Hey guys! This is the first chapter of Another Sleeping Curse II: Torpid Wakening. I highly suggest reading Another Sleeping Curse first...
A quick recap from Another Sleeping Curse: Emma faked her own death, as Hook informed her that a ring of villains were after her and her soon to be born child, as they both were products of True Love and have a special component in their blood that is incredibly profitable. For three years, Emma and Hook hide in Neverland, trying to figure out a solution. In the mean time, Regina, haunted by dreams of a red fiery room, struggles with her grief while raising Henry and Ellie. When a solution to a conflict for the town is proposed by a handsome stranger, Regina finds herself reluctantly attracted to him, and they begin to date. But as always, Henry suspects something is up. He tries tirelessly to convince his family that Emma is still alive. Regina believes he is simply struggling to cope with Emma's death. Determined, Henry uses the sleeping necklace to enter a netherworld and see Emma. He returns to convince David of the truth, who in turn, tells Snow and Regina that Emma is alive. What they don't know is that desperate, lonely nights brought Hook and Emma together for one night of comfort. Their secret remains hidden, as the gang, with the help of Tinkerbell, pulls off a plot to save Emma from Peter Pan, otherwise known as the mysterious stranger, Dorian Giles. But once she's returned, will Regina's unsure if she can forgive her for abandoning their family for three years...
...and so, here we are, right where we left off. Enjoy :)
Prayers in the Latin tongue could be heard echoing off the high stone walls of the inner parts of the cathedral. The bells rang from the top of the tower signaling the days end and the onset of the night's shadows. On any other evening, the words of devotion and forgiveness filled the province with warmth and love. But tonight, among the shadows, those cast by members whose souls could not be redeemed with mere prayer walked the steps into the church.
Their mumblings and musings were hushed shortly upon entering as they settled into a room with a long table. A fire, burning much like the flames of hell, flickered behind the table. A man rested his head and arm against the wall, facing the flame, as he waited for the group to be seated. He felt her presence.
"Judge Frollo," the sea witch greeted him, "thank you again for playing host tonight."
"It is my pleasure," he returned, handing her his gavel. "I am honored to have you all join me in France."
She grinned widely as he led her to her seat at the head of the table. She tapped the mallet against the surface. "We shall begin now," she demanded. "We have important matters that need attention."
The group grew silent, awaiting her to take the initiative. "It would appear that our operation has run into some unfortunate problems," she said, and then proceeded to clap her hands. "Flotsam! Jetsam!" she cried out and a moment later, the two eels slithered to her side, carrying a struggling body.
"Yes, my babies," she cooed in a soothing voice. She pointed to a chair next to her. "Tie the fool to the chair."
The eels slithered around the body, snaking their figures such that they had the figure propped upright against the chair. They pulled the gag from his mouth, allowing him to gasp for breath.
Ursula continued to the crowd. "It would seem that Mr. Pan was too incompetent to handle the pure magic capture."
Pan coughed a bit before he could speak. "You failed to tell me that a certain captain was helping the swan girl," he hacked out. "And you were certain the queen wouldn't come for her."
"Aw," Lady Tremaine, who was sitting nearby looked back to him, pouting. "You mean she didn't hold your hand and help you drain the girl?"
"Enough!" Jafar slammed his staff to the ground, causing the eyes in the golden serpent's head to glow red. "Let Ursula finish."
"Thank you," she said and continued on. "It no longer matters how incompetent you were. The point is, we need to rectify your mistake." She looked up to the table. "Suggestions?"
"Send someone more competent?" Hades suggested.
"Pan simply wasn't attractive enough to woo the queen," Gaston interrupted, and flexed his muscle. "She needs a real man."
"You do realize she is gay, correct?" Jafar quipped back.
"Enough!" Ursula cried. She turned to Frollo, who seemed to be lost in thought. "Claude? What is on your mind?"
"Well," he began, "I don't necessarily think Mr. Pan's blunder was a complete destruction to our plan…"
"Oh?" she asked, intrigued, "Do continue."
Frollo took his hat from his head as he spoke. "I was wondering—how has Ms. Swan's betrayal to her wife sat with the queen..?"
Ursula nodded, though unsure of his intention. "Not well I would assume."
"Why not check? Surely you can see her in your glass ball?"
The witch removed the glass ball from her sack. She placed it on the table and opened a vile, only to pour its contents over the glass. The group leaned in closely as they observed a teary eyed brunette yelling at a blonde.
Frollo continued. "As you can see," he said, pointing to the glass, "the rift has already been created. What we need to do is use it to our advantage."
"What do you suggest?" Jafar asked. But before Frollo could answer, Ursula's grin grew on her face as she watched the brunette in the glass orb.
"This time…we'll need to get to her."
In a room across the Atlantic, in a small town in Maine, only three people sat beneath a florescent lit ceiling. Three people and a dog, that is. As Pongo sat in his bed, playing with the chew toy Archie had given to distract him while the two women yelled back and forth, making it difficult for a certain cricket to interject.
"A few weeks go by and you just expect to come back into my bed?!" Regina cried.
"Our bed," Emma corrected, "our bed. And honestly, no, I don't just expect that. What I do expect is for you to at least start making attempts to talk with me."
Archie raised his finger, desperately trying to add in his point, but Regina responded instantly.
"It stopped being your bed the moment you decided it's be a brilliant idea to fake your own fucking death, leaving your heavily pregnant and hormonal wife alone with our son while you went off to play hero!" she shouted back, clutching her stomach as if she were still carrying their baby.
Archie once more began to speak, but apparently, Regina had more to say.
"And hah, no, I know that's not all you expect," she said snidely as she crossed her arms. "Don't think I don't notice you lingering in the hall when I go to bed. You just expect me to cave into some animalistic impulse and let you crawl back into my bed so you can mount me and get yourself off!"
Archie put his hand over his eyes and shook his head. This was going to be a long hour.
"Wow," Emma cried out. "Wow. You really think that's all I want?" She paused, giving Regina a look of disgust. But when she saw Regina was serious, her expression shifted to remorse. She patted her hands to her knees and got up. "I think I'm done here for today."
Before Archie could ask her to stay, she put her hand up to silence him, grabbed her leather jacket and walked out the door, slamming it behind her.
Archie took a deep breath and sighed before looking up at Regina, whose eyes were now full of tears.
"Regina…," he said, trying to sooth her.
"Do you see?" she cried between sobs. "Do you see what I have to deal with? She's the one who lied to me and yet she's the one who gets angry and walks out of every therapy session!"
Archie nodded sympathetically as Pongo came over to rest his head on her lap.
"Do you think I wanted to come here?" she asked, as she patted the Dalmatian's head. "No—I came because Emma begged for me to come here instead of calling a lawyer."
After Archie was sure Regina was at a stopping point, he handed her a tissue and began to speak. "I understand your point Regina," he said, "but while you're correct in the fact that Emma was the one to lie here, I think you're underestimating that this is difficult for the both of you."
"How is it difficult for her?!" she quipped back.
"Well, Regina," he began, "in Emma's mind, she was trying to defend her family. In the midst of that, she learns that you had allegedly met someone new and moved on…"
"I never moved on," Regina quickly responded. "And if you're suggesting that my relationship with Dorian was justification for her to be pissed with me…"
"Just hurt," Archie corrected her. "She has a right to feel hurt…not to place blame, but to feel upset."
Regina, for the first time during the session, was silent. She knew Archie was right. Internally, pangs of guilt still washed over her in the night when she thought of Dorian. She knew she had nothing to feel sorry for, but the notion that she had slept with another while her wife was alive still felt like adultery to her.
"Maybe you can talk to Emma once you've cooled down," Archie suggested, "see if she'll come in next week and make a commitment to not leaving early."
Regina laughed between her tears, as though the suggestion was possible. She may have been at odds with Emma, but she knew one thing about her wife—she didn't like feeling trapped. But Archie nodded his head and she agreed to try.
David shook his head shamefully at his daughter as she paced back and forth. He couldn't help but laugh to himself as she uttered every curse word she ever knew as her boots stomped and crunched the long since dead leaves of the forest. He handed her a bow and arrow, but she flung it aside.
"I prefer the sword," she said, as she grabbed it from his other hand.
"I think the bow's need for precision would be best to calm your anger," he suggested, but he shot him an angry glare.
"Fine, stay angry," he said sarcastically. "Keep walking out of your therapy sessions. Go ahead and lose your beautiful wife."
Emma slashed angrily at the tree stump. "You know I'm going to lose her anyway."
"Is that why you keep walking out?" he asked, picking up his own blade.
"You know why I walk out," she answered, as she tried to slash the same spot. "It's because I can't tell her the truth."
From the moment David saw his daughter in that cabin sitting next to Hook, he knew. But he had decided to wait until Emma confessed to the matter. Sure, it was two days later, but he still allowed her the time.
"You know, you've got to tell her," he said.
"But how?!" Emma pleaded. "How do I tell her when she and I can't even have a civil conversation?"
David sighed, unsure of how to guide his daughter into making the right choice, especially when it meant sacrificing her happiness.
"Emma," he finally said. "You're worried about losing her, right?"
"Yeah…," she nodded.
"Well, how can you lose something when you don't really have it?"
Emma stared at her father long and hard. She studied his somber eyes along with his straight edged mouth. It hit her hard. She didn't have Regina. She may have returned alive and well, but it wasn't the same. She'd lost the woman she loves and she didn't know how to win her back.
"I'm just saying," Charming added as he saw the realization had hit his daughter, "you may as well lay all the cards out on the table now. That way, it won't half heal before you have to break the bone again, am I right?"
Emma looked down at her own blade. "What if it never heals, Dad?"
He gave her a sad smile. "Then it's better to know now. Any so called 'fixing' you and Regina manage before you tell her is just adding insult to injury."
Emma smiled warmly at her father. She hugged him just before the two prepared for home.
Charming father and daughter came into the apartment laughing and smiling. Snow greeted them, pleased to see Emma wasn't either yelling or crying. She scooped up Ellie and went in for a family hug.
"I take it the time in the woods to cool off went well?" she asked her husband, as her granddaughter grasped eagerly at Emma.
"You could say that," David said, taking Emma's blade before Ellie jumped into her arms.
"Ooof," Emma huffed as her little one's leap made her fall back just a bit, "hi there, baby girl."
"Mama!" she cried excitedly.
As Emma kissed her daughter's head, she sighed. "I better get to taking her home," she said, "I bet she's hungry, huh baby?"
Ellie nodded but Snow shook her head. "Not necessary. Regina called a little while ago," she said, as she ran her fingers through her granddaughter's golden curls. "She's coming by after work to pick up Ellie and Henry."
"But, that doesn't make sense," Emma raised her eyebrow in confusion. "I'm headed home…"
Snow winced and scratched the back of her head. "Actually, she…"
Henry cut her off to finish her sentence as he walked into the room. "She said she thinks it would be best if you stay here tonight after…," he said, scratching his head sarcastically, "oh, what was it she said? …Oh yeah, 'after she decided she can walk out on a therapy session, she might as well walk her stubborn ass over to the Charming's and…"
"Henry!?" Snow scolded.
"Just relaying the message."
Since Emma had come back, Snow had tried her best to be softer with her. She didn't completely dismiss her daughter's wrong doing, but when she could, she'd try to be optimistic. But Henry, on the other hand, wasn't as pleasant. He was mildly annoyed with Emma, and while he kept in her company, he wasn't going to let her get away with hurting Regina.
"No, Mom," Emma calmed her mother, "it's okay." Without another word, she put Ellie down on the couch and went to her room. Regina would be heading over soon and at that moment, she didn't feel like being around.
Five minutes later when she heard the knock on the front door, she didn't have the same dignity. She lunged upward off the bed and sprang toward the door, just as Snow opened it.
"Momma," Ellie called as she ran over to Regina.
Regina held her daughter as Henry picked up his backpack and Ellie's bag. "Hi sweetie," she said softly as she breathed in the scent of her daughter's curls. "How was your time with Grandma?"
"Good. We had hot cocooo!" she cried, making both women smile. But their expressions were interrupted.
"Regina," Emma called, "Really?"
"Emma," she said, motioning to their daughter. "Let's not do this in front of the kids."
"Then have Henry take her to the car," Emma suggested sternly. But Snow put her hand on Emma's shoulder.
"Em, I think it might be best if you stay here with us tonight," she suggested, but Emma flinched.
"Oh, now you're on her side!" Emma began raising her voice, causing Charming to come out into the front room. "What happened to family, huh?" she asked, and then raised her finger to point at Regina. "What happened to her being the Evil Queen?"
As soon as the words came out of her mouth, she knew it was word vomit. She saw Henry's jaw drop, along with Snows. But what was worse is that she saw the tears welt up behind Regina's eyes.
"'Gina," she pleaded, but it was useless. Regina was speechless. Henry had to step in. He slung both bags over his shoulder, and picked up his sister.
"Come on, baby girl," he said as he brought her to Emma. "Say goodbye to Ma."
"Bye Mama!" Ellie squeaked.
Emma kissed her daughter's head. "I'll see you in the morning, baby," she said, with the intention of affirming to herself that she would see her daughter the next day.
Henry carried the toddler and patted Regina's back in comfort, as she tried to hide her tears. He helped her out as Snow closed the door.
"Fuck," Emma let out to the room. But she received no sympathy from David or Snow.