Emma was playing with a necklace she had found in one of the drawers while Regina was droning on in the distance. She had stopped listening to the words some time ago and was just enjoying the melody of her voice. Nothing really changed for her when it comes to classes since her school days, not really. Suddenly, the necklace was snatched from her fingers.
"How many times do I have to tell you not to touch anything, Miss Swan?!"
"Ah, come on, Regina. This bullshit is boring," Emma complained as she got up from her chair. "Let's do something interesting."
"If I remember correctly, you did not approve of my methods when I decided to make the lessons more interesting," she raised one eyebrow. Her voice carried a hidden challenge, the memory of Emma floating through the air towards her still stirring up excitement deep inside her.
"I meant interesting in look at these cool fireworks way, not try to kill me way. You know, something cool," she waved her hands in frustration. Regina was sometimes so boring that she could hardly believe the tales of her being the Evil Queen, bringing darkness and destruction in her wake. What exactly had she done to all those people, bored them to death with bureaucracy and rules? She looked at her just in time to see a flash of danger in Regina's eyes.
"Define cool?" the question was asked in calm voice that made Emma gulp. There was definitely something dangerous in those eyes. She didn't even had time to blink when Regina charged towards her and a gloved hand grabbed her throat, her body suddenly colliding with the wall behind her. She found herself struggling for air, her arms flailing helplessly. Just as quickly, wave of white light arched her body, sending her assaulter across the room. She was once again free to breathe.
"What the hell, Regina?" she managed to say. The other woman was getting up from when she had sent her, her hands automatically smoothing her hair.
"See, apparently, the only way to get you use your power is to put you in danger," Regina answered, her voice not sounding as calm and collected as she wanted. "Lesson's over."
"For sure it is. You're a real fuck up, you know?" Emma blurted out and headed towards the exit. How could Regina make her this angry in just mere seconds was one of the mysteries of this world that she did not intend to uncover. Then on the top of the stairs, an invisible force knocked her back. Her fall was broken by Regina, who apparently tried to catch her. Tried was the right word, as they both ended up on the floor, with Emma's back safely landed on Regina's front. They lay in this awkward position for a moment, both out of breathe.
"Do you mind?" Regina poked Emma in almost childish manner. Emma got up, dusting her jeans in order to hide her confusion. She looked at the stairs with quizzical face.
"What the hell was that?"
Regina got up and headed to the stairs, carefully taking step by step, until she was standing face to face with invisible wall. She poked it with her finger. "It is a barrier. A magic barrier."
"No shit, Sherlock. But what the hell is it doing there?"
"Well, apparently it is preventing us from leaving," Regina said in the slow voice that she used when talking to idiots.
"But who put it there? Do you think Zelena knew we were here and locked us in?" frowned Emma.
"Don't be ridiculous. No, it has a distinct residue of who cast it," Regina replied, walking down back to Emma.
"So who was it?"
"You, of course. And you cannot even recognize you've done it, yet alone take it down. You really do take after your parents," Regina snorted, sitting down on the chair in royal manner like the queen she used to be. Emma could almost physically feel her contempt.
"How...how do I remove it?" her eyes looked from Regina to the stairs and back.
"Well, it is your barrier, you are the one who should know."
"But I did not mean to put it there. How do I do that?" she inquired again. Regina just shrugged. "Dammit, Regina, you are supposed to teach me magic."
"And you are supposed to learn to control it. And so far, you are failing," she said, seemingly unfazed. Emma felt a surge of anger going through her again. That damned woman just sat there as if she was waiting for her coffee. She wanted her to feel the same frustration she did. She started to pace the room, thinking of a way to strike.
"It is all your fault, you know?" she blurted out. Regina once again raised her perfect eyebrow. "You pushed me to do this. You should help me to get out of this."
"Well, Miss Swan, I do not know what you did, therefore I cannot help you. Maybe if you paid attention to what I was saying before-"
"That's bullshit and you know it. You were just going on about…"
"About what?" she asked. Emma waved her hand on her. "See, you have no idea what I was talking about."
"This conversation is pointless. Seriously, what are we going to do?"
"Well, I think we are going to sit here until you figure out a way to break your own spell."
"So that is what you are going to do. Just sit here and do nothing?"
"That is precisely what I am going to do. Why, do you have something better to do? Like hang out with that pirate of yours?" Regina tilted her head and crossed her legs, her hands neatly folded on the top of her knee. God, she really knew how to anger Emma.
"I told you before, there is nothing between me and Hook. Wait, is it what this is about? You being jealous of Hook?" Emma blurted out. Regina turned her gaze towards the ceiling and scoffed.
"Don't be ridiculous. Your pointless love affairs hold a little interest for me."
"Really? Because you are the one who brought it up. And there is no love affair," Emma folded her arms across her chest, looking directly at Regina, who just gave a bored sigh in answer. "Maybe if you listened to Tinkerbell and did something about you and Robin, you wouldn't be like this."
"Like what?" Regina stood up, a hint of darkness in her voice.
"Like a bitter jealous woman!" Emma shot back, once again her mouth quicker than her brain. Regina charged towards her, but this time, stopped mere inches from her.
"I. Am. Not. Jealous." she said, her body disturbingly close to Emma. "And I am not interested in Robin."
Emma could feel her heart quicken. She blamed it on fear. Regina was a powerful sorceress and she just made her angry. Of course she was afraid of her. That was why her heart quickened. Why she was holding her breath. It had nothing to do with the smell of Regina's perfume filling up the air around her. Her body being close enough to feel the heat radiating from her. Those perfect lips being just inches away, it would take her just one move to capture them with her own and find out what Regina tasted like. No, it had nothing to do with it, it must have been the fear. She had no idea how long they were standing there like that, holding each other's gaze, Regina's eyes like storm and fire, looking into her own eyes challengingly. When Emma did not move, Regina took a step back, turned around and walked back to her chair, this time standing behind it, leaning on it. Only then Emma dared to breathe again.
"I don't think this discussion leads anywhere," Regina said quietly. Somehow, Emma felt like she missed her chance. Was it possible that Regina wanted the same thing she did? Were they both lying to themselves? No, it must has been just Emma's wishful thinking. But what if Regina did want her to kiss her? "We better think of a way to get out of here."
"That's what I have been saying all along," replied Emma, sounding a way too distracted even to herself. Get together, Swan, she ordered herself. "How do we break it?"
"Well, what were you thinking when you cast it?"
"I don't know, let's see, my back was against the wall and I couldn't breathe because you were choking me, I am sure that I was thinking 'Oh yes, I want nothing more than to be trapped in a crypt with this woman', what else could it be?"
"Sarcasm does not suit you, Miss Swan."
"And it was perfectly alright when you used it. And about as much helpful," Emma sighed. She was backtracking her thoughts and there was this suspicion she had about the whole barrier. Yes, her magic threw Regina back when she was choking her. However, before that whole thing happened, she was listening to Regina's voice and if she was honest with herself, there was this part of herself that thought it was like velvet and she could listen to it forever. Perhaps those were two separate spell. Maybe she casted it even before, when she wished to stay here and listen to Regina talking forever. It was something buried deep inside her, as if Regina was the forbidden fruit she so desperately wanted to taste. Then there was only one way out of here. She took a deep breath and walked towards Regina, pushing the chair between them aside. Once again, she stood mere inches away from her.
"What are you doing?" Regina asked, her voice soft and husky.
"Something I wanted to do for a long time," Emma answered and softly pressed her lips to Regina's. She returned the kiss, one of her arms sneaking around Emma's waist, the other cupping her cheek. Emma resisted the urge to run her fingers through what she was sure were silky black hair, pulling away instead. Regina's eyes were as confused as hers as she took a step back. "This never happened."
Emma almost choked on the words as she ran out of the vault. She didn't stop running until she got home. Only there she dared to stop. Once glance at the clock was enough to make her sick. It shoved thirty-seven minutes less than her watch.
Regina stood in her vault, not entirely sure what had just happened, her lips still tingling from Emma's kiss. Dazed, she started walking towards the exit. There was no barrier this time. She walked out, leaning on the wall outside as she realized what exactly happened and that she could never speak of it. True love's kiss can break any spell.