Leave a Light On

Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Once upon a time or any of its characters.

A/N: I can't possibly express how thankful I am for all your help, MegannRosemary. You always cheer on me and give me confidence. I know I couldn't do this without you. Thank you also for making the beautiful picture for the story, I'm too lazy and probably wouldn't have made anything lol. You are the best! :)

This is my first Swan Queen fanfiction, it has been sitting in my computer for months. I wanted to have it mostly all written so I could be confident that I could finish it. I have around 12k words right now, and I feel like it's getting close to being done, so I'll just post this first part and I'm sure your comments and suggestions will help so much. Ok, I'll stop boring you all! ;) I hope you guys enjoy it!

They had been sailing on the Jolly Roger for a few days, or so they could only guess. It was hard to keep track of time with the constant lull of the waves lapping against the boat, an errant seagull squawking every now and then, and always an endless expansion of water ahead and all around them. Emma stared into the unwavering horizon, her hands tightly gripping the railing. A single tear of fear and helplessness rolled down her cheek.

"Miss Swan."

"Please Regina, I'm in no mood to fight with you right now." Emma sniffled ungraciously.

"I didn't come here to argue. I thought that you could use someone to talk to." Regina offered.

Emma hesitated for a second, but when she saw the sincere look on the brunette's face, the dam burst and a torrent of feelings poured out."I can't do this, Regina. Everyone expects me to be The Savior, and I'm not!" She cried out, her voice thick with frustration and pain.

"No one is expecting anything. We all have to work together to save Henry."

"My whole life I needed someone to save me! And now… I'm supposed to be saving our son," Emma's breathing was labored, her knuckles turning white from holding onto the rail too tightly, her whole arms shaking from the building pressure of the rising conflict of emotions that she was trying to keep under control but obviously failing.

Regina casually set her hand on top of Emma's, in an effort to calm the younger woman. "We will get our son back. I give you my word." Emma slightly relaxed when she heard those words, she wasn't alone in all of this; everything wasn't only up to her. She had Regina, Mary Margaret, David, Hook and well, there was Rumple. She knew Regina loved Henry more than anything, and despite their many differences they had that in common. She could trust Regina, something about the woman made her feel safe. Emma slowly lifted her head to look into dark orbs, and she could see understanding there, as well as something else she couldn't quite place.

"You should try to rest, Miss Swan. You look like you could use some." Regina said, breaking the moment.

"Gee, thanks." Emma smiled half heartedly and then hesitantly she added, "I can't sleep, Regina. I… I'd rather just stay awake." Emma's haunted look made Regina's stomach roll. She didn't want to appear even more vulnerable in front of the brunette and admit that every time she closed her eyes, she had terrifying nightmares. She was used to having a fitful sleep, but ever since Henry had gone missing the nightmares had been taking a toll on her.

"I will not let you jeopardize this mission to save Henry, so I suggest you try." Regina stated as dryly as she could. She couldn't afford to actually sound concerned. Her only concern was Henry, and Emma could be helpful in retrieving their son, that's the only reason why she cared, she told herself.

"Regina…" Emma started to protest.

"I will stay with you. Now let's go." Regina didn't leave much room for argument, and headed for the captain's quarters, where they had been taking turns sleeping.

Emma followed in silence, unsure of anything to say in reply.

In the small room, Regina sat on the chair and Emma crawled into the scratchy bed. She lay down facing Regina, who waited patiently in silence, looking everywhere but at the woman in the bed. The brunette seemed lost in thought. Emma closed her eyes, hoping not to be woken up to the horrific nightmares that were sure to come.

After a few minutes had passed, Regina noticed Emma's breathing evened out, and Regina realized she was asleep. She couldn't take her eyes off the beautiful sleeping blonde. She looked so peaceful and innocent. She appeared to be much younger, her silky long blonde hair fanned over the bed, her pale skin reflecting the moonlight coming in through the small window. Regina felt strangely moved by the sight; instead of being annoyed at the woman for having to just sit there, she felt the strong urge to protect her. She could see so much of Henry in the blonde. They shared the same air of innocence, that incredibly after all the hardships she had endured, Emma still possessed.

Regina was caught up in her thoughts when a painful whimpering sound startled her.

"No…." Emma cried out weakly, her face reflecting the struggle going on in her mind. It was heartbreaking to watch the strong woman sounding so vulnerable and broken.

Unsure of what to do, Regina reached out and softly held Emma's hand and whispered, "Shh, it's alright Emma. You're safe." Emma immediately seemed to relax into a more peaceful sleep. Shocked at the effect this small action had on the blonde, Regina didn't let go of her hand and softly rubbed her thumb against her knuckles in a comforting motion. Hours went by, though to Regina it seemed more like minutes, before Emma began to stir awake. Regina immediately let go of her hand, hoping that Emma wouldn't notice.

Jade eyes fluttered open slowly, relief shone in them when she saw Regina sitting next to her. "Hey." Emma mumbled sleepily.

"Hello, dear. It seems like you slept well."

"Yeah, I did. Thank you for staying, Regina." Emma answered thankfully, starting to sit up.

"You are welcome." A small smile graced Regina's features.

"You should get some rest now."

"I'm not exactly tired."

"Ok, if you say so." The younger woman watched as Regina looked away. She could tell there was so much more behind that statement, but decide to let it go for now."So, do you think there's anything left to eat on this boat? I could so use some fries."

"Maybe this will be a positive change in your eating habits."

Emma rolled her eyes and replied "Let's go find something."

They headed over to the small kitchen where they managed to find some canned food, which was far from anything that either would have preferred, but it was something and they needed their strength to find their son. They ate in a comfortable silence, both deep in thought.

"Hmm Regina? Do you think maybe you'd be able to help me with something?" The blonde interrupted whatever was going on in the other woman's head.

"Perhaps. What do you need help with?"

"I need to be able to control my magic. Would you teach me? Please." Emma pleaded with a hopeful expression.

"Of course I can. The id- your parents probably won't approve of this idea though."

"It doesn't matter. I need to be able to do whatever it takes to get our son back."

"Very well then, the main thing you need is to focus, if you think you can manage that. Magic is about emotion. I've always used my anger… it's my strongest emotion." So far… Regina mused.

"I'm not using that." Emma replied.

"Well use whatever works for you, dear. If you wish to think about unicorns and rainbows, then go ahead," she said with a smirk. "What I want you to try, is to light this candle; the simplest of spells, really."

"And how am I supposed to do that?"

"Just think about the flame coming to life, how it starts flickering and then gets stronger. Concentrate and will it to happen." The brunette explained like it was the simplest thing in the world.

"Ok…" Emma took a deep breath and tried to concentrate in the things that brought the most emotions to her, but she was coming up with too many jumbled feelings. "I don't think I can do this," she sighed in frustration.

"Of course you can, just stop thinking so much and start feeling. Try to isolate one or two emotions, you can't concentrate on a whole cluster of them. Pick the deepest and strongest ones. Think about why you want to do this."

"Ok… the strongest ones…" Emma attempted concentrating again and the candle she was holding started flickering, it was faint, but something was happening.

"Ok, that's very good. You need to have control over it, don't let the magic take over without your consent." The older woman felt oddly proud of how easily Emma's magic seem to come to her, even though she had no training.

The flame grew bigger and taller, Emma was concentrating hard but her hands and arms started shaking violently while the flame began burning out of control.

"Emma, control it!" Regina exclaimed.

"I can't!" Emma yelled with wide eyes.

Regina quickly pointed her hand towards the candle shooting a purple beam which effectively removed the candle from Emma's hands protecting the blonde from the growing flames and putting the fire out. She hurried towards Emma who fell to the ground on her knees gasping.

"I'm s-sorry." Emma choked out.

"Are you alright?" Regina kneeled down next to her and Emma leaned on her, too weak to move or protest, while she tried to catch her breath. She offered support with a concerned glance.

Emma didn't answer her question as she wasn't actually sure if she was alright. She felt as if all the air was knocked out of her lungs, she was dizzy and doubted she could move on her own.

Noticing the state of the blonde and knowing all too well the signs, Regina stated "Give me your hands."

"W-what?" Emma croaked, confused.

"I'm trying to help you. Your hands." She said as she offered her hands to Emma.

Emma complied and stretched her hands towards Regina. The dark haired woman intertwined their fingers and closed her eyes. Emma could feel Regina's energy running through her; it felt like all her nerve endings were on fire in the best possible way. Regina's magic oddly didn't feel dark. It felt… right. Much too soon for Emma's liking, the stream of magic stopped, and Regina pulled her hands back.

"Is that any better?" Regina asked.

"Yes… thank you." Emma replied with a small smile. "What happened?"

"Magic can drain your body from energy if it gets out of control."

"Oh. Great." she added, sighing in frustration.

"I'll help you, Emma. You can control it." Regina reassured calmly, her tone warm and comforting. She stood up and stretched her hand towards Emma to help her stand. Emma accepted the help, surprised how much she was craving the contact with the brunette.

Emma wondered what it was about the older woman that was so confusing. One moment she could be distant and cold and the next she almost seemed like she cared about her.

"Why would this supposedly simple spell drain me, and helping you with the trigger didn't?" The blonde wondered.

"I'm not sure. It all depends on which emotions you are using and the intensity of them." Regina paused, confused herself about the blonde's question."When we stopped the trigger it was both of our magic combined, that could make a difference too, it's hard to tell." She continued.

"What did you do to help me just now?"

"It was a simple transfer of energy."

"Thank you, Regina." Emma expressed thankfully.

"You're welcome. We'll keep working on it, but do try not to set the boat on fire the next time, Miss Swan."

"I'll do my best, your Majesty." Emma returned with a teasing smile and a low chuckle as they headed over to the deck to meet the rest. Even though the uncertainty of Henry's well being weighed heavily on her, Emma felt much calmer and hopeful; there was a faint light in all the darkness that surrounded her. She wasn't alone in this, Regina was right there with her and together, they made a great team. They would save their son.

Thank you for reading! I'd really love to know what you guys think! :)