Look Right Through me

Disclaimer: I own nothing mentioned in this story.

"Miss Swan, finally decide to come back with your tail between your legs?" Regina says to the former sheriff with disdain and hidden hurt.

"Regina?" Emma's voice is soft and confused. Like a child's.

"Your skills of deduction are amazing." Sarcasm fills the voice heavily.

"I think i'm dead. I'm a ghost." Emma stares at Regina with tear filled eyes but offers a half grin. "Always said i'd haunt you if I died."

"You're not dead. Quit joking." Regina shakes her head defiantly. But she can feel the wind pressing against her. Moving her hair. Emma's wavy curls stay in place. "No."

Emma shrugs and looks at her feet. "Wish I was joking."

"What happened? What am I going to tell Henry?" Regina's hands move over her stomach as tears fill her eyes.

"I don't remember what happened." Emma shrugs. Her hands are shaking as she stuffs them in her pockets.

"Wher-where is your body?" Regina's own fingers tremble as sorrow and rage and pain eat at her. She would kill whomever did this.

"I don't know." Tears fill Emma's eyes and Regina steps forward. Her fingers go right through the hand she was reaching for. A startled sound leaves both their throats.

"Sorry." Regina's voice comes from her throat, strangled and sad.

"It's cool." Emma shrugs her shoulders before looking past Regina. "I. I guess we should work on finding my body." She shrugs half-heartedly. Green eyes are devastated.

"What. What do you remember?" Regina looks around before moving towards the house. Emma follows behind, lost in her mind.

"Nothing. I remember having dinner and then nothing." The blonde throws her fist out to hit the wall but it just goes through it. A strangled sound leaves her throat and Regina reaches for her before pulling her own hand back, her hand hovers over her own stomach. Anguish lined heavily on the brunettes face. Emma sighs and pulls her hands through her hair. "Where's the bug? Maybe there are some clues. I had to leave something behind."

Regina shakes her head, her fingers tighten around the fabric covering her stomach. "I don't know. We thought you had run. Your car was gone." Regina shakes her head and her eyes blaze. "I should have known better. You would never leave Henry behind." Guilt shines through brown eyes.

Pale lips tremble as Emma forces a half smile. Her eyes watery. "It's fine. Its my m.o. to run." She clears her throat. "What. What did you tell him?"

"Nothing at first." Regina blinks away tears. "Snow and Charming called you. Then I did. You never answered." She swallows a lump in her throat. " Your car was gone and he came to the assumption. I tried to tell him you would be back but-"

Emma interrupts the brunette. "But he's a stubborn kid. Has a mind of his own. I should know he gets that from his mom." The blonde smiles jokingly. "You may know her. Stubborn brunette runs around in power suits and killer heels."

Regina tilts her head and her eyes flash in amusement. "I don't know. His other mother is more stubborn than a mule. He also inherited her morning attitude and ability to trip over air."

Emma laughs loudly. "Poor kid I had so many nasty falls." Her grin slips away. "What are we going to do?"

Regina's face sobers. "We're going to tell him the truth. When he sees you." Emma shakes her head and tear fill her eyes. "What?" Regina's eyes are scared.

"He cant see me. No one can. They just look right through me." Tears drip down her face. "You were the first. Its why I was so shocked. You saw me."

Regina's hands clasp over her stomach. "Then we tell him and I prove it to him."

"No!" Emma's shout fills the silent room, only heard by the witch.

"Why not?!" Magic sparks out of Regina's hands as she throws them wide.

Emma's hands wring together. "He can't know i'm dead." Regina tilts her head question." It would tear him apart if he found out. He already lost Neal don't make him lose me too."

"You'd rather he think you left of your own free will." Regina steps into Emma's personal space, she falters when she doesn't feel the familiar heat. Emma used to put off body heat like a furnace. "He deserves to know." Her eyes flash with emotion.

Emma shakes her head "He needs to be safe. Please Regina. Please." Emma steps closer. Close enough to almost touch skin to skin with the witch. She closes her eye knowing she will fall right through if she moves to touch Regina. "He would be devastated." Regina glowers at Emma. "I don't want him to get hurt Regina. Whoever killed me, they didn't want me to be found. Knowing i'm dead could mean trouble for you both. Please Regina, for Henry and yours sake." Green eyes beg brown.

Regina glares at the wall behind Emma"I'll do it to protect our son, but the second I find out who killed you-"

The former sheriff interrupts the former mayor. "You'll barbecue them with a fireball." The blonde smirks before it slides off her face. "Do you. Do you think you could bring me back?"

A strangled sound catches in Regina's throat. She swallows as her hand continues to grip the material over her stomach. "Magic can't transcend death Emma."

"So i'm stuck like this?" Emma's voice wavers and Regina nods slowly. Emma's face turns anguished and she punches for the wall. Her fist doesn't connect and she falls to her knees with a scream. Her voice cracks and heaves with every scream as tears fall down her face. Regina falls to her knees alongside the blonde. Her finger touch her shoulder, but fall through. Emma looks up at her with watery green eyes. Regina's heart catches at the sight, in the spring Henry had the same color. She looked so much like him in that moment and Regina's heart broke. Both for Emma and their son. "Why would someone kill me?"

"I don't know dear, but I will find out." Regina voice is ice, full blown anger, barely controlled. "They will wish they never hurt you."

Emma laughs softly. "Never thought you'd avenge my death, thought you'd cause it." Emma chuckles deep in her throat but it catches half way in a sob. "God I never apologized for thing I did or said! I'll never finish that stupid movie Henry talked me into watching. I'll never see him grow into a man. I won't be in his life any more." She clutches at her head. "I forgot to tell my parent I love them. I never went with Ruby and Abigail to that stupid play." Green eyes connect with watery brown. "I never apologized to you enough. I didn't do so many things and now I can't! I hate this. I hate it!" Emma slumps onto her butt, knees coming up as she wraps her arms around them and buries her face into them.

Regina takes a deep breath. "Look at me." Emma continues crying into her knees. "Please Emma." The blonde looks up slowly, face covered in tear tracks. "You can still see him grow up. You can still tell them you love them. You are here, just not in the most conventional way." Brown eyes are soft, softer than they had been in months.

"How? They can't see me?" Emma's voice is ragged with emotion.

"But I can my dear, I'll relay messages to Henry."

"It'll break him to know i'm. That I." She swallows. "That i'm dead." Her eyes widened. "You promised not to tell!" The blonde's voice slowly works into hysterics. "My killer is still out there. If Henry kno-"

Regina speaks before Emma can finish. "Miss Swan!" Emma quiets. Regina rubs at her temple. "Thank you, your voice was getting very high pitch." The brunette breaths deeply. "I wont tell him until I have found your killer. Then he and the others can know. I will find way for you to communicate."

Emma swallows. "And. And if I disappear after you find my killer and avenge my death?"

Regina's head tilts in confusion. "Why would you disappear?"

The blonde wipes at her face. "Ghost stick around to find closure, usually to help the police find their killer and get justice. What if I have to leave after that?"

"You won't, you'll be here for Henry." Regina's voice holds conviction

"What if i'm not?" Voice desolate and losing hope as the blonde stares at her hands.

"You will be!" Regina's voice

There is silence between the both of them before Emma sighs and tilts her head, her eyes still sad but a half grin pulling at her lips. "So what's the news in Storybrooke? Who's dating who. Who got control of what?"

Regina doesn't smile but her lips twitch. "I'm still Mayor." Emma rolls her eyes, an 'Of course' leaving her lips. Regina smirks. "Snow is on the council along with Abigail, Kathryn, Granny and Will Scarlet. They tend to gossip like hens, especially Will Scarlet. David is Sheriff, Mulan became Deputy." Emma's grin falters and Regina quickens her voice. "Though she is noticeably down. I've seen her shooting longing looks to Aurora."

Emma snaps her fingers. "I knew it!"

Regina laughs softly. "Yes dear, anyway. Mulan and Ruby have become unrequited love buddies." Regina makes a face at this and Emma laughs. "Belle and Rumple as doing fine. The imp is cheerier than ever." Regina voice turns annoyed at her own mention of her former teacher. The was a snow storm almost three weeks after you left. Ruby managed to catch the girl and help her find her sister. Storybrooke grows bigger everyday. The carpenters are having to make many more houses. Robin and Marian moved into a cottage in the woods." Emma flinches and Regina smiles in a sad almost bittersweet way. "Her heart was frozen and his true love's kiss thawed it. I can't argue with that."

"I'm sorry Regina." Regina's eyes are sad. "I can never apologize enough for hurting you."

Regina tilts her head to the floor. "It was unintentional, I understood that after you were gone." Regina clears her throat and begins to speak again. "The dwarfs are continuing to dig for more dust. I've had to strengthen the town line a few times to make sure no outsiders from this world get in again. The harbor was closed off to portals once Hook left."

Emma furrows her brows. "He left?"

Regina nods slowly. "He apologized to Henry and gave him Neal's sword, went through a portal on a ship he bought."

Emma nods and leans her head back against her chin. "Any other news?"

Regina thinks for a second. "Mulan's loving princess and prince have a child. The warrior is down." Regina smirks. "The lost boys have been know to cause more than enough ruckus. They give the nuns a hard time." Regina's eyes are alight in wicked amusement. "They managed to catch David in a magical trap." Regina smirks. "He was burping goo for two days straight." Emma laughs delightfully at the image and her smile turns bittersweet. Regina watches the former bounty hunter. "He also managed to come into may town meeting with baby vomit on him. Snow manages to stay clean." Regina's grin turns wicked again. "There was one day, four month ago that sn-"

"WHAT?!" Emma pants ass she bolts to her feet and begins to pace. "Four months?" Her pacing increases. "How long have I been gone Regina?!"

Regina frowns and tilts her head down. "Exactly 147 days."

Emma pants and begins to hyperventilate. Her breaths short and pained as she grips at her head. "A hund-. No. No. I can't. I just got out of the basement. It only felt like an hour down there. Just an hour."

Regina reaches for the blonde, whose eyes are glazed and pained. "Emma, you said basement. Please, tell me what else you remember."

Emma's eyes don't seem to focus on the brunette. "Darkness. I hate the dark. And thunder. So much thunder. Pain. Pain. Pain." Emma's voice is lost and distant. Regina swallows and holds off reaching for the blonde. Her hands clench as the blonde seems to fade. "It's so dark Regina. I screamed. I didn't want to but I did. Laughter."

Emma begins to fade even more. "EMMA!" The blonde doesn't seemed fazed, continuing to murmur under her breath. Fading out of Regina's sight. "MISS SWAN, look at me!" The brunette gets right in front of the blonde. "Dammit Emma, look at me!" Magic, purple and white flows around the brunette, tangled in her clothes and all around her as she fights with her own panic. "EMMA!" The tendrils snap and hit the blonde. At first they go through the almost translucent figure until Emma's color comes back and she looks solid enough to touch.

Emma blinks slowly looking around. "What happened?"

"I don't know dear. You remember a basement and began to fade." Regina looks over Emma, eyes checking for a colorless fading spot.

Emma shakes a bit in her body looking around. "I don't remember much. Just darkness."

Regina nods slowly. "It's okay. it's okay."

Emma looks around. "You screamed loudly. I could almost hear you. Why didn't Henry come down."

Regina looks to the banister. "He is at a sleepover with Nicholas and a few of the lost boys."

Emma smirks slightly. "You trust the lost boys?"

"Not as much as I should, but they are harmless. Mulan keeps them in line most days. She and Tink are fostering most of them, the fairies couldn't stand them at the nunnery." Regina looks longingly up to the second floor.

Emma looks around. "I'm gonna go." Regina looks to her shocked. "Not go go. I just want to look around Storybrooke. See what's changed." She shrugs and looks around the manor. "Thank you Regina." Regina nods and halts when the rain starts. Emma looks around in fear. "Regina?" Her voice is pained.

"It's fine, just a little storm." Regina speaks softly as she looks at the blonde. "You can stay here until it lets up."

Emma nods slowly looking quite desolate. Thunder booms and Emma flinches. Her body shimmers as she closes her eyes. "No. No. Please." Her voice is smaller than Regina had ever heard it and she aches to step forward and offer the blonde comfort, but that wasn't possible.

Emma trembles again and her color begins to dim as her body once again becomes translucent. Regina briefly wonders what this has to do with thunder, Emma had mentioned it earlier. She reaches out with her magic. It passes through Emma but she seems to solidify again. That is until another thunder booms right beside the house and with wide scared eyes, the blonde vanishes. "EMMA!" Regina screams out, her magic tendril searching the house for the blonde. She sighs when she comes up with nothing.

Regina waits up for three hours, no sign of the blonde, storm continuing to rage on. She calls Henry and checks on him. He mumbles and groans but tells her he loves her. Finally Regina's body falls into unconsciousness. In her dreams Emma moves around, translucent and scared. Ghosts haunt her dreams. Daniel comes up, standing near Emma. He smiles softly. 'Love again.' He whispers lowly. Her mother comes but Daniel and Emma stand guard. Neal shows up in brief glimpses, his dopey grin on his face as he teases Emma. Daniel smiles softly whenever he spots Regina. His worried eyes turn to Emma who mumbles to herself. Neal stands a side, sad and pained as he fails to ground her. "Darkness, No, No, No. Not enough. More. More." Sleep pulls Regina awake. She still hears the words. They are whispered hauntingly around the house, as if her dreams had come to life. Regina jumps up and flips on the light with a flick of her finger. She lets out a scream of terror and anguish at what she sees.