold and transferring it into his lap. "Come here, my dear." He peered around the dove, searching for how to open the net. Dexterous fingers deftly untied the knots, and the black net fell away from the dove, which cooed up at Newt. "Alright," Newt adjusted his position on the bench. "What happened to you, lovely?"

"I was walking along the main road in the woods," Mary Margaret explained, sitting on the bench next to Newt. "I could hear her from the road, and I found her tangled up in this."

"You poor thing," Newt tutted. He finished examining the bird, then he sat back on the bench. "Hmm."

"Hmm?" Mary Margaret repeated incredulously. "What . . . what does that mean?"

"Well," Newt cleared his throat. "The good news here is that this lovely bird has no broken bones. She's a little dehydrated, but that's easily fixed with some fluids. Easy peasy."

"And the bad news?"

Newt sighed. "This is a North Atlantic dove," he explained. "It's a migratory species, and it's very unique among doves in the Americas. They tend to form strong monogamous bonds, which means - "

"If I don't get her back to her flock, she'll be alone forever," Mary Margaret whispered in horror.

"Unfortunately, yes," Newt nodded. "She wouldn't be out of place with me, and we could probably take her to the pet shelter . . . but while she'll heal, she'll be very unhappy."

"Then I'll take my chances," Mary Margaret said determinedly. "You said she just needs some fluids, right?"

"Yes, that's easily handled," Newt nodded, glancing up at the sky with a frown at the dark gray clouds rolling in front of the sun. "Mary Margaret, we'll need to be careful. There's a storm coming. We won't have a lot of time."

"The storm's coming tomorrow," Mary Margaret shook her head. "If we wait, she could be lost forever, completely alone. No one deserves that."

Perhaps it was a trick of the light, but Mary Margaret swore she saw something akin to pain flash through Newt's eyes. "No," he murmured. "They don't." He shook himself and stood, tucking the dove into the crook of his arm. "Very well. Let's hurry."

***

"You know," David looked up from packing the cruiser's trunk with supplies, "I think that's the most I've heard everyone talk about your world in front of us before."

Emma paused in checking items off her clipboard. "That's definitely the closest we've come to saying more than we should," she admitted. "Queenie is a baker, that easily translates to this world. People might put Newt in an asylum if we come anywhere close to admitting he's a magizoologist."

"At least until we break the curse," David agreed. "Khione is a wolf, right?"

"Winter wolf," Emma nodded. "According to Harry, she threatened to turn Dumbledore into an ice sculpture for Theseus at one point during the school year."

David frowned. "And why didn't she?"

Emma snorted. "I think Theseus decided it wasn't worth it . . . yet."

David sighed in disappointment. "Shame."

Emma giggled and continued to check items off her list. "Anyway, Achilles is my pegasus. Arete is Newt's familiar - a Qilin."

"A Qilin," David repeated, mulling the name over. "What's that?"

"It's a deer-like creature with scales like a dragon," Emma answered with a smile. "She's beautiful. And Qilin are very rare, native only to China. What makes them so precious is that they have precognitive abilities, and they can see the purity of one's soul."

David whistled lowly. "And she chose to be Newt's familiar?"

Emma nodded with a smile. "See why I trust him so much?"

"I do," David nodded.

The radio to the car suddenly turned off, and Emma lifted her head with a frown to see Regina standing by the front of the car. "If you're looking to blame me for the storm, I think you're taking things a bit far now," she remarked.

"I need you to look into something, Sheriff," Regina told her, folding her arms. "Someone's in town . . . someone new."

"We know," Emma nodded, standing from the sidewalk to help David finish packing. "We gave him directions to Granny's the other night."

"You talked to him?" Regina asked sharply. "Well, what'd he say?"

"He asked for directions," Emma repeated. "What's the big deal? Who is he?"

"I don't know," Regina shrugged. "I asked around, but no one seems to know anything." She tightened her arms around herself with a scowl. "There's something about him," she muttered. "Something familiar."

Emma looked sharply at David, who folded his arms and considered the dark-haired woman. "Is he one of the untold millions you cursed?" he asked dryly.

Regina did a double take and stared at David. "What?"

"You know, Henry's whole curse thing?" David smiled innocently.

Regina's scowl deepened, and she turned back to Emma. "Sheriff, I need you to find out who he is, what he wants, and what he's doing here."

Emma sighed and shut the trunk of the cruiser. "You know, as hard as you tried to find one in my case, there is no law against visiting Storybrooke."

"This isn't about the law, Ms. Swan," Regina snapped. "You're gonna do this because I asked you to and because you'll see it's the right thing to do."

Emma frowned, folding her arms. "And why is that?"

"Because he was in front of my house," Regina answered. "Taking a particular interest in the one thing we both care about: Henry."

David stiffened and looked at Emma with worry, and the blonde's green eyes narrowed as thunder rumbled over their heads. "We'll look into it," she promised.

Regina nodded gratefully, stepping back from the car and watching the pair get into the cruiser to head back to the station.

***

"Damnit!" Mary Margaret groaned, parking her car in front of a gate blocking the road.

"Hopefully the flock isn't too far," Newt craned his head out the window, frowning at the storm clouds in the sky. "We'll have to hurry."

Mary Margaret nodded in agreement, opening her door and pointing down the road. "I found her in this direction."

Newt nodded and picked up the cage with the dove. "I'll follow you."

Mary Margaret carefully made her way off the road, Newt following behind her. He itched to pull his wand from its holster up his sleeve, but this was Mary Margaret, not David. As much as he wished the woman had her memories of the Enchanted Forest, she didn't . . . so no magic unless he needed to take drastic measures. Thunder cracked above them, and Newt frowned warily at the sky. Hopefully the weather didn't require him to use drastic measures.

His attention was directed elsewhere by multiple coos, and Mary Margaret laughed in relief. "That must be them!" she ran ahead. "That must be the flock!"

"Mary Margaret!" Newt scrambled after her. "Be careful!"

The ground suddenly gave way under Mary Margaret's feet, and Newt barely set down the cage in time to lunge forward and grab Mary Margaret's arm, pulling her back and away from the sudden drop. Mary Margaret gasped and clung to Newt, eyes widening in terror as she glanced down into the ravine she hadn't seen. "Oh, my God!"

"Are you OK?" Newt asked, looking her up and down worriedly.

"Yeah," she nodded dazedly. "Yeah, I'm fine." She looked away from the ravine, her face suddenly pale. "I can't believe I almost fell down there."

"That's why you don't go out in a storm alone," Newt nodded, wincing when he felt a raindrop hit his head. "We need to get out of here."

"But the flock!" Mary Margaret protested, bending down to pick up the cage.

Newt shook his head, waving around them as a deluge began, thunder cracking above them. "We're in a forest while there's a thunderstorm going on!" he told her, having to shout to be heard. "This isn't safe, Mary Margaret! Come on!"

Mary Margaret bit her lip, but when a louder crash of thunder rang in the air, she nodded and ran to follow Newt back towards the car. They ran back down the sketchy path they took back to the car, Mary Margaret slipping and almost falling at one point, trying to beat the downpour of the rain to the car. They were soaked by the time they got back to the vehicle, but they got in and blasted the heat, not wanting to freeze. Newt wanted so badly to use a drying and a heating charm, but the woman beside him didn't know he had magic, so he couldn't, and he'd promised himself that he would only use magic in an emergency.

For a few minutes, all that was heard was the heat blasting and the thunderous rain outside. Across the road, a lightning strike sliced across the dark sky, lighting up the road. Mary Margaret sighed when she looked down at the dove that she'd saved. "We'll get you home, girl, I swear."

"We will," Newt agreed, nodding his head.

"Can I ask you something?" Mary Margaret's voice was quiet when she spoke a few minutes later.

"Of course," Newt nodded, turning to give the schoolteacher his full attention.

She fiddled with the ring on her hand for a moment then sighed. "Have you ever loved someone you shouldn't? Someone who the rest of society wouldn't understand why you love them or would judge you for loving them?"

Her voice held tones of longing and heartbreak, something he knew very well. "Yeah," he nodded somberly, glancing at the window as raindrops pounded the glass. "I know all about it." His voice was soft, a stark contrast to the loud, rolling thunder outside. "It was a long time ago, and it still cuts me up whenever I think about it."

Mary Margaret's head turned toward Newt quickly, her soaking wet hair, an even darker black than normal, slinging droplets of water onto him. "What? Really?"

Newt nodded, giving no further details and seeming to not want to offer further details, and Mary Margaret just sighed. "Regina has been giving me issues when it comes to David," she shared, and Newt's eyes darkened. "I know I don't have to worry, but I do. I love him so much, and everyone is treating me as if I am doing something wrong. He's getting a divorce from her, so it's not as if I am being a homewrecker."

"You aren't a homewrecker," Newt told her firmly. "Regina is a very . . . cruel person. From what I've observed from her, she wouldn't know love if it hit her like a truck."

Mary Margaret hesitantly nodded, and his part said, Newt leaned back in his seat and stared out at the gloomy weather. The storm continued on as the two fell silent, listening to the heater and the thunder, which didn't look like it was going to slow anytime soon.

***

Emma let David return to the precinct, and she raced to Granny's before he pulled away so she didn't get soaked, but she still managed to be soaking wet anyway. When she walked inside, she spotted her sons, Remus, and Whale sitting at a corner booth. She walked over to them, only to see Harry subtly doing wand movement under the table towards Leroy, who was struggling to keep his cap on his head.

She folded her arms and glared at Remus, who blinked innocently up at her from his cup of tea. "What?" he asked with a smug smirk, knowing exactly what her narrowed eyes were for.

Next to Remus, Whale snorted and turned back to his papers, which appeared to be patient charts. "You know what, Remus," Emma huffed, and she bent down to ruffle Harry's hair and whisper in his ear. "Haz, bud, put your wand away, you can practice later."

Harry reluctantly did as told, much to the chagrin of Henry, who was enjoying the subtle magic Harry was using to prank people. "C'mon!" the younger boy protested. "We were only having some fun."

Emma shook her head firmly and gestured to the diner, especially to Ruby as she ran from table to table. How that woman could run and not trip in those high heels, Emma didn't know. Maybe that was something to ask Narcissa later, she thought, ignoring the pang in her heart when she thought of the witch who was one of her mentors. "The diner is busy right now with people coming in from the storm, Henry. You both can go up to the room when it stops raining, OK?"

Both boys nodded, and Emma turned her head to track where Ruby had gone, but she saw the man they encountered the night before. She steeled herself and walked over to him. "We need to talk," she told him, crossing her arms.

The man turned to look at her. "Why?"

"Because," she started, and then paused when she saw a big wooden box next to him on the floor. "You're suspicious," she said.

He raised his eyebrows. "Sitting here? Out in the open? Drinking coffee?" Emma narrowed her eyes at his sarcasm. "I wonder what kind of hell I would have raised had I ordered a doughnut."

"You were talking to Henry."

The man turned his body fully towards her, and she stiffened, her hand itching to grab her wand. "You mean the little kid who came up to me asking questions?" he asked; out of the corner of her eye, Emma saw Remus slowly lower his teacup and incline his head in their direction, and she let her hand relax, knowing the werewolf was fully aware of the conversation taking place. "Is that unusual for him, being curious and precocious?"

"What were you doing outside his house?" she asked, ignoring his remark about her youngest son.

"My bike broke down," he shrugged. "It happens."

Emma nodded slowly, her green gaze dropping once more to the box at his feet. "Your mysterious box, what's in it?" she asked, her voice full of suspicion.

The man slowly smirked at her, making her grit her teeth. "It's awfully frustrating not knowing, isn't it?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Just tell me!" Emma snapped.

"Why?" the man folded his arms. "Is it illegal to carry around a box in these parts?"

She scoffed, rolling her eyes. "No, of course not. I'm just checking on the safety of my town, and my family."

The stranger cocked his head to the side. "You really want to know what's inside it, don't you?"

"No!" Emma insisted. The man raised an eyebrow in challenge, and Emma sighed in defeat, her five-strand braid falling over her shoulder and next to her collar bone as she nodded. "Well, maybe," she conceded, sitting down in the booth opposite him.

"I'm gonna make you wait," the man smirked. "You're gonna have to wait a long time, and watch me carry it around, hauling it, to strange and mysterious places. And with each passing moment the mystery will become more tantalizing. Your imagination will inflame, but so will your frustration, never knowing, only guessing 'What could possibly be inside that box?' Or . . . " He paused and leaned in. "You could let me buy you a drink sometime, and I'll tell you right now."

Emma narrowed her eyes. "You want to buy me a drink?" she asked incredulously, her refusal right on the tip of her tongue.

"Yes," the stranger said, a smile on his lips.

Emma stared at him for a minute, trying to find out if he was serious or not. "OK, a drink it is," she said decisively. Having a drink with a stranger was worth it if she could know right now that her family was safe. She watched as the man lifted his wooden box onto the table in front of him. He looked at Emma and paused before opening the box, revealing a beautifully preserved typewriter. "Really?" Emma asked in surprise, staring at him.

He shrugged and chuckled. "I'm a writer."

Emma raised her eyebrows. "That's why you're here?"

The man nodded, lightly drumming his fingers on the lid of the box. "I find this place provides . . . inspiration. Don't you?"

As soon as he finished his sentence, lightning flashed outside as he closed the box and pushed it aside. Emma watched him intently as he took a sip of coffee. "Wait," she frowned, leaning back and looking at him as he stood from the table. "Have you been here before?"

"I didn't say that," he shook his head and put a five-dollar bill.

Emma rapidly stood, watching the man haul his typewriter off the table. "What about that drink?" she asked, gesturing to the counter.

"I said sometime," he reminded her as he went to leave.

As he opened the door and closed it, thunder cracked again, leaving Emma to stare after the man in frustration. Footsteps sounded behind her, but it was a familiar pattern that Emma didn't turn to look. "Henry pointed him out when he came in," Remus murmured in her ear. "You're going to get questions sooner or later."

Emma sighed. "I have questions."

Remus shrugged and patted her shoulder. "That's why you've got family here to help you out."

***

Newt has seen some pretty bad storms over his long years, but he hadn't seen one this bad in a long time. He watched as wind blew tree leaves across the roads and through the air.

"Look!" Mary Margaret finally pointed with a cheer. "The rain stopped pouring!" Sure enough, the rain had slowed down to a drizzle, and he opened his door experimentally to see if the wind was as bad as he thought it was. When his door wasn't blown almost off its hinges, he stepped out with Mary Margaret following suit. "Finally, my legs are numb," she complained with a laugh, holding the cage steady as she shook her legs out.

Newt laughed and turned to wring out his coat. "It's been a long time since I've been caught in a storm that bad," he began to tell her.

"Shh!" she held up her hand, and Newt obediently shut his mouth. "Listen!" Newt tilted his head, and he began to grin when he heard the flap of several pairs of wings. Above their heads, several doves soared through the now-clear sky. Mary Margaret laughed with joy and opened the cage excitedly. "The flock! It didn't leave!"

"They must've waited for the storm to clear," Newt smiled.

Mary Margaret nodded as she helped the bird out, gently holding her. "OK, girl. Time to join your friends. You can do it." She carefully threw the dove into the air, and as soon as the dove was free, she took flight and rose to join the flock.

Mary Margaret laughed with glee, spinning around to watch the doves as long as she could, and Newt watched her, smiling to himself, thinking that this woman was absolutely the Snow White he had read about in Henry's book. Her kindness and compassion for people and animals was living proof of it. He couldn't wait for her to figure out he was basically her adopted son, because Emma was his adoptive sister.

Newt could not wait until the curse was broken.

***

The next morning, Emma and Newt stood in front of Granny's diner after breakfast, watching Mary Margaret kiss David before heading to the school. There was a slight spring to David's step as he walked to join Emma, and Newt waved farewell as father and daughter walked down the sidewalk to head to the sheriff's station.

He then turned and gave Regina Mills a nonchalant wave, and the woman's jaw clenched from where she stood, likely hoping she was concealed by her car. That didn't work on Newt, however, and the magizoologist whistled a tune to himself as he strolled back into the diner, the clock tower chiming 7:15 behind him.

***

What Emma is thinking in the words of the Doctor, "I hate not knowing things" XD Poor girl. You'll find out soon . . . and of course, given the changes we've gone through so far, that'll go really well, I'm sure.

*cricket chirps* Anyway! Just one chapter this time, given this episode was very Enchanted Forest heavy to begin with. Plus, no David and Mary Margaret and Kathryn drama, so this was actually quite easy to write.

Hopefully we'll get back into a rhythm with writing once more because we both have things we really want to write in the future books of this series XD So, onwards and upwards! Next up - "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree!"

***

Hey all! That's a wrap on "7:15"!! Hope you liked it! It was a very short episode so we just kept it one chapter this time! We went with *mostly* original content with the script, and we definitely took some liberties with this chapter, but it came out good in my opinion! And hey! We didn't wait for literally forever to give you another update! XD Anyway, hope you liked this chapter! What'd you guys think?

As always, stay safe, stay sane, and stay cool! The weather is turning hot! <3 <3

Happy Reading!

(Hey Miss Moffat do you think anyone will notice the hints we dropped in this chapter? XD - Honestly, people have figured out plot points with less XD)