A little idea that's been floating around my desktop for far too long. I figured since I'm not back in Uni until September , I have no real excuse not to get these stories up and finished.

Read and Review and I'll love you!

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"Got anything for me yet?" shouted Emma over the sound of the bell indicating her rather forceful entry to the tiny shop.

"Try asking me nicely, deary, and I may be inclined to try a little harder," came the reply, accompanied by the man's trademark smirk.

The Sherriff slammed her fist on the desk. "Dammit Gold! If you have something just tell me!"

"One would almost think you cared about the Evil Queen."

"Of course I fucking care!" spat Emma. "She saved my life, my mother's life and made my son the damn great kid he is!"

Gold watched the blonde, his smirk never leaving his face even as her own hovered dangerously close, the anger practically radiating off of her. "Still saying you're saving her for Henry."

"Why do you care why I'm saving her?" sighed Emma, shaking her head as she started to pace. "All you need to know is I'll do whatever it takes."

"Brave words, Sherriff," drawled the old man, leaning on his cane.

"We're not all cowards, Gold," snarled the blonde as she turned to leave, knowing she wasn't going to get anything from the pawn broker today.

"How is she?" asked Emma the moment she was through the door to the apartment.

Snow looked up from where she sat at the counter. "No better, no worse," she sighed, watching as her daughter immediately went to the brunette's side where she lay on the couch, still unmoving. "Did Gold have anything to say today?"

Emma shook her head. "He just keeps going on about why I care, and why I'm doing this."

Snow dropped her gaze to the worktop. She had been trying not to dwell on that particular issue herself. She had an inkling that Emma wasn't only doing this for Henry, but herself. Recently, she had noticed the two women becoming closer, even catching glimpses of the old Regina. A quiet laugh here, a flash of a smile she had only ever seen around the stables some decades ago there…

"I just wish she'd at least wake up," sighed Emma, looking down at Regina. "Talk to us, tell us what to do."

"Sweetie, you know what she did…" started Snow. "There's a chance…"

"No!" shouted Emma, turning to look at her mother. "She will wake up! She has to!"

"Why?"

"Why?" repeated Emma in a furious whisper. "Don't you dare tell me you want her to die!"

The pixie haired woman was on her feet in an instant, moving towards her daughter. "No! That's not how I meant it at all!"

"Then what did you mean?" growled Emma.

"I only meant to ask why you need her to wake up," said Snow, lowering her voice as she got closer to the distraught blonde. "Emma, I know you're not just worried for Henry. You have every reason not to tell Gold, but I am your mother, your friend and I'd hope you would trust me." She watched the tears form in her daughter's eyes, as emerald green orbs went between her and the unconscious woman on the couch. "I know what love feels like, Emma. I know you don't get to choose. The heart wants what the heart wants."

Emma looked up, looking more like a frightened child than the Saviour. "She needs to wake up because I never told her." At the door of the apartment opening she turned and furiously wiped away her tears.

"What's wrong?" asked Charming, halting barely a few steps into the apartment at the look on his wife's face. Snow shook her head, silently telling him to let it go for now. "I brought Nova, she thinks she might be able to help."

Emma turned on the spot, eyes wide and hopeful, still sparking with tears. "Really?"

The fairy nodded, stepping past Charming to look over Regina. "Fairy dust is pure good magic. While it won't completely eradicate the curse, I'm hoping it will counteract it enough to allow Regina to at least wake." She paused, looking at the gathered occupants of the room. "And I know some of us may be loathe to admit it, but Regina, with her…experience is quite probably the best person to advise us on how to deal with the situation." She stood next to the unconscious woman. "Has there been any change?"

Emma shook her head, perching on the edge of the couch near Regina's legs. "She's been out cold since she collapsed near the well."

"The fact she's still here three days later shows she's fighting it," said Nova, seeing the worry on Emma's face. She had been warned by Charming not to be too harsh and crush his daughter, but also not to be overly hopeful. Without saying much, he had warned the young fairy of how protective his daughter had become of the once Evil Queen. Since Regina had collapsed, Emma had barely left her side, carrying her home to the apartment, and caring for her since. Although where his daughter had learned to put in an IV tube, he didn't want to know. "And hopefully, with the help of the fairy dust, she'll be that bit stronger to fight even harder."

"What do you mean hopefully?" asked Emma, brows furrowed. She wasn't about to allow anyone to experiment on the woman she…cared for. Deeply. If they were going to try something, she wanted assurances it would work.

Nova swallowed nervously, having never been on the end of quite such an intense stare from the Sherriff. "There is a chance. A slight chance, that Regina's magic will reject the fairy dust…" She paused, taking a deep breath. "And if that happens, she'll most likely get worse."

"Why would her magic reject the fairy dust?" asked Emma. "I thought it was pure magic."

The fairy nodded. "It is. Pure good magic. Regina's magic…well, it's a little darker. The two don't tend to mix well."

The blonde shook her head. "No. Regina is a good person. She is. Magic is a reflection of the person who holds it, right?" She waited for the answering nod. "Then hers is good. She may have used it for some pretty damn evil things, but underneath it all, she's good. I know she is," she added with conviction.

Snow and Charming exchanged glances, eyebrows raised.

"Do it," Emma told Nova. "Please."

The young fairy nodded, taking a small pouch from her bag. "Emma, you have to know that this might not work."

"Just do it!"

Standing at the head of the couch, Nova filled her hand with the sparkling powder, throwing it over the unconscious Queen. For a few moments, nothing happened, the dust merely settled, glowing as it touched Regina's form. The room was silent, as they waited for some sign that it had made any difference whatsoever. Finally, a pained groan and a sputtering cough brought a collective sigh of relief from the room.

"Regina?" Emma whispered, moving to crouch next to the woman, hovering close to her face. "Regina?" Brown eyes fluttered into focus, locking with tear filled green ones. "How do you feel?"

"Like dying would be the preferable option!" came the hoarse growl.

"Snow, some ice?" asked Emma, not willing to leave the brunette's side. She couldn't help but grin at the snarky retort, however. Taking the cup from her mother with a quick smile of thanks, she gave Regina a small spoonful of the ice. "Better?"

"My throat may now be the only part of me that doesn't hurt," said the brunette. She winced as she closed her mouth. "Even my teeth hurt." Eyes taking in her surroundings, her groggy mind came to the realization they were no longer in the forest. "Why am I in your apartment?"

"You don't remember?" asked Snow, coming into view over the back of the couch.

Regina's expression gave them the answer.

"You collapsed at the well," started Emma quietly. "Three days ago."

"Three days?" repeated Regina, shocked. She wrinkled her nose, fighting the sudden urge to sneeze. "And why do I reek of fairy dust?" Had they tried to contain her again when she was unconscious?

"That would be my fault," smiled Nova, coming into view also.

Dearly wishing she could at least sit up, Regina decided that almost dying gave her a well earned excuse to lie perfectly still while the morons apparently surrounding her, tried to explain.

"When you wouldn't wake up we decided to use fairy dust to try and counteract the curse."

Not a disastrous idea, Regina had to admit. And if her current state of consciousness was anything to go by, perhaps even a successful one. The level of pain she was currently in, however, made her rather dubious as to whether conscious was actually better.

"We were hoping you could tell us how to get rid of the rest of the curse," said Emma quietly, from where she sat crouched next to her.

Turning her head to look at the blonde, and ignoring the pain of doing so, Regina frowned. The blonde looked as though she had been crying. "I'm not sure I can," she said, sounding almost apologetic. "I actually didn't expect to wake up at all." She watched the blonde gasp, a look of terror passing over her features. "I did take on a killing curse, after all."

"We could try further doses of fairy dust," suggested Nova.

"It's worth a try," said Emma, gazing hopefully at the Queen.

Regina, rather lost for words, simply opened her mouth and let the truth spill out. "I must admit, it's rather disconcerting to hear you discuss trying to save me."

"Better get used to it," smiled Emma. "Would the fairy dust work?"

"Well it certainly wouldn't hurt," said Regina. She frowned, her mind trying to fathom a magical cure that didn't come in the form of the nauseating sparkly dust. The answer eluded her for now, her mind not quite its usual sharp self.

"You can get more dust?" Emma asked the fairy.

Nova nodded. "I can. It may take a few days, though, to gather enough to make any great difference."

Snow nodded. "Of course. Whatever help you can give will be gratefully received."

If Regina didn't think that rolling her eyes may actually be quite painful in her current state, she would have done. Instead, she opted for her fake politicians smile as the fairy leered down at her. They were actively trying to save her. She thought she could at least try to be civil until such times as she could at least leave the room when she chose. Hell, until she could lift a hand to slap their stupid faces. At the moment, however, she was more focused on such trivial things as breathing and not throwing up over the anxious blonde who had yet to move from her side, despite the fact her current stance could not be at all comfortable.

"I'll call round soon then," smiled the fairy.

Snow nodded, walking the other woman to the door. Pausing, the door still open, she turned. "Charming, how about you and I go and visit Ruby, so we can tell Henry Regina is awake?"

Emma flashed her mother a thankful smile.

"Tell him not to worry," said Regina, as loud as her throat would allow. "And tell him…tell him I love him," she added more quietly.

Charming, still in her view, nodded. "We well. We'll tell him he can come see you soon. Maybe in a few days, once you feel up to it." Seeing her about to argue, he cut her off. "Give it a few days, let you build your strength up a little. If he sees you like this, he'll only worry."

Emma smiled up at her father, thankful for his tact. "Tell the kid I'll see him soon." She glanced down at Regina. "And maybe tell him that if he wants, he can call later and talk to before he goes to bed?" She couldn't not smile as the brunette's face lit up at the thought.

"Course I will," smiled Charming before joining his wife and leaving the apartment.

Left alone with Regina, Emma found she couldn't quite look at her.

"Miss Swan, can I ask something?"

The blonde nodded.

"Two things, perhaps," Regina amended, ignoring the pain in her throat. "First of all, why am I here of all places? And second, why on Earth are you still hunched on the floor? It cannot be comfortable. Having said that, neither is this couch."

Smirking at the sass the Queen was still capable of giving, Emma was silent for a few moments, considering her answer. "To answer your first question, because I brought you here. I didn't like the idea of leaving you in some hospital room, especially when Whale said there was nothing he could do." Finding the courage to meet the brunette's questioning gaze, Emma took a deep breath before continuing. "And second, because I've spent the last three days having to look at you, wondering if you'll ever wake up. And now, now I'm terrified that you might go to sleep again and never wake up, so while you are here, I never want to be further away from you like this."

Regina frowned, trying to comprehend what the blonde was saying, and exactly what she was leaving unsaid. "You mean?"

"I mean, I'm terrified," smiled Emma. "I'm terrified of everything right now, but most of all, of losing you." She paused, blinking back tears. "I know this probably isn't what you want to hear right now, but please, just let me be here for you. We don't have to discuss anything right now. Just let me take care of you," she pleaded.

Regina had never been on the end of such a heartfelt plea before. And certainly never a plea to be there for her. To care for her. Dare she hope it, to love her. Since the infuriating blonde had come to Storybrooke, Regina had tried in every way to annoy and antagonize the young woman, for the single reason that it thrilled her to have someone not back down. To have an equal, someone she could respect. The affection that followed had come as a shock, and in her mind, an ever more poorly hidden secret.

Almost dying, however, it alters your perception, makes you re-evaluate. Gazing at the hopeful smile on the blonde's face, she felt the corners of her own mouth tug upwards in answer. "When I took the curse, my last thought was how cruel it was, just when I thought I had found what I wanted, my shot at a happy ending, I was going to die to save the one person I wanted it to be with." The blonde wasn't the only one skilled at skirting around a certain three word phrase. Watching as Emma's expression turned to one of shocked awe, Regina found she couldn't wait any longer. For weeks, months now, she had watched the blonde's lips in every interaction they'd shared. The curse, still coursing through her, felt cold, like death slowly stealing her away. She needed to feel alive. "If you don't kiss me now, I swear-"

She was glad to be cut off by the warmth of lips on her own. It was soft and fleeting, so much gentler than she ever thought Emma could be. The blonde pulled back, a broad smile on her face. "You have no idea how often I wanted to do that when you wouldn't wake up. I think it's the only time I've ever really wanted to believe in this whole fairytale thing. I wanted to kiss you and try to wake you up."

"That's more your father's area of expertise," smirked Regina.

"My father's lips come anywhere near yours and there'll be problems."

Regina smiled. Even with her body aching in the most unpleasant of ways, conscious was definitely better. "Don't worry, I much prefer his Charming daughter."