A/N: This is for Tumblr user unintentional-gal-pals who asked if there was a fic based on the S4 finale and the song "I Will Follow You Into the Dark" by Death Cab for Cutie. If you haven't heard the song, go listen to it. I hope I did this justice! None of the characters are mine, yada yada, you all know this by now. Please read and review, it would mean a lot to me! And, if you all really like this, maybe I'll write a little more to it?
The white-hot pain was becoming unbearable as it scorched through Emma's body. Her eyes shot open as what felt like a branding iron seared her wrist. At least, she thought her eyes were open, but she couldn't be sure. Everything was black and she didn't know where she was. One moment she was sacrificing herself for Regina in the middle of the street and the next she was being tortured by pain as darkness swirled around her. Regina. Regina who had worked so hard to defeat her own darkness. Regina who had given Emma a happy ending before. Regina who Emma had realized just might be her own happy ending. Just as the pain was reaching the point of being completely unbearable, it immediately stopped and Emma found herself flat on her back. Maybe she was dead. She found herself almost hoping that she was, it would have been so much easier. She had never imagined death would be so…empty. She could have handled something like Heaven, even Hell, or any other place, but this empty black world would drive her insane. Emma pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around herself. She rocked back and forth as she sat in the darkness and let it envelop her.
Regina broke free of Robin's hold and ran over to where the Dark One's dagger lay on the street. A choked sob came from her throat as she picked up the dagger to see the new name scrawled across it: "Emma Swan." Tears began to flow down her cheeks as the others stood rooted to their spots, shocked by what had just happened in front of their eyes. Mary Margaret turned into David and buried her face in the chest as she began crying. She had lost her daughter yet again, this time to the Darkness and she didn't know where Emma was now. David held onto his wife as she shook in his arms, tears beginning to slide down his own face, too. Robin was the first to move as he walked over to Regina and put his hand on her shoulder.
"Regina, I-,"
"Don't," she spat at him. "Don't tell me that you're sorry. You just stood there as the darkness surrounded me. You didn't even move," her eyes darted over to where Hook stood. "And you," she hissed at him menacingly, "You didn't even try to save your so-called True Love either. We have no idea where she is now, or if she's even still alive! You didn't say a word as she sacrificed herself for-." The last word caught in her throat as tears burned in her eyes. She has to still be alive. She sacrificed herself for me, Regina thought.
Robin's hand was on her arm now, and she shook him off in disgust.
"We'll find her Regina, you know we will," he was trying to plead with her now, to pull her back and calm her. No, this wasn't the time to be calm. This was the time to act, to find Emma before it was too late, before something even more terrible could happen to her.
Hook nodded from his spot in the street. "I'm going to find her," he said, "if it's the last thing I do." Regina scoffed at him.
"I think not," she said coldly. "I think you've proven yourself useless enough already. Besides, what magic do you have that could find her? And even if you did find her, you wouldn't be able to match her strength and skill," she argued. "It has to be me. I'm going to find her," she said and disappeared in a cloud of purple smoke, leaving the other four behind, looking at each other and not knowing what they should do next.
She tore through her vault. There had to be something here. A clue among the pages of her many books, the right ingredients to make some potion or spell to either undo what had just happened or to get her to wherever Emma was now. She turned the dagger over in her hands. She had thought about trying to summon Emma, but she wasn't sure how turning into the Dark One exactly worked. If Emma was dead, it wouldn't work, of course, but if Emma was alive…well, Regina wasn't sure if Emma would be well in control of the newly acquired Dark powers. She needed to get herself to Emma somehow. Darkness, of course, Regina reasoned, that had to be it. She snuffed out the few candles that she had burning around her vault and became still as she felt the darkness seep around her. Regina let her mind wander to the darkest deeds she had done, the death and destruction she had caused, the hearts she had ripped out and crushed without a second thought, and how she had felt no remorse for any of her cold, unfeeling murders. She had thought the darkness had come from inside the vault after putting out the candles, but she realized that the darkness was coming from her. Along with a slight pain in her chest, Regina could actually begin to feel the darkness ebb out of her heart and swirl and churn in the air around her. It started to take hold of her completely and was choking her, choking the light inside of her that she had worked so hard to regain.
Just as it seemed like the darkness would win and pull her under, and the deafening silence would drive her mad, she felt a presence in the darkness around her. It was different, unlike anything she had ever felt before, but she knew in her bones that Emma was nearby. She opened her mouth to call out, but she couldn't make a sound as the darkness took over. No, Regina commanded herself, you are better than this now. You can do this for Emma, you have to save her. Find the light inside of you, the light Emma helped you realize was still inside of you even after all of this time. Regina concentrated on Emma, and Henry, and the family the three of them had begun to make together. It wasn't perfect yet, but there were family dinners, and movie nights every now and then. Little things that meant the world to Regina. She tried to convince herself that spending more time with Emma had been about being together with Henry, but now she found herself making excuses to see Emma more often. The lunches at Granny's which were "to go over documents" from the sheriff station, and the drinks they would share after Henry went to sleep at night. Regina had convinced herself for so long that she didn't have feelings for Henry's other mother, but she was realizing that she was lying to herself. It was then and there that she made a pact with herself, or maybe it was with the darkness that surrounded her, or maybe even the little spot of light she could feel inside that when she found Emma and saved her, that she would tell the blonde how she felt. Although it terrified Regina that Emma could possibly reject her, since she was dating the useless pirate still, she knew she owed it to herself to finally be honest about her feelings.
Regina summoned all of her energy and hope as she opened her mouth again. And this time, despite the darkness pressing back against her, she called out into the black void that surrounded her. "Emma!" she shouted. A scuffle came from somewhere behind her and Regina called out again, "Emma, where are you?"
"Re- Regina? Is that you?" Emma's voice scratched as she shakily stood up, afraid to move in the darkness, but unsure of what was happening. "Are you really here? How did you find me?" Regina moved in the direction of Emma's voice as the blonde realized that someone had managed to come after her, and not just any someone, it was Regina.
"I'm not exactly sure how I did manage to find you. I- I just, well…followed my heart," Regina confessed. She was glad for the cover of darkness at the moment, so Emma couldn't see the blush that she was sure was beginning to cover her face. "Well, I mean, I followed the darkness to you first, but then…then I followed the light."
"But, why did you come after me?" Emma asked.
"I once was taken by the darkness, too, Emma," Regina reminded her, "but no one came after me. At least, not until Henry brought you to Storybrook and into our lives. You were the only one who cared about me enough to save me from the darkness. Emma, you brought me back into the light. Only one other person cared about me enough to shine a light into my life, Emma, and we all know how well that worked."
"Daniel," Emma whispered.
"Yes," Regina confirmed for her, "and after I lost him, the darkness consumed me. There was no light left, and I thought no one could ever bring any light back into my life. Of course, Henry did, but it wasn't the same as what I had felt with Daniel. Nothing compares to the love I feel for Henry as his mother, but then you showed up, and I felt that light again. I was so scared at first, I wanted you gone. But now…" Regina trailed off as she searched the darkness in front of her. Emma was there, but she couldn't see her.
"But now the darkness has me," Emma finished the thought for her. "And you- you came after me. You followed me into the darkness to save me." Emma could feel the tears well up in her eyes as the weight of what Regina had just confessed hit her full force.
"I won't let what happened to me happen to you, Emma," Regina said forcefully, trying to keep her voice steady and strong. "We can beat this. Together."
"I'm not sure we can this time, Regina," Emma said, shaking her head even though no one could see her. "There are some things people just can't come back from, no matter how hard they fight for it."
"No, I can't accept that. Emma, please, take my hand. Just trust me," Regina's voice cracked as she pleaded with the blonde. Regina extended her hand towards where she imagined Emma was standing. She waited in the darkness for what seemed like full minutes before something nudged her hand. Regina exhaled the breath she hadn't realized she had been holding as Emma threaded their fingers together and clung to Regina like she was the only thing keeping her from being swallowed by the darkness that surrounded them. As their hands came together, a small spark illuminated their hands which were now clasped together. The light grew brighter and the two women could finally see each other. A smile pulled at the corners of Regina's lips as she met Emma's eyes which were damp with tears that threatened to spill over onto her cheeks.
"What now?" Emma asked as the light stopped growing. It was enough to see around them for a little ways, though they still didn't know where they were. As Regina looked around, she noticed a path on the ground.
"This way," she said as she started to walk toward the path with Emma in tow, their hands still entwined.
"Where are we going?" Emma whispered, unsure of what would happen or where the path would lead them.
Regina stopped and turned to face Emma again; using her free hand to take the blonde's other hand in hers as a soft smile broke across her face. "We're going home."
A/N: So, what'd you think? Let me know! Thanks for reading.