The magic that buzzed and flowed through the air of Camelot was staggering. Regina could feel it clinging to her skin, seeping into her bones. It was exhilarating, but unsettling all the same. The former Queen, however, wasn't about to complain. Magic meant protection.

Protection from what? Regina wasn't sure, but she wasn't about to take any chances.

The Charmings had brought a parade of people in an effort to find Merlin. Snow and David were at odds, both having very different ideas on how to go about saving their daughter. Regina would have thrown a fireball at the bickering couple if the very fact that they were fighting hadn't been so surreal. It was about time the shepherd stood up to his wife, Regina silently mused.

But she didn't have time, nor did she have the patience, to babysit the two idiots and their troop. She had a debt to repay, a Savior to find. So without waiting for a response she'd suggesting splitting up and then meeting back at their makeshift campsite at dusk.

That's how she'd found herself trudging through the unfamiliar forest, her brow furrowed in concentration and her lips set in a thin, displeased line.

"You've got your scary face on."

The voice startled her to a stop, but she couldn't help but feel relief as the words and the voice fully registered. "You would know, wouldn't you, Miss Swan?" After all, she had been on the receiving end of the mayor's lethal glares for years now.

The brunette turned to face the blonde, finding her leaning against a tree a couple yards away. She wasn't sure what she'd been expecting, having only the now comatose imp to compare, but this... was almost underwhelming. At first glance, at least. At first, Emma seemed almost...normal, dressed in a mossy grey hooded robe, but relatively normal.

But upon closer inspection, Regina could see the differences. Once wild and wavy golden hair now seemed lifeless and flat and lacked it's usual shine, more the color of straw than the sun. Emma's face was close to gaunt, skin starting to stretch over bone. Her entire demeanor had shifted, no longer natural and relaxed, but seemingly eternally tense.

"You seem unimpressed." Her voice was rougher, drained.

"I was expecting..."

"Something like Gold." There was a hint of a smirk on her face, a gleam in emerald green eyes that was still completely and utterly Emma. It put Regina at ease.

"I suppose I was."

It was a small shift, but the regal brunette watched as those green eyes flickered toward her black blazer. There was a flash of something in those eyes. "You have my-" She caught herself. "-the dagger."

It wasn't a question, and Regina wanted to believe she'd imagined the Emma's lips curled slightly, the way her very aura seemed to change. She could feel something reaching out toward her, bits of the ex-sheriff's magic mixed with something dark and suffocating, like tar.

She did indeed have the dagger. She hadn't expected to just stumble across Emma so easily.

The Dark One took several steps forward toward the other woman, Regina forcing herself to hold her ground. She was a Queen, she didn't cower. Emma stopped an arm's length away from the shorter woman, and Regina met her unnerving gaze and could now make out the shifting darkness creeping, swirling and clinging just beneath the surface.

It was a battle of wills, until finally Emma blinked, once, twice, and her expression and posture softened, and she walked passed her ex-rival. "Probably for the best," she muttered, so quietly that Regina wasn't sure she was supposed to hear. A little louder she added, "You're the only one I trust not to do something completely stupid with it." She looked back over her shoulder. "Perhaps Henry too," she continued thoughtfully.

The tan skinned sorceress couldn't hold back the unladylike snort as the tension broke between them. "I'm not sure that was a compliment considering my competition."

"Take it as you wish," Emma replied, turning so that her whole body face her companion once more, looking a little amused.

Brown eyes observed the blonde, mind still reeling from the glimpse of darkness she'd seen and felt. "How are you? Really."

The change was instant as the worn looking woman sobered. "As well as expected." Regina went to say something but Emma unknowingly cut her off. "It's terrifying, the things going on in my head. I'm surprised Gold was as civil as he was."

The older woman's gut churned in what could only be guilt. The taller of the two sensed this. "Don't."

Chocolate orbs looked back up at the grey clad woman.

"I know that look."

"Can I at least apologize?"

Emma shrugged. "Nothing to apologize for. I made the choice to save you and the town, and I'd do it again."

Of course she would, Regina thought. The least idiotic of the Charming clan had a habit of putting everyone else's happiness on a pedestal while her own fell by the wayside. It wasn't fair. The infuriating woman deserved her own happiness too, she'd more than earned it.

"You've certainly done a number on yourself this time, Emma."

The Dark One didn't respond at first, searching Regina's eyes, her head tilted a fraction, gaze flickering briefly to where Regina still had the dagger. Onyx eyes watched.

The magic was stronger this time, starting to grasp at Regina herself, and the dark haired Queen pushed back with her own. Emma visibly recoiled at the resistance, and shook her head. Regina had no more than blinked and Emma was further away, clinging to the trunk of a tree to keep herself upright, her mouth set in a thin grimace.

"I'm sorry." She could feel the dagger resting within her grasp, complete control, and the only obstacle was the woman currently in possession of it.

The dark entity sharing her body didn't appreciate that.

Emma wasn't in complete control, as Regina and the Charmings had feared. But she was still fighting, clinging to the light. That would have to suffice for now until they could find Merlin.

"Your parents are bent on tearing the entirety of Camelot apart in order to help you," Regina tried.

"Trying to find another egg to curse?" As soon as the words escaped both women stiffened, and the blonde quickly covered her mouth. She hadn't meant to say that.

"The Handless Wonder is also doing what he can. I must say, his dedication is admirable. If only his temper wasn't so foul," she stated, trying once more to find an angle to approach with, while also venting her frustrations about Hook's constant yelling at her about her attempts at finding Emma. "They're all worried and doing what they can. Our son is helping Belle find something about the Dark One mythos, seeing as we can't just ask Rumpelstiltskin."

"Henry..." The former Savior smiled genuinely at the mention of the boy. Her eyes then found Regina's. "What about you?"

Regina rolled her eyes halfheartedly. "Obviously, Miss Swan, I'm attempting to help."

Green eyes studied the other woman, seemingly peering into her soul with their intense gaze. "You have my back," she answered, without a single doubt.

"Well, as much as I loathe to admit it, you've had mine in the past. And I...owe you... a lot." It pained the brunette to admit that she owed anybody anything. But her and Emma had formed a mutual friendship, and Emma had done a lot for her not counting the recent sacrifice.

Emma nodded. "I saved you," she said grimly. "Now you need to save me."

"That was always the plan, Miss Swan."

So this is my first Once Upon a Time anything so...the characters may not be as... them as they should be but I think I did well. This is BFF Swan Queen but if you choose to take it as maybe romance then that's fine too. Any scene with them is full of subtext anyway. Anyone else excited for Season 5?

Reviews are needed to keep any writer motivated.

I'm Out! Peace!