Well, as I am sure most of you are, but that finale has left me enraged. Emma has done it again, and acted selfishly without any consideration to the consequences it may have. (I'm sorry if this offends some of you, but Emma was never one of my favorite characters, and after the finale, I REALLY don't like her any more)
So, this is a story that takes place right after the finale, but will NOT be following the show, since the part with the ern and Elsa escaping is not included. Therefore, this story will have a new villian.
This is how I HOPE that the writers will fix the OutlawQueen situation.
So read and enjoy. Whether this stays a oneshot, or becomes a multi-chapter fic, is up to all of you my dear readers.
"Well, you just better hope to hell that you didn't bring anything else back," she spat.
That was all she could say, even though she was slowly dying on the inside, that was all she could muster. That was all her pride allowed her to say, for no matter how painful something may be, she never showed the extent of damage it did to her, she always held her head up high, and soldiered on.
She wanted to scream, she wanted to throw Emma against a wall, and thrust her hand into her chest. She knew she couldn't rip out her heart, but she wanted to see the pained look on her face. Every magical instinct she had screamed at her to do it, all of the anger and resentment she had worked so hard to bury, was scratching its way back into light, and it was not easy to reign it in with that searing pain coursing through her veins.
But no, she won't do it, she won't go back to her dark ways. Not now, not after she finally changed, not after she finally used light magic, and most importantly; not after her son called her a hero. She had worked so hard to change for his sake, and she was not about to lose the battle now. He finally called her a hero, he finally looked her in the eye and told her that he believed in her, she finally saw the unconditional love in his eyes again. And after almost two years of him calling her the Evil Queen, it felt great. She thought her heart broke when she lost Daniel, but nothing compares to the loss of a child, and her pain over losing Henry nearly drove her mad. So no, she was not going to hurt Emma, she wasn't even going to hurt Marian-despite the fact that the sight of her in Robin's arms, and how Roland was clutching onto her, was causing her heart to nearly split in half-but she couldn't disappoint her son again.
And so, she did the only thing she knew how to do best when in situations she didn't like…..escape. And so, before anyone could say another word, she raised her hand, and disappeared in a cloud of purple smoke.
Once the smoke cleared, two voices rang in the now deadly quiet diner.
"Mom," and "Gina," were called by Henry and Roland simultaneously, though their tones were worlds apart.
Henry's voice was filled with concern, and love; while Roland's held nothing but innocence and slight disappointment at her sudden, and rather abrupt, exit.
That was when the other shoe finally dropped; Robin's face paled, and he whipped around to look at the spot where Regina was mere seconds ago.
"Papa, where did Gina go?" Roland asked innocently, as he wiggled out of his mother's arms.
Robin did not know what to say to his son, for he hadn't completely comprehended the complexity of the situation yet. Marian, his long dead wife is back, and mere mintues ago, he was kissing Regina passionately, and now she was gone.
'I just never thought I'd have this.'
'My first love, Daniel, was killed because of me. Because he loved ME.'
'She led me to this tavern, to a man, who she said I was destined to be with.'
'I was just too scared to approach you.'
Those were the words she had said to him, just this morning.
'I would've walked through hell, just to be with my Marian again.'
And those were his words to her! And now, as soon as Marian appeared, he took her into his arms, and for a second, just a second, he completely forgot that she was there, and he did not think about how this was going to look.
All of that took less than second, all of those thoughts stormed through his mind in the blink of an eye, and before he could answer Roland's question, an angry voice stopped him.
"What did you do?" he hissed, and almost every single person in the diner were taken aback by the amount of anger in the usually calm and loving voice.
It was Henry's voice, and Emma did not need to look at him to know that he was gritting his teeth. He sounded so much like Regina in that moment, that it broke Emma's heart. It was further proof that when it comes down to it, Henry will always need Regina in ways she will never understand.
Her suspicions of how much he was like his mother were further confirmed, when she finally turned her head to look at him. His eyes were narrowed, and his entire face was clenched in anger. His body seemed to be shaking with suppressed rage, and the daggers flying out of his eyes were directed at her. She had seen that look too many times on Regina's face, and she found no differences from the one she was getting from her son at that moment.
"Henry, I…." her sentence was cut short by yet another angry voice, this time from a very unlikely source.
"Don't even try to defend yourself, "she enunciated every syllable, and when Emma looked in the direction of the voice, she found a seething Tinkerbelle.
"Can everybody please take a step back and breathe?" David intercepted the two-person angry mob that seemed to be out for his daughter's head.
"NO," Henry screamed, "I am sick and tired of you all doing this, every time she tried to change, one of you does something to prove to her that she can never be happy. You never think of the consequences," he bellowed, his eyes burning holes at his mother, before he angrily stomped towards the door.
"Henry, where are you going?" Snow asked, seeing as Emma was still too stunned to talk.
"To find my mom," he snapped, stressing the title, and making a point in showing that she was not his mother, but his mom.
"And by the way, "he added, once he stepped outside, "if you had insisted on going back to New York, you would've gone back alone." He finished matter of factly, before he stormed out of the diner.
"Can someone please explain to us what the hell is going on?" Snow ordered impatiently, while Hook moved to comfort a frozen Emma. He clearly saw how hard her son's words affected her, and as much as he wanted to know what the hell was going on, he knew he had to take her out of there.
"Come on, love, let's get out of here," he instructed gently, but she was glued to the spot.
"Robin, what is going on?" it was Marian who asked this time, and Robin's blank face turned to her.
He opened his mouth to reply, but found himself at a loss for words. He looked like a fish, with his mouth opening and closing, a desperate attempt to conjure up words, but his brain seemed to be opting for the sidelines this time.
"Well, it looks like apples don't fall far from trees, and that your family is hell bound on seeing Regina miserable," Tinkerbelle snapped, before she too barreled out of the diner, in an attempt to catch up with Henry.
"What the hell was that all about?" David demanded, but received no answer.
That seemed to snap Robin out of his trance, and he looked around for a way to handle the situation with the least damage possible. His eyes landed on a very confused Little John, and an idea finally presented itself.
"Marian, take Roland and go with Little John. I will soon follow, and I promise I will explain everything," he instructed, as he pushed her towards an approaching John.
"But…."she tried to object.
"Please, just trust me," he almost begged, and she nodded.
"Come on, Roland." Little John called, but the boy shook his head defiantly, and grabbed onto his father's leg.
"NO," he said angrily, stomping his foot to emphasize his displeasure, "I want to know where Gina went, and why she was so upset!" he demanded defiantly, and Robin couldn't help but curse the luck that gave Roland his stubborn streak.
"Roland, go with your mother, and I will be back soon. Regina was just a bit tired, and so she went home," he lied, and a bad lie at that, but good thing kids were fooled easily.
"Will you go check on her?" he asked innocently, and Robin couldn't help but scowl. He could feel Marian's confused and shocked stare at the back of his skull, and he also knew that Henry would never let him near his mother right now.
"Indeed I will."
His son did not need to know how complicated life had just gotten, he had gotten attached to Regina, and the latter was wonderful with him. Even back at the Enchanted Forest, when they couldn't stand each other, she was always great with Roland.
His son nodded reluctantly, and huffed out irritably and in defeat, before begrudgingly taking his mother's hand, and following the adults out of the diner.
"Robin," Snow called expectantly.
He sighed in both frustration and pain alike, for it seemed that this time was worse than when he literally lost her heart. She told him how hard it was for her to open up, why it was hard for her to let go of the anger, why she was so scared. And he just made her worst fear come true.
"Shortly after Regina married your father, she met Tinkerbelle. She told her that she could love again, and she led her to a tavern where the man she was destined to be with was. Daniel had just died, and her fear of getting hurt again stopped her from pursuing it. She thought that if she stayed in a loveless marriage, that there are less chances of her getting hurt. She never went in, and she never saw his face," he recounted, and Snow shifted uncomfortably at the jab at how her father treated Regina. She was about to open her mouth to protest, but one look from Robin told her that it wasn't a good idea.
"The only thing she saw," he continued, lifting up his right arm, and pulling down his sleeve, revealing his lion tattoo, "was his tattoo."
A collection of gasps was heard from those in the diner, and Emma's eyes fell shut at the realization of just how much she messed up.
Tinkerbelle jogged down the path and onto the street, halting momentarily, her eyes scanning the seemingly deserted streets in an effort to locate Henry. She found him a few feet ahead of her, no doubt heading towards the place where he thinks his mother is.
"Henry, wait up," she called, as she sprinted after him.
The angry twelve year old did not stop, but he did slow down his angry pace to give her enough time to catch up. Once she reached him, she silently put a hand on his shoulder, and they walked side by side in total silence. Both were thinking of anything they could possibly say to console Regina, especially Tink, for this was all on her. Or at least most of it was.
After a little over half an hour of walking, they finally reached the big white mansion. Henry could feel a pang of guilt, as he laid eyes on it. This was his home, for so long, it was only filled with his chatter, and Regina's happy laughs. But then…..then he learned that he was adopted, and automatically assumed that she did not love him. He threw away ten years of happy memories, completely ignoring all the pained looks she gave him when he accused her of being incapable of love.
Robin wasn't the first person she had opened up to, she had opened her heart for him. She took him in, raised him, nurtured him, loved him, and eventually sacrificed everything for his sake. And he was no better than Robin, he used every piece of it against her, he hurt her deeply and repeatedly. He pushed her away, and eventually walked out of her house. And despite the numerous times he missed her, he did not go to her. Not until it was too late, and the surprise in her eyes had hurt him. She truly did not think that he loved her, and for that he had no one to blame but himself.
Once they reached the footpath, he broke out of Tink's hold, and sprinted towards the front door. He didn't knock, he didn't ring the bell, he went straight for the knob and turned it. He nearly danced with joy when it turned, and he walked in, leaving it open for Tink to catch up with him.
As soon as he stepped inside, he heard the faint sound of sniffling coming from their living room, and when he craned his neck from the top of the foyer steps, he saw the fire blazing, but no signs of his mother. He walked slowly towards the couch, and was finally able to spot her head. She was sitting on the floor, her legs bent beside her, and her back resting against the back of the couch.
He walked around the couch, and finally got a good look at her face. He saw the tear streaks glowing on her cheeks under the fire glow, as her eyes stared unseeing at the burning flames. Her lips were quivering with every shuddered breath she released, and her arms were wrapped around her middle, in a desperate effort to console herself.
He heard Tink's hesitant steps enter the house, followed by the soft click of the door as she closed it. He approached Regina slowly, trying to get her attention without startling her, but it seemed that she was lost inside her own world.
"Mom," he called softly, and her head whipped around to him, her arms reflexively letting go of her middle.
He couldn't stop the soft gasp that left his lip at the look in her eyes, he had only seen her this hurt and broken less than a handful of times, and he was not proud to admit to it, but it was always because of him. But he always saw the hint of resolve in her eyes, the determination, but not this time.
This time, he saw the complete surrender, he saw that she had no will to fight any longer.
And he also saw the surprise at the sight of him, and it pained him greatly. He really had some major making up to do with her, but first thing's first.
He fell to his knees next to her, and wordlessly wrapped his arms around her waist, tucking in his head under her chin, and resting his cheek against her moving chest, breathing in her scent.
"I'm here, Mom" was all he could say.
But it seemed that it was more than enough for his mother to completely lose it.
Her body started to shake in his arms, her own wrapping tightly around him, as she buried her nose and mouth in his hair, and he felt her hot tears on the top of his head.
Her sobs gradually became louder, the tighter his arms got around her, and her arms had gotten chokingly tight around him, but he did not care nor mind. He missed her terribly, and he missed being in her arms like that. It brought back memories of a time, when the safest place on earth was by her side.
He felt another pair of arms surround them, and knew they belonged to Tink, especially when he heard the woman's broken apology.
"I'm so sorry, Regina."
Good or bad? Stop or Continue?
Well, that is up to you my dear readers :) let me know what you all think of this, and if you want me to continue or not.