This is just something I've had playing around in my head for a few days and finally decided to write it down.
Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own Once Upon A Time.
Spoiler Warning: Some for the first 3 eps of season 6.
A/N: This isn't exactly Swan Queen but it can be read that way. If that's not your dish, you may want to stop reading now. Otherwise, enjoy!
Worst Fears
Emma stood to pace, nervously wringing her hands as she tried to put her thoughts in order. It wasn't working. This was her fourth visit to Archie's and she was no closer to solving her problems than she had been that first day. Truth was, she may have picked up a few more issues along the way. There were just too many questions vying for attention and she couldn't figure out which ones should take precedence.
"Emma?" Archie's voice broke through but she didn't stop her pacing. "I think it's time we talked about Regina."
"I-" This brought Emma to a full stop in front of the window, using it as an excuse to not look at her friend as she spoke. "I'm not sure that's such a good idea."
"Why do you want to believe it's Regina under the hood?" the man pushed, ignoring her words.
"I don't want to believe it." Emma spun around to glare at him.
"Are you sure? You seemed very adamant about it the other day."
"Well, yeah, I'm adamant. Nothing else makes sense." She turned back toward the window, staring out at the seemingly quiet town. If only...
"And why is that?"
"I-I don't know."
"I think you do."
"Because..." Emma trailed off, afraid to put her worst fears into words. But when Archie remained silent, she turned to face him once more and continued. "Because, if she's not under the cloak and she's not standing with the rest of our family and she's not fighting beside me, then where the hell is she?"
The question hung in the air, suspended by uncertainty and fear. She'd finally voiced the one thing that had bothered her most about her vision and she didn't know what to do with it. She sank defeatedly onto the sofa as a tear rolled down her cheek.
"I think you need to talk to Regina about this." Archie said after a moment.
"And say what?" she scoffed and looked him directly in the eye for the first time. "That I hope she's the one to kill me because I couldn't live with the alternative?"
"I'm not sure I'd phrase it quite that way, but it's a start."
"I can't!" Emma said vehemently and stood. "Don't you get it? I'm the Saviour, it's my job to give everyone their happy endings. I made a promise to Regina and I refuse to let her down again. If that means I have to die for it to happen, then that's exactly what I'll do. She's worked too hard to lose out simply because I don't want to face my own mortality."
"And what about your happy ending? Don't you deserve one, too? Haven't you also worked hard for it?"
"That's the thing about being a Saviour." Emma shrugged sadly. "Our job is to ensure happy endings for everyone else but we don't get our own."
Before Archie could say anything else, Emma grabbed her jacket and left. She had work to do, promises to keep. Her fate didn't matter so long as the people she loved got their deserved happiness.
The End