I Believed In You

(Hope)

IMPORTANT EDIT HAS BEEN MADE

Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon a Time or any characters within. This is for entertainment purposes only and is not intended for profit. Lines from the film Hook are not mine. The poem contained within, Salvatorul lui căutare/The Saviour's Search, however, is mine. The language is Romanian. There are several quotes by other people used in this story that are not mine.

Summary: (Swan Fire/Thief, Swan Queen) Emma knew that just because you believed in something didn't make it true. Regina knew that just because you wanted to believe in something didn't make it real. But they both did anyway. (Post Cricket Game; Cora's return to Regina; weakness and belief. A tale of belief, trust and hope.)

Chapter Note: Contains spoilers for the episode 2.12, In the Name of the Brother. Quotes are not exact. Assumption that Neal is Baelfire. Contains Cora and Eva backstory. Regina has perished. Contains strong language and possible trigger warnings. Dark themes for the beginning portions of the story.

Author's Note: This story was written so that it may be viewed in three different ways: You may see each chapter as an 'official' ending. One can be viewed by itself, two as a continuation and ending to one, and the upcoming final part as the ending to all three. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your support for this story. I had a lot of difficulty composing this part, and you're in for a long read. I hope that this part will live up to the expectations I had for the previous two installments, and that you may enjoy it as I have come to. Please keep in mind what kind of place Emma is in as you read this story, as well as the concept of the Five Stages of Grief. There are a lot of questions and I've done my best to answer them throughout this part, but, if you need any further clarification, feel free to PM me on or message me on my Tumblr account. This story contains a lot of spiritual concepts and may be difficult to follow, as such, words are used deliberately and are interchanged according to the viewpoints of the characters. The alternative theme for this chapter is 'Choice.' Thanks to for the suggestion and to Queen Nana and Writer-Monkey-Esq for some inspirational conversations. I truly hope this ending will satisfy all of you.

All my love.

This story was inspired by a Tumblr post by fakeplasticlovely:

It's interesting that Emma losing faith in Regina is what truly broke her.


"I trust you."

"…but you still left me," fell from Emma's lips, the chapped surfaces clapping together waking her with each movement. She blinked blearily, bringing a hand to rub the sleep from her eyes.

"Hey, there you are," Neal's voice sounded and Emma dimly perceived him from under her lashes. There was a dulled sensation to her movements, the time needed to gather her bearings much too long. She looked down to see herself on a bed that is far too large to have been located in Mary Margaret's apartment. The clothes she's wearing…aren't the same.

Emma put a hand to her forehead.

"What do you mean by that?" She finally managed to ask and scrunched her eyelids shut in hopes the pain would help clear her head.

"Regina! Regina! I'm not kidding! Get your ass up!" Emma began to shake Regina's shoulders, the body icy to the touch and too limp to contain the necessary amount of bones the human skeletal structure required.

"Emma! Stop!"

"Mom!?"

There were too many voices screaming at Emma, distracting her. Regina had just passed out, that was all.

Regina knew how painful it was to be abandoned, especially after someone told you that they believed in you.

She wouldn't do that to Emma—Henry.

"You've been out of it for days," Neal answered lightly and Emma turned her gaze to him. He had never looked so serious and Emma knew he wasn't talking about sleep.

"How long?" Emma grunted as she struggled to sit up. Everything felt fuzzy, similar to when she suffered from a head cold. There was an ache somewhere deep inside her that followed her movements like a shadow.

"That kind of thing happens to everyone, it's nothing to be ashamed about," Neal began to move closer to her.

Anger flared hot and fast inside Emma. "I asked how long!" She snarled. There was a loud crackle in the air and Emma could begin to feel her arms quake with the restraint she needed to prevent herself from…

"What the hell are you doing?!" Emma demanded as her parents wrapped their arms around her and began to drag her away from Regina's listless husk. "Let me go to her!" She began to jerk her body in every way she knew to break free of holds but if she escaped one set of arms, the other pair responded in kind, tightening their hold until the other set recovered.

Henry took tiny steps toward the shell of his mother on the floor. "Mom…?" He dropped to his knees, spine arching forward so he was hovering over Regina. His hands were shaking. "…please wake up…"

The broken words falling from her son's mouth unraveled the rage the coiled around Emma's heart. Her body relaxed in her parents' embrace. Snow took the opportunity to bury her head into Emma's shoulder and Emma wondered why the tears she shed were so cold.

Neal halted his advance. "Seven days. Emma, what do you remember?"

There was a loud pop as Emma bunched her fingers together to form fists and she could feel the magic dancing around her hands. "If I remembered, I wouldn't be asking, now would I?" A low rumble was caught in her chest and in that moment she could see just how easy it would be to shut this fool up. He glanced at her and down to her fists, a flash of fear flitting across his face.

Good.

Instead of remaining silent, this idiot folded his arms and spoke down to her. "Is that really you talking, Emma?"

Emma's fingers itched with the urge to throttle him. Her nails dug deeply into the skin, pain sparking in her mind even as the blood began to blossom in her palm and eke out the edges of her fingers.

She had watched with a muted concentration the movements of the people around her. Her mother continued to weep into her shoulder as Gold and Neal descended the steps to the sanctuary. They headed straight for Regina, Henry still frozen at her side. He looked up at the two men, his expression like that of a lost puppy.

What's that look? It was like he lost someone to love.

A crippling emptiness gnawed at Emma until she hunched under the strain. Snow took the opportunity to wrap her arms more tightly around Emma, David bending down to lend a comforting presence. Theirs was the warmth of a family that Emma had spent her nights and waking moments imagining.

Still she felt nothing.

Neal had taken Henry by the shoulders and turned him so that Henry curled into his embrace. Gold, however, had remained stiff as he looked over Regina. Emma was sure he was alternating between glancing between Regina and Cora who had managed to drag herself near Regina.

Emma could remember the moment the spell activated and the crushing blow it delivered to her chest.

It wasn't as bad as when the spell ended, though.

That nothingness, bleak and consuming, was far worse.

Whereas, if she were the Emma from even a few minutes ago, Emma would have raised a commotion when Gold gingerly lowered himself to kneel near Regina's head and the tips of his fingers moved as if to rake themselves through her hair but he halted himself just shy of doing so.

"That's not yours," Snow threatened lowly.

Gold turned to look at her and a part of Emma wished she could enjoy the pain on his face.

"You lost that right when you willingly molded her into a monster, all so you could find your son," Snow gripped Emma tightly, her embrace nearly suffocating. Emma couldn't find it in herself to care. "You couldn't cast the Curse yourself so you made sure the next best thing could. You don't deserve to care for someone you viewed as your child! You don't even have the right to think of her like that!"

"The choices are all ours to make, Snow White, and you'd do well to remember that," Gold responded in a tired voice.

"…even when the choice isn't a choice at all…" Emma murmured and it caught the attention of everyone.

Gold steeled his jaw as he gazed at Emma. "Those are the most important ones of all," he said.

There was a dim echo inside of Emma's mind at the statement, one that must have chilled everyone present with their own memories.

"Dad, can you put them in stasis?" Neal asked at length. Emma tilted her head to observe him. "You can make them coffins, too, right?"

"She's not dead," Henry weakly insisted, his gaze still locked on Regina as if he couldn't tear his eyes away.

Was he afraid that she would disappear?

But she already had, Emma told herself. Regina had vanished before her body gave out, everything that made her Regina vanishing piece by piece like the grains of a heart turned to ash.

Neal lowered himself so he could look Henry in the eyes, just like Regina used to, Emma noted dimly. "She's lost, Henry, and until we can find her, we need to keep her safe. You get what I'm saying?"

Henry nodded and Emma bristled.

"Until we can find her?" Emma voiced incredulously and it surprised her how realistic it sounded. "The spell obliterated her and that woman at their very cores," she flopped a hand in Cora's direction. "It's cruel to give him false hope, Neal. If Regina wanted to stay, she would have. She left us when we needed her the most…I guess that runs in the family," she sneered.

The facial expressions that were shown to her contained a mixture of shock, disappointment and something indefinable. Henry was the one who spoke first, predictably and with the ever ready answer to all his troubles. "But you're the Saviour! If anyone can save Mom, it's…"

"…not me!" Emma ripped her body away from her parents' embrace. "I've told you, Henry! I've never wanted to be the Saviour!"

Her hands were cold.

Henry stood his ground and Emma was nearly impressed by his resolve. "You believed in me and it saved my life. My mom believed in me and she saved your life. If you believe you can find her, you will. You both have believed in me." There was a confident assurance in his stature and, even though he was still in Neal's arms, he was set apart from Neal, from everyone, who was lost in their pain. "Now it's my turn."

Just like that, the fight drained out of Emma and she returned to the state she had been stuck in for two weeks. "…not me."

Neal, like always, knew it was safe to approach Emma once more and he lowered himself next to her on the bed. The usual heat from his body so close to hers was absent. "Okay," he said and Emma was grateful that was his response. He continued to sit patiently next to her, noting the red streaks across her hands but being wise enough not to grasp them.

It would be unfair of her to give her pain to him.

"…I was always looking in the mirror, thinking that each time I looked I wouldn't see what I felt," she admitted as she unfurled her fingers and let the back of her hand graze Neal's. His turned instantly, the invitation clear.

"And what was that?"

Emma placed her hand in his and the memory of comfort filtered through her mind. "Haunted. There's a blank look in my eyes, Neal, a permanent shadow hanging over every action. Every touch or kiss I give is like a ghost. I remember what it should be like, but it never is."

Neal nodded. "So you got desperate to feel something."

Emma felt herself grow sick as the memories flooded her. "I'm the Sherriff here, Neal."

He laughed outright before schooling his features into a more fitting expression, but Emma could see the amusement in the lines framing his mouth.

"Still not funny," she reminded him before growing somber. "Neal, I assaulted you."

"Pretty much," he affirmed but gripped her hand gently when she tried to pull away.

Emma kept their eyes locked for a long moment. "I'm sorry."

"I know it wasn't you," he said softly. "That doesn't make it okay, though."

Emma nodded slightly as the image of her trying to force herself on Neal played in her head. She remembered the desperate urge to feel something, anything, plaguing her for days until she lost what little she was hanging on to and stormed over to Gold's house to find Neal. Emma thought if she could just recreate a time where she was happy, she would feel it again. Somehow. Neal, however, had instantly sensed something was off and pushed her away. She kept trying to reinitiate but he avoided her and began talking about something Emma couldn't recall but Regina's name rang out and it had drained her instantly, causing her to collapse on the bed.

"Hey."

The sound of Neal's voice pulled Emma out of her thoughts. He brought his free hand up to caress her cheek and for a fleeting second Emma was comforted.

"What you did wasn't okay, but I still love you, so I forgive you. You're sorry and I accept that and we can work on things together, the right way, this time," he smiled at her. "Now that you've come back to us, why don't you go home and see Henry? He invited me over to come watch a movie with you guys but I think maybe you and him just need some time together right now."

Neal placed a chaste kiss on her lips and as Emma responded, she couldn't help feeling that it was a goodbye.


When Emma stepped into the apartment, something snapped in her. This was an action she had done countless times before but there was something about the simple action that momentarily reinvigorated her. Her parents had Henry sandwiched between their arms as they sat on the couch, quietly laughing at whatever was playing on the television. Something about the scene stirred something inside of Emma, the vision like a piece of art she had longed to experience in real life. They looked up when Emma closed the door, the only outward indicator of her silent arrival.

"Hey, Mom," Henry called out with a smile. "You look better."

Emma felt her lips twitch upwards. "Thanks, kid." Her parents exchanged a look and picked themselves up off the couch.

"Well, we'll leave you two…to it," David stumbled over the words and Snow giggled at him before fondly backhanding his shoulder. "Goodnight," and he looked as if he wanted to step forward to hug Emma but seemed to think better of it and Emma was glad he didn't have to witness her recoil from the action. Snow gave her a soft look before ushering him up the stairs.

Emma felt a sense of trepidation as Henry continued to gaze at her steadily from his position on the couch. He smiled and lifted up the blanket draped across his lap in silent invitation. Emma accepted and made her way to his side and the feeling of him snuggling up to her side instantly flickered something in her heart.

He felt a little warm.

"What are we watching?"

Henry fiddled with the remote for a moment, the screen going dark for a moment before filling with colour once more. "'Hook.' I don't think Neal's going to come over and watch with us tonight, is he?"

Emma pulled her head back. Henry only gave her one of those frowny–smiles that Regina used. The sight instantly placated her and she brought her arm up and around his shoulders as the movie started.

Emma kept thinking about the reason that Henry wanted to watch this particular film. He had always been so invested in The Book that it didn't surprise her that he liked the movie but it contained a rather different viewpoint than those portrayed in typical fairytales. It was darker, a story about growing up and then about reclaiming the lost part of yourself.

She felt herself relax a little.

The film had gone on for awhile and Emma allowed her mind to zone out and just enjoy the moment with her son when a line caught her attention.

"' Who wouldn't save us...'"

"Some people can't be saved."

"'Who couldn't save you, Jack.'"

"…that won't save me, Emma."

Emma chanced a glance at Henry who looked to be deeply engrossed in the exchange.

"'Well, he - he wouldn't. And he didn't even try. He was there and we were there and he wouldn't try.'"

"It's too late for me, Emma."

'"Jack... he will try. And the question will be: When the time comes, do you want to be saved? Now, don't you answer now. No, no, no, no, no. Now it's time to be whatever you want to be. Put behind you any thoughts of home; that place of broken promises.'"

"Even if you leave me, I'll return to you."

There was something chilling about those words, something that tickled the back of Emma's mind and she found herself unable to concentrate on the film properly after that scene. Henry didn't seem to mind her confusion, but instead helped her upstairs and into bed and spread the blanket over her shivering form. He laid a reverent kiss to her cheek.


Unde esti?

Where are you?

Le bacla se recupera raului regina

The Swan shall reclaim the Evil Queen

I se execută pentru sfârşitul lumil pentru a-ti dovedi nu suntem singuri

I shall run to the end of the world to show you we're not alone

Pentru că sînt doar o parte din tine nu te vezi

Because I'm the only part of you; you don't see

AM nevoie pentru a merge la tine astfel încât arată-mi calea

I need to go to you so show me the path

Ai inima ta? Şi în viraj, al meu?

Have you left your heart? And in turn, mine?

I aminte de noi, de ce nu?

I remember us, so why don't you?


Emma shook her head as the strange words crawled out from somewhere in her heart. She opened her eyes and let out a little sigh as she found herself in the familiar darkness that engulfed her dreams ever since Regina…

She frowned. She could have sworn she heard 'Regina' in that whisper of a song.

The night Regina had left the world behind…Emma had found herself exhausted constantly and would always dream of darkness. For ages she would walk through her dreams, never chancing upon anything, no colour, no sounds…it was like a void where there once was life.

Emma resigned herself to another night of aimless wandering and stepped forward and immediately jumped back upon hearing a telling crunch underneath her feet. Cautiously, she lifted her right foot to look underneath it and felt her heart give a leap when she saw broken shards of glass. She raised her head so fast she heard her neck snap. Emma was now in a room that was predictably cloaked in shadows but there was a chandelier above her head, tattered shreds of cloth draped across it. Emma turned to her left and saw the wall covered in shards of glass, the backs of mirrors peeking through. What was most interesting was a large frame nestled in the wall, almost as if it were an extension of the room itself.

The frame had most certainly housed an exquisite painting, Emma could tell that as she made her way to inspect it closer. Bits of the original work were hanging loose and some were missing entirely. Whereas the room looked respectably ransacked, this portrait bore the evidence of a violence that was wild and vicious. One could never tell with glass the anger behind its breaking but with this portrait…Emma felt a deep pain even looking upon it. She raised a hand to try and join two pieces together so she could see what the painting once was.

Cold.

Emma yanked her hand back as the thought sounded in her head. She looked around the room quickly. It was almost like another voice had joined hers and spoke the word aloud. After a few tense seconds, Emma gingerly pressed one finger against the portrait.

Cold.

Frowning, Emma retracted her finger. She stared at the portrait. There was something about it that danced inside her mind, a memory just out of reach. It looked like a woman, the long lashes and bronze skin taunting her inside the frame. She turned to look around the room to see if there were any more clues and saw another portrait to her right. Emma turned around and saw two more frames on the opposite wall.

Emma walked over to the closest portrait. There was definitely something about this woman that Emma recognized. The previous portrait had a dark background as did this one, but there was something just a bit lighter about it. There was a distant quality to what was left of the woman's expression, almost as if she didn't quite know how to feel.

Emma shuddered at the thought, an unpleasant recognition of her own behaviour. She poked at the picture.

Empty.

That made sense.

Emma crossed the room and crossed her arms at the new portrait. This one was infinitely brighter than the others, a warm glow to it and Emma wondered if it was also warm to the touch. There was something youthful to the chocolate eyes painted there, a gentle quality to them that few retained throughout life. Emma could almost imagine what it would take to break those and the thought sickened her. She brought the back of her hand to the portrait.

Tender.

A memory of a show from her childhood caused Emma to snort at the word. She immediately hunched her shoulders and peeked around her, as if expecting a reprimand. The feeling lingered as she walked to stand in front of the last frame. Unlike the others, this one was completely blank. It wasn't ripped or damaged in any discernible way. Emma placed a palm flat against it.

Emma waited.

Nothing answered nor came to mind. Emma pulled her hand back and used it to scratch her head. She turned around and stumbled over her own feet in her surprise.

There was a bed in the middle of the room, and a figure lying on its side in the center of it. Emma's breath quickened and she hastily made her way to the bed only to stop herself short at its edge.

"Regina…?" Emma hesitantly called out.

Regina's body was curled on its side, her right arm reaching out toward the side of the bed Emma was standing by. Emma lowered herself to look closer at Regina. She looked the same as she had that day but was now clothed in a black loose–fitting gown. It looked silky to Emma and she brushed a hand against Regina's back and recoiled from the cold seeping from Regina's body.

Just like that day.

Regina wasn't breathing, nor giving any other signs of life. Emma placed a hand on Regina's shoulder and shook hard but the body simply rolled with the movements before returning to its original position. Defeated, Emma sat down on the bed next to Regina, her back to the woman.

"You were wrong, you know," she whispered as she looked at the portrait instead of the body behind her. They must be paintings of Regina. "…about Henry. He sorta understands, but I don't think he gets it the way you wanted us…him…to. He still thinks I can find you and save you. Well, none of this makes sense, but I guess I found you," she wryly smiled and twisted her body to look down at the woman. She looked as if she were merely asleep instead of…missing. "But that's not what you were wrong about. He didn't have me. Something happened after you used that spell, Regina, something hurt," Emma said and brought a hand to her chest, the abiding numbness giving way to the acute pain of the memory.

A void in her heart….

Emma gasped. She had heard that line somewhere before…"The Book!" She exclaimed out loud. "That was your price for the Curse, I remember reading about it! Does that mean I'm cursed?" Emma looked down at Regina. The woman hadn't cursed her, of that Emma was certain. Perhaps Gold could tell her more? Emma felt something stir in her for the first time in days and bounced off the bed and was about to force herself to wake up when she glanced back at Regina one last time. The wind created by her movements must have shifted the hair into Regina's eyes.

Emma returned to Regina and stooped down to brush Regina's hair back.


Snow and Henry started chattering away at Emma as she descended the steps into the kitchen but she paid them no heed as she shrugged into a thick coat and began to run out of the apartment. She knew they would follow her because she was theirs.

Emma made record time to Gold's pawn shop, not caring that she violated many traffic laws in doing so. She ignored the sign on the door and flung it open to reveal Neal and Gold glaring at each other from across the counter. They turned as one to face Emma.

"You," she pointed to Gold, "are going to tell me how I can bring Regina back."

Gold looked taken aback. "The spell destroyed the very fabric of her being, Miss Swan."

"No, it didn't," Emma shook her head. "I found her."

Neal smiled at her and looked over her shoulder as the bell to the door chimed and her family crowded in behind her.

"Wait, what? I thought Regina was gone for good," David said.

"I knew you could do it, Mom," Henry very nearly chirped with happiness. Emma felt her lips twitch a bit.

"How is that possible?" Snow asked.

Emma looked down at her hands, turning her palms up so she could see the cuts she had dug into her skin with her own nails slowly healing. "Magic," she answered her mother.

"You must have grabbed a piece of Regina's soul when you touched her heart," Gold speculated but when Emma looked up at him, she could sense he was only playing at confusion. Something told her the oily bastard knew exactly what was going on and she would make him tell her and she'd…

"That doesn't mean that Emma has to bring Regina back, though," David asserted and he crossed his arms against the scowl he received from Emma. "And if Emma used magic, there's a price involved and she shouldn't have to pay anything for Regina. She can just leave Regina as she is…it was her choice to die, after all."

A white–hot wave of anger coursed through Emma's veins and she felt alive. "Instead of telling me what to do, why don't you try to make up for tossing me into a wardrobe and just be there for me!?"

David looked wounded. "Emma, you know why we did it."

Emma was about to retort when Gold cleared his throat and she whirled imperiously to face him, daring him to cower. Of course, he did no such thing. "Emma has already started to pay the price. I'm sure you've all noticed that Emma has finally started to…exist again. She's no longer just an empty shell. She's as lost as Regina is, and their hearts are connected. In order for Emma to truly become herself again, she must restore Regina."

What the hell….

"So Emma has no choice in the matter…?" Snow brokenly asked, her eyes growing wide.

"That's not quite true," Gold shrugged.

"And just what you mean by that?" David demanded. "Because from where I'm standing, it doesn't look like it."

Gold gave Emma a half–smile. "You made the choice, dearie. Your magic activated to give you your wish and it's your handprint on Regina's heart."

"What does he mean by that?" Henry turned a questioning eye to Emma.

"Emma used magic on Regina," Snow haltingly began.

"I didn't mean to," Emma insisted as she looked at her son. "Regina fell and, I don't know, I guess it just happened. It was like when she took my heart, but I didn't take hers," she affirmed.

Liar.

"Whether or not you choose to use your magic to pursue the fragments of Regina, the fact remains that you are the only one capable of doing so," Gold looked to the side and Emma tried to follow his gaze but was unable to discern his expression. "The pieces are calling to you, aren't they, Miss Swan?"

Emma drew back with a snarl. "You tell me what you know or so help me I'll end you," she growled.

Gold laughed coldly, unfazed by Emma's threat. "And just why should I? I don't owe you any favours and frankly, dearie, I'm rather hurt by your threats." There was a sneer that developed on his face that made Emma's blood crawl. "So like Regina…"

"You'll be more than hurt by the time I'm done with you!" Emma roared and she lunged for that disgusting little shit who finally seemed to understand that she was the fucking Saviour and she could rid the whole world of whatever she desired if only she wished it but his stupid son, that traitor of a lover, blocked her path and shoved her backwards to her useless parents who abandoned her and her stupid son who thought she could do anything, who was raised by a monster who she still wanted to save…

…She did, didn't she…?

The rage drained out of her as quickly as it had appeared and Emma hung her head for a moment. She had never felt such quick anger before as she had in the last day. Not even when she was furious with Regina when the woman was being such a flaming bitch had Emma felt this unadulterated fury. Gold had said they were connected now, like there was a part of Regina in Emma. Did the understanding she have for Regina start to affect her? Was that part of Regina taking control of her own heart?

No! My heart belongs to me!

Emma recalled the bleakness of the room she dreamt of. Perhaps it wasn't a dream at all, maybe her magic had taken over her mind and brought her to a place inside her heart, the area that a part of Regina resided. Were the paintings symbolic of the parts of Regina she had to find? Maybe that's why the place was ruined…what if she wasn't in her heart but Regina's? Their connection became two–fold when Emma reached into Regina's chest to grasp at her heart…The magic inside of her must have known that was its only shot at saving Regina.

Regina said that the action of taking her heart wouldn't save her but it had connected them on a level too intimate for Emma to even comprehend. Or was it something else that happened when she reached for Regina's heart? Emma remembered that moment when Regina held her captive and was about to crush her heart. That whole exchange with Regina…it didn't happen in reality…was it a conversation in their hearts…?

Emma's head began to pound and she groaned with the effort to remain standing. Immediately her family convened at her side, physically and emotionally supporting her. "What's going on?" Snow asked and looked from Emma to Gold.

"Dad, you may not owe Emma, but you do owe me," Neal stated softly, a fierce determination in his eyes. "…and Regina."

For a moment Gold appeared to be struggling with his response before caving into Neal. Emma grinned at how easily he folded. "Miss Swan's magic is activating without her consent, and when she tries to fight against what her magic is trying to accomplish, it has negative consequences on her body. It will take a toll on her, even if she learns how to control it," Gold explained.

"What's it trying to do?" Henry inquired.

A sliver of humanity flitted across Gold's face before it was replaced by a neutral expression. "Find Regina."

"The spell was supposed to break a soul into millions of pieces…it would take a long a time to find them all," David mused aloud and rubbed a hand across Emma's shoulders.

No, it wouldn't, because they wanted to return, Regina wanted to be saved, she wanted Emma to save her, Emma knew that. She thought of the portraits of Regina lining the room in…Regina's heart…they were three different representations of her, and they had all called out to her in Regina's voice. Maybe if she inspected them, used her magic on them, they'd restore Regina.

"What are the pieces like? Will Emma be able to recognize them?" Snow fired off her questions in quick succession and Emma felt a dull sort of surprise at the hint of desperation laced in them.

"Emma will know," Gold answered. "She probably already does and that's why the magic is flaring up. It knows where to go and what to do. The pieces of Regina's soul are everything that made her Regina. Her memories and experiences, feelings…"

"…which is what is happening to me," Emma finished. "I'm feeling what I'm searching for."

Snow gasped. "So you're feeling what the Evil Queen felt? Is that why you've been so tense?"

Broken.

Damaged.

Deranged.

"A lesser heart would have succumbed to such a powerful soul as Regina's," Gold sounded thoroughly intrigued and Emma sneered at him before he got any funny ideas about dissecting her heart or picking her brain for answers. "The more of Regina's soul is returned to her, the less influence they hold over Miss Swan."

Henry moved in front of Emma and her confusion magnified when he frowned at her. "If she felt like this all the time, it must have been really hard for her to try to change."

Emma felt her stomach plummet. When her son continued to look up at her, for just a brief, fleeting second, she felt herself return in its entirety and she hugged him fiercely, rocking back and forth together as if the movement would calm her. The gush of love that flooded her heart caught her off –guard and she coveted it.

She pulled away from Henry, the gesture in sync with her feelings. "I won't stop searching for her, Henry."

His eyes lit up and he looked back to Snow who had a muted look of happiness on her face. "Grandma! Tell Emma what you told me!"

Snow's smile became more real. "Emma, Henry and I have been trying to find a way to help you and Regina and we were going through The Book. We didn't find anything but Henry was convinced there had to be something somewhere to help us, since every curse can be broken. Last night I remembered a story my mother used to tell me. She had a book." Snow's gaze was unwavering as she looked at Emma and something in that look sent a jolt through Emma. "It was called 'The Saviour's Search.' If we can find that book, maybe it can help you."

David didn't appear too happy about the news, but apparently he took Emma's words to heart and nodded his support. "Do you have it?" He asked of Gold.

Gold smiled smugly. "It just so happens that I do. Miss Swan, if you would follow me," he turned without waiting for her consent and slipped into the back of his shop. Emma immediately tromped after him. When she joined him he already had a small chest sitting on his workbench and indicated to Emma that she should open it. She lifted the lid to reveal a weathered book. As her fingers touched it, her body shook with the influx of magic that activated within her. She tore open the cover to reveal emerald–coloured embossed words, just like on the cover.

"What the hell does it say?" She demanded. "It's nothing but gibberish."

Gold shook his head and his expression became sombre. "It's anything but that, Miss Swan. You may not understand the words as they are written but your heart does. Touch it," he insisted.

Warily, Emma pressed the flat of her hand against the page. Immediately, her head was flooded with strange words in a myriad of voices but the power she felt was immense. "What happened?"

"Your magic was bolstered by that book," Gold explained. "It will help guide you on your search for the essence of Regina and will help curb the side–effects of your magic and will help you learn to control it."

Emma leveled him with a look. "So what's the real price for bringing Regina back?"

Gold stared at her for a long moment and where it may have made Emma feel uncomfortable before, there was now a sense of confidence that bolstered her. "Even being the Saviour doesn't excuse you from having to pay the price," Gold whispered. "Perhaps because your magic is that born of True Love, but your prices will always be steep, damaging in a way even dark magic isn't. You're restoring a Happy Ending. Think about what that means."

Things suddenly made a lot more sense to Emma.

"And to restore Regina will take a long time," Gold cautioned. "Even if you spent your entire day searching for her, there will be no quick way to bring her back."

Emma remembered how long it took to bring herself back, to restore that which was lost in her. "I don't care how long it takes. I will bring Regina back."

"What about Cora? If you believe Regina can be saved, why not her?"

Emma bristled. "It's that damn woman's fault that this is even happening! I don't give a shit about Cora."

Gold shrewdly eyeballed her. "What about Regina?"

Emma started trembling. "Regina doesn't get to have a say in what I do. She said she believed in me and trusted me and then she left me! I'm through with letting people do that to me!"

Gold's face was a mixture of pain and anger. "Just like how your parents left you? And how you gave up Henry?"

"Don't you dare lecture me about being a parent!" Emma menacingly slammed her hands down on the workbench. "Out of everyone here, Regina was the only one who knew what it was like to be a parent and stayed with her child! I gave Henry up so he could have the things and life I didn't—I did it for love—"

and because she was afraid, so very much…

"You abandoned Neal and planned for Regina to become your monster! For years you plotted to groom a child, a child you wanted, to be a monster! So don't talk to me about love because what kind of person grooms a child they purported to care about to be a monster and then just lets her kill herself!?"

"You think I wanted her to die!?" Gold demanded and his fury matched Emma's every bit.

"Why else would you let her march off to commit suicide?" She snidely asked.

"Regina was never supposed to die," Gold's voice trembled and Emma saw a man. Not Gold or The Dark One but a broken shard of a person who had everything taken from them, by fate and by choice. For one second she saw the humanity in the person before her. "She was dying; you know that."

"You could have found some way to drain that magic—"

"I couldn't!" He cried in frustration and turned from her. There was a silence broken only by his heavy breathing. "She took it, knowing what it'd do to her. For she believed and trusted in Henry, something I couldn't do with Bae. My student, the child I wished was mine….The one I've done horrible things to for the slim chance that she could lead me to my lost boy and make up for my failure. When she took the magic I realized that she had surpassed me and did all that I couldn't do. My pride was swallowed by my own anger in myself. She did when she didn't have anyone love and believe in her as strongly as Belle did in me…"he trailed off, obviously thinking about the woman in the hospital who no longer was able to remember the life and love they had shared.

Emma found a new sense of respect for Regina. To hear it from that perspective…She still thought Gold to be a worthless crumb of a man but she had begun to have a new view of the world, thanks to her feelings for… "This is your chance, then."

Gold turned to her with a look of confusion. "What?"

"A fresh start. To be all that Belle believed you to be."

Gold seemed to contemplate this.

Emma turned to go back to her family.

"Miss Swan?" She looked back at him. "Regina did it for you, too."

"Welcome back."

"Well, I'm working on doing the same for her."

"…You already have."

Emma faced him fully. "What do you mean?

"I think you know." Exasperated, Emma rolled her head. Gold's face suddenly lit up as if something had just occurred to him. "Give me a moment, Miss Swan." He shuffled over to a nearby shelf and rummaged through it for several moments before turning back to face her. A necklace fashioned of a thin, very fine gold chain with a translucent snowflake charm was draped over his finger. He offered his hand to her. "Something that may come in handy," was all he said on the subject.


Cioburile pretutindeni; ele gunoiul în spaţiu în inima mea în care locuiţi

Broken shards everywhere; they litter in the space in my heart where you reside

Spatele ca dispare ... incerc sa o prinda din urma

The back that fades away…I try to catch up

Opţiunile dvs. ne chinuie atât

Your choices haunt us both

Este întunericul tot ce rămâne?

Is your darkness all that remains?

Ai neglijat cel mai preţios o parte din tine, blocat în propria dvs. de razbunare

You've neglected the most precious part of you, locked inside by your own vengeance

Nu vreau sa-I gasesc; sa ma infurie faptul ca inca doresc pentru a vă elibera

I don't want to find you; it angers me that I still wish to free you

Dar în sa-si dea seama ca în economisind, I ma salvez, călătoriei mele continuă, restabilirea mea credinta

But in realizing that in saving you, I save myself, my journey continues, my faith restored

Dacă inima mea ne aminteşte, de ce nu a ta?

If my heart remembers us, why doesn't yours?


Emma fiddled with the necklace Gold had given her while she sat in bed, the book resting on her lap. Her mother was unable to translate the words either, the memories of the story faded so she couldn't give a helpful summary of what it entailed. Henry wanted to take the book and type the words into Google to see if he could get a translation but Emma denied the idea, frightened of what the words may really mean. He'd likely swipe the book from her to do it anyway and the image made her grin.

Her parents and Henry had gone over ideas with Emma and they had agreed that since Emma didn't have a great handle on her magic she should only try to search for Regina when she slept. The magic apparently activated automatically then whether she wanted it to or not. Hopefully things would stay dull in Storybrooke but it was Emma's life so she highly doubted that it would go as planned.

She felt the sleep tug at the back of her eyelids and snuggled more into her bed and closed her eyes. It was like snapping a photograph: a moment in her time was captured and stilled. The shift from reality to…Regina–land or whatever it was called…was instantaneous and pretty damn weird to Emma. The room was just the way she had left it. Her mother had intimated that Emma was feeling more of 'The Evil Queen' so Emma headed straight for that portrait that screamed 'Cold' to her.

Emma knew she wouldn't care for what would greet her when she stumbled upon the memories of the Evil Queen. The dreadful things that were talked about in the book surely weren't the worst crimes Regina had committed. Emma had never done anything to match the level of the atrocities that Regina had done but that didn't make them any less wrong.

Henry had given her a chance when he learned of some of the less than savoury things Emma had done. She was determined to do the same for Regina— she had viewed the woman Regina was becoming and that alone would make this delve into darkness worth it.

Emma inclined her head so she was facing Regina lying in repose on the bed. "Hey, Regina. This is gonna suck, as I'm sure you know. I expect you to bake me something that won't make me comatose when you wake up, 'kay?" She pondered on that for a moment. "Well, comatose from poison or something. If it's, say, chocolate cake, and I happen to slip into a food coma, that's fine."

She took a deep breath to steady her nerves and touched the necklace resting against her sternum. There was a warm sensation that traveled throughout her body from the action and a small gold cloud began to emanate from her hand. She placed it on the portrait.


It had been approximately 93 days since Emma first used her magic on the Evil Queen portrait and it transported her into the realistic world of Regina's memories. Emma was forced to emulate Regina's emotions as the events had transpired. She had witnessed many acts of violence and cruelty. After each memory was complete, Emma returned to the room with the portraits and a piece of the portrait was restored. It was near completion.

But tonight was different: tonight Emma had witnessed something so despicable and horrifying that she instantly became disillusioned with her choice. It made her question her motives and if she could ever be able to continue her search. What had transpired had infuriated Emma to the point where she forced herself to wake, tore off the covers on her bed and stormed over to Regina's sanctuary.

"DAMN YOU!" Emma screeched and used her father's sword to hack at one of the mannequins that posed in one of the Evil Queen's garments. "Damn you to fucking hell, you bitch!" She tore one of the apples from the faux tree Regina had in the middle of the room and chucked it at one of the mirrors, shattering it to pieces. She dropped the sword completely and picked up the mannequin and threw it at another.

She would not stop until the room was trashed completely. She would obliterate every last trace of the woman from this world and be rid of her for good.

Chest heaving, Emma stalked over to where the twin coffins of Regina and Cora lay. The glass glowed a dim blue, its colour pulsing like a faint heartbeat. She eyed Regina. The woman looked like she was in a peaceful slumber, like an innocent when, in reality, she was nothing but a filthy monster that would never change and who no one could love because people who did that kind of shit could never change and could never be forgiven and who didn't deserve it and she wasn't worthy of Emma's time and devotion and…

"…Emma…"

Emma startled as her mother's voice penetrated the red haze she was engulfed in. She turned to see Snow standing in in the doorway, arms loosely wrapped around her middle. There was something infinitely sad and calm about her and Emma felt her rage die down a little.

"I can't do it. I won't. I shouldn't."

Snow looked steadily at Emma. "You know you would never be the same."

Emma shook her head. "It would be worth it. The world is better off without her. You don't even know half the shit she did…and what she did to Graham…"Emma shuddered. "I can't forgive her that. Ever." Emma heard a loud plop and looked to the ground where there was a small pool of blood. A dull throbbing began in her hands and she looked to them to see the knuckles cut and bruised, the red liquid pouring out of them. She glanced at Regina's coffin to see the smears left by her blood splattered across the surface. "I won't forgive her for killing herself, either."

There was a small sound from Snow. Emma didn't care to know more about it. "Whether or not you should do this…you'll do what you truly want, Emma, and we will support your decision, whatever it may be. Don't hate yourself for feeling what you do."

"You haven't the slightest clue how I feel for Regina!" Emma roared and the action of her whirling around to face her mother sprayed blood from her hands, like a sunrise on the floor.

You can't feel for her.

Snow gave her a look that Emma had only seen other mothers give their children, the memory from her childhood sad but being fulfilled at this very moment. "…I like who you are, Emma. You would have had a completely different life if Regina hadn't done the things she did…you likely wouldn't even be here, if she didn't. That doesn't excuse all of the horrible things she did, nor should it. Despite everything, she finally was showing the signs of wanting to change for herself. I could see it before you and I went back home."

Emma shook her head. That place would never be her home.

"But, Emma…" Snow halted, her words frozen as well as her body. "…I have hope. I know it's never what you think you had but you truly do. You've changed, too."

"That's completely different," Emma said. "I did some awful things but I was never a monster like Regina was."

"Do you think it's possible she doesn't want to be that person anymore?"

"That doesn't matter. She will always be that person," Emma vehemently denied.

At that Snow finally seemed to snap out of her indecision and walked up to Emma and slapped her. Emma brought a hand up to her cheek. "Emma, you were the one who believed so adamantly in Regina and that she had changed. You understood her as she was right before she died. Yes, you know more of who she was but who she was trying to be was what you saw. She knew that you saw her that way, the way she wanted you to look at her and when you stopped seeing her that way, it broke her, returned her to who she once was." Snow then cradled Emma's face in her hands. "But, Emma," and voice was injected with such love that Emma could practically feel it warm the cold in her heart. "You believed in her and Regina regained herself because of that."

Emma felt her teeth begin to chatter. She would not cry, and certainly not for Regina.

"Emma, I lied to you."

Emma tried to wrest herself out of Snow's grip but Snow only increased the pressure of her hands and held Emma in place. "I said I didn't remember anything about that story my mother told me. You can certainly put the words into a search engine and translate them, and you can do that when you're ready. But you should know the story behind it."

Shaking her head, Emma finally broke free of her mother's hold. She began to walk away when her mother's voice called to her once more and it stilled her.

"Once Upon a Time...there was a sad and lonely woman. She had done terrible things in her search for someone to love. Her terror reigned over the lands and she was known as the Evil Queen. One day she realized all she had done and walked away from the path she had chosen but no one would love her because they only saw who she used to be. So she sought out a magician of great power, whose skills were greater than her own.

'Why, dearie, what troubles you so?' The man asked.

'I want to love someone and have them love me in return. I've changed but no one seems to see who I truly am.'

'Then freeze your time so that you will wake and be able to find someone that doesn't recognize you. Or travel to a different world where no one will know of your wicked past,' the man suggested.

'No,' the woman denied. 'I want to be loved for all that I am. I want someone to help me defeat the pain in my heart and know all of me and still love me.'

'That's a lot to ask for,' the man replied. 'If you want everything, you'll end up with nothing.'

'I'll wait forever, if I have to,' the woman said. 'I've already waited my whole life and I've borne the consequences for my deeds and will continue to do so if it means I get what I desire.'

'You've done a great many terrible deeds,' the man said. 'Nothing comes from nothing, though, and for all you've done in the world, there are still those that would love you still.'

'Truly?' The woman asked, astounded.

'A question if I may, before I grant your request,' the man said.

'Of course,' the woman replied.

'If you receive this person you desire so, would you change anything you've done?'

The woman took a moment to consider her life. The man saw a great range of emotions cross her face before it settle don bittersweet. 'If I did, I wouldn't be here now. I wouldn't be able to experience True Love if I hadn't done such awful things, for True Love heals a person and saves them.'

'Very well then,' the man answered. He took a hair from her head and used it to fashion a book. Then he took a drop of her blood and placed it onto the middle of the cover. Script began to appear across it.

The woman looked up at the man. 'What was written?'

'It's the story of your heart, dearie,' the man said. 'It's the words of the True Love you seek. It's the promise from your Saviour.'"

If Emma listened, truly listened, she could hear the sound of Snow crying.

She walked out of the room and didn't look back.


For the first week after Emma had demolished Regina's 'sanctuary', she didn't sleep. She was afraid if she did so, her magic would force her into finding Regina once more, despite her desire not to. She eventually succumbed but, to her relief, she only found herself in the familiar darkness she had been in right after Regina had died. The necklace Gold gave her did in fact dull the consequences of not searching for Regina.

It was heavy and cold against her chest. Emma thought the cold would burn an indentation of it in her skin and she found herself constantly rubbing it, just to make sure it didn't.

Everyone knew that she had stopped her search, but they thankfully respected her wishes, for the most part. Henry would snub her from time to time and she couldn't blame him. He was well–aware of the transgressions committed by Regina from The Book but there were things he was better off not knowing.

Best let him love his memory because that's all he was getting.

Snow had stayed true to her word and supported Emma but Emma had noticed that her mother slowly began to eat apples again, and David himself had requested apple cookies on occasion. Emma wouldn't touch the stuff.

Perhaps what was most surprising of all were the disappointed looks she would receive from Neal…and Gold. She avoided the latter like the plague he was and as long as she could do that, it was easy to fool herself into believing everything was fine.

She was working a Saturday and everything was fine. She wasn't thinking about Regina or regretting her decision or planning on moving on or anything. Emma hadn't gone near Regina's old house or her hidey–hole since that day. Today was different, though.

It was, after all, day 1,613 since Regina died.

To her surprise, the place looked extraordinarily well–kept and it occurred to her why that was when she spied her father driving a lawnmower across the yard and her mother bending down on the ground, presumably taking care of the flowers.

Instead of anger, Emma felt only sadness. She got out of the cruiser and made her way up the walkway. Her dad gave her a surprised wave and nearly drove into the hedges.

"Charming! What do you think you're—Oh! Emma!" Snow exclaimed and straightened up to greet Emma.

"What are you guys doing here?" Emma asked and shied away from her mother's touch. However used she was to the action, Snow's smile still faded a little.

"Helping Henry," Snow answered and indicated the door. She turned back to resume her weeding and Emma felt a prickle of amusement. How pleased would Regina be if she…Emma shut that thought down and scowled at herself.

"Hey, Mom!" Henry greeted her as soon as she shut the door behind her. Neal poked his head from between the banisters to give her a cheeky greeting. Emma rolled her eyes at his antics.

"Henry, what are you guys doing here?"

"It was my idea," Neal said and descended the steps to stand next to Henry. They were nearly the same height now and something about it made Emma's chest ache. "We've been giving the place a thorough cleaning every Saturday for years. I…I think it's the least I could do for her, you know? Like I have to make up for the things she went through for my sake."

Emma crossed her arms sullenly. "Even though she was manipulated, Regina still made the choices that she did, many of which she was not forced to make. She did awful things, Neal."

He shook his head. "I'm not denying that, Emma. I'm just of the mind that she didn't receive much kindness, let alone kindness without a price."

Henry frowned at that and Emma could sense he was thinking back on his conditional love for Regina. "Those who deserve it least of all are the ones that need our love the most, Mom. You taught me that."

Wait, what?

"What are you talking about, Henry? How could I have taught you that?"

Henry shrugged. "You gave Mother a chance, even when you had every reason not to. You wouldn't have tried so hard if it was just a promise to me."

Emma felt something crawl into her chest and try to overtake her. She bit her lip to avoid succumbing to it. "Do you hate me for…"

Running away.

"No, not anymore," Henry smiled forlornly and it was so Regina that Emma felt her eyes water. She gave into the ache in her heart.

Neal craned his neck a bit to smirk at Emma. "Someone once said that there are some people who are good for us, some who are bad for us and some people we just choose."

Emma wished she could love him the way she used to. "I'm not sure I made the right choice, Neal."

"But it's yours, Emma."

"I'm sure you understand, dear. A life led as nothing more than a glorified puppet, under the illusion that the choices made were its own. Then, blessedly, the day comes and you can finally choose something. It matters not what the choice is about. The point is that you get to make the decision and it's unequivocally yours."

Emma had spent the past several years trying to reconcile who Regina had been with the Regina that she had known. Perhaps the anger she felt at Regina wasn't entirely because of the heinous acts she had committed, but Emma's own decision to stick with Regina, her own feelings for the woman…No, of course not, Emma firmly told herself. She did not love Regina.

"D'you think that's why Regina told me not to find her? Because she didn't think I could persist in saving her, knowing all she'd done? Well, that's stupid of her," Emma petulantly huffed and ignored Henry's eyes lighting with joy. "She doesn't know me at all. I have half a mind to find her just to show her she's wrong."

"At least you've half a mind," Neal said under his breath to Henry who snickered.

Emma glared at them both. "The hell is so funny?"

"So you're going to keep saving Regina just to spite her?" Neal lied through his teeth.

"Y'know, the other half of my mind is of the opinion the I should help you meet the Tooth Fairy," she shook a fist at Neal who merely laughed.

Henry intervened before Emma could show her deadbeat ex just how serious she was. "You're a lot like Mother," he said and it stopped Emma cold. "Your first instinct when you're angry or hurt is to smash all the things. Tear them apart."

The truth of the statement hit Emma like a freight train. She was never evil…but she could have been. It would have been easy to take that road and how it would have eased her pain. But she knew what it was like to come back from that pit of despair and to keep going and how the love you found at the end was infinitely more special than the one you had lost.

Huh.

It turned out she still understood Regina…and herself.

Emma let out a soft laugh and Neal and Henry shared an incredulous look. "Thanks, kid. You stuck by me…everyone did… even though I lost myself to doubt and anger, my own and Regina's. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to go fix Regina's White Tree of Gondor."

"Wait, what?" Neal asked and beckoned Emma back from her position at the door. "We can help you."

Emma shook her head slowly. "No thanks. I made that mess and it's my job to clean it up."


When Emma went to bed after spending the rest of her day bleaching the shit out of Regina's secret place, she was exhausted and a tiny bit afraid. What if she couldn't find her way back to Regina's heart?

What if Regina gave up on her like she did?

Emma drifted off after a restless hour of tossing and turning in her sheets. She opened her eyes to the sound of a fireplace crackling. She shivered and turned around to find the Evil Queen already watching her from her position on the divan, the sparkles in her dress glinting madly in the firelight.

"I was beginning to think you'd never return."

What the flying fuck was this?

Emma had been just a visitor in Regina's memories, never an active participant and no one had ever noticed her presence. She looked over her shoulder to see if anyone else was there but was met with nothing but air. She turned back to see the Evil Queen gazing at her. There was something predatory about her gaze that set Emma on edge. She wasn't sure that she liked it.

"My mother told me that magic is power, and power is freedom," the woman said in an almost disinterested tone but she was just making a play at deception. Emma had seen enough of The Evil Queen to know how her mind worked and the tricks she played. "Love is power," she continued after gauging Emma's reaction. "When the entirety of your heart is willingly placed in someone else's hand and you have the knowledge that they could annihilate you at their whim. Your belief and trust hinge on their fancy staying with you…"she glanced at the fire crackling behind her before leveling Emma with a dark look. "…but that's nothing but an empty promise. For one day they will end you, without fail. Whether it be by their absence or betrayal, it matters not. The fact remains that they hold dominion over you for as long as you have those feelings. As they had given themselves over to another," and her voice began to rise as well as her body, "as I had given myself to you! And that's exactly how you repaid me! You denied me and betrayed me!"

Emma stood her ground. She had already faced this woman before and nothing she could say or do could dissuade her now. Emma did whatever the hell she wanted and she wanted to see her Regina, the real Regina.

The Evil Queen deflated upon realizing her power play was ineffective. "You were to be mine, you know. Mine to love. The child Leopold denied me, the one to save me. But now you know why it wasn't meant to be. I ruin everything I touch. I ruined you," and there she was—Regina was hiding underneath the Evil Queen's pain but Emma would draw her out.

She always could.

"No, it wasn't you who ruined me," Emma stated and The Evil Queen brought her gaze back to Emma's eyes. "I ran away. I wasn't ready to be the Saviour…yet again. But, hey, you're a part of Regina, so you must have heard it, too, yeah?"

"Even if you leave me, I'll return to you."

Regina gaped at her and a blot of darkness expanded from the middle of her chest and overtook the room. Emma scrunched her eyes shut against the sensation and when she felt safe once more, she pried one open and gasped.

The portrait of The Evil Queen was complete.

Emma looked around the room to notice that it was slightly brighter and that some of the mirrors had been repaired. She rushed to the bed and touched Regina.

She wasn't cold anymore.


Ai invatat sa fi singur, ca am

You've learned to be lonely, as have I

Suntem atât incendiu; în loc de a arde în flăcări noastre se adaugă în fiecare alte şi strălucire toate mai luminoase

We're both fire: instead of burning out our flames add to each other and shine all the brighter

Umpleţi vidul în inima noastră

Fill the void in our heart

Pentru dacă sufletul meu isi aminteste-ne, n-ar trebui sa ai tai?

For if my soul remembers us, shouldn't yours?


The ensuing two months after The Evil Queen was repaired was split between taking care of the town like she used to, spending time with her family, learning how to control her magic with the help of Gold who she refused to see unless Neal and Belle were present, and going through the memories of Mayor Regina Mills.

Emma remembered the pain of those first months she was in Storybrooke, and, yeah, Regina was quite the bitch but she found herself mostly annoyed and irritated rather than outright hostile like she used to feel constantly. It was kind of familiar in a way and Emma had to wonder if she was a masochist.

Each day she found herself growing close to her family again and no longer would she shy away from Snow's touch and the hurt look that sometimes would take residence in her mother's eye disappeared. David would join her more on her patrols around town and they learned to be able to talk to each other without their tempers flaring up. Henry had returned to the easy enthusiasm and effortless affection of their earlier days and Emma was touched that he was able to forgive her so readily. He would talk about Regina a lot, now, about the times before The Book was introduced into their lives.

Emma had seen what she felt was Regina's most precious memory the other night. A young Henry had presented her with a clay handprint that proudly declared 'For Mommy.'

She jimmied the lock to Regina's mansion after she woke up and brought the little piece of art to the Sanctuary to lay at the floor by Regina's coffin. It was still in a vertical position and Emma was pretty sure the blue glow emanating from it was getting brighter. She wondered if it had anything to do with Regina's soul being patched up.

Every day, Emma felt a little less empty inside.

After a particularly enjoyable Saturday where the whole family plus Neal had gotten into a rowdy game of football, Emma began to feel her blood rush to her head. Her lessons with Gold, while supremely annoying and left her rife with harassment, had paid off and she was able to channel her magic to allow her to transport her heart to Regina's in an instant. Of course, it left her body vulnerable, so she only did it while she was sleeping or under the protection of her family, but it gave Emma a power trip every single time. No wonder Regina loved it.

Emma found herself in an intimately familiar place: outside the door to the Mayor's office. She opened the door swiftly and made her way to the desk behind which Mayor Mills sat, diligently bent over a stack of paper work, pen scribbling furiously. She pretended not to know that Emma had entered but the woman tried too hard and Emma saw through that BS just like old times.

"Ah, Sheriff Swan," Mayor Mills deigned to address Emma after several minutes, just to show Emma how little she cared. "I see you've finally decided to see me."

"Mayor Mills," Emma slowly enunciated and placed her hand on the Mayor's desk. The action caused the Mayor to let out an exasperated sigh and scowled before raising her eyes up to Emma. She blinked rapidly for a few moments as she raked her eyes over Emma's body again and Emma pulled back from the desk, suddenly self–conscious.

The Mayor smirked and Emma slumped her shoulders. She was played yet again. Damn, but if the woman wasn't good.

"Don't worry your pretty little head, Madam Mayor," Emma smirked right back and folded her arms, relishing the position of her height, forcing the Mayor to look up at her. "We can still have our Friday night girls banter. Shall we talk about boys and paint our nails?"

Mayor Mills' smirk diminished into something infinitely more real. Emma was secretly pleased. "As you wish, Miss Swan. I'm not sure I want to tell you this, for fear of your already large head inflating even further but I am compelled to do so."

Emma scowled and Mayor Mills' saccharine smile was sweet enough to rot her teeth down to her roots.

"I'm not sure mine has much room to expand with yours taking up all the room."

Mayor Mills rolled her eyes and got down to business.

Point for Swan, Emma inwardly crowed.

" Miss Swan, you gave my son to me," and the touch of reverence that always appeared when Henry was mentioned was clear. "With his arrival my life became more real again, less…empty. And then you showed up," she deadpanned and Emma winced from the effort of holding back a chuckle. "Much to my dismay, mind you, you made me feel…"and, as if realizing that she'd revealed more than she intended, Mayor Mills cleared her throat and adopted her best stern expression but Emma saw right through it. "You seem to bring out everything within me when I never wanted to let you in. We're too alike Miss Swan, we both like fire too much," she tilted her head, pleased that she had lost Emma with her vague statement. "You know I happened to prefer the magic that burned and my desire to crush hearts." She lifted an eyebrow and Emma was surprised to feel only a fleeting moment of anger from the memory of Regina crushing Graham's, and others' hearts. "Their hearts all turned to ash and I loved it. But, no matter how many times I crushed yours…it only became embers, reigniting every single time. You transformed from an inept little tart to annoying pain who was occasionally useful…to my friend," Regina finished and there was that vulnerable look on her face that Emma saw in their final days together.

When Emma made sure the portrait of Mayor Mills was indeed repaired and she returned to reality, she dug the book her mother knew as a child out from under her pillow.

The Saviour's Search, huh?

She logged onto Henry's computer and opened the file on his Desktop labeled 'Operation Saviour.' She smiled, the file's creation date the same as the day they obtained the book. The translated passages popped up before her eyes.

Emma finally let herself weep.


Vom completa reciproc: în oglinda din interiorul

We complete each other: the mirror inside

Arată-mi de viaţa de zi cu zi pe care o doreşti

Show me the everyday life you desire

... Pentru ca este ceea ce e in mintea mea, precum si

because it's what's in my mind as well


"So…Henry passed his driver's exam today," Emma whispered to Regina as she sat next to her on the bed. The portrait room was nearly restored and the brightness was almost warm and inviting. Emma had been seeing the young Regina for nearly two months now and if she ever needed a reason to hate Cora, most of the memories gave her an endless supply of loathing. It was little wonder Regina had such a strange parenting style. Some things she did as her mother had done but she also was able to do the complete opposite, maybe because she knew if she did that, Henry wouldn't wind up like her. Her mother had told her about Daniel and she had seen him in memories so far, but had not witnessed his death as of yet. Emma had a feeling it was coming up soon, for the portrait was nearly complete.

Every night, Emma made sure to sit on the bed and inspect Regina for any changes. The Evil Queen portrait had restored warmth to the body while the Mayor Mills one had brought the rosy tint back to Regina's cheeks and skin becoming that dark, richer hue so vibrant with life. Emma felt happier with each day and was amazed at how Regina had retained such a positive outlook on life while under Cora's thumb. Emma had turned to a life of crime and Regina became a top–notch horse rider. Or whatever they were called, Emma frowned slightly. It figured that Regina would have been a class–act even at that age.

Emma wished Regina would start breathing again. The act of breathing was so calming. Henry had remained an affectionate person, even as a young man, albeit in the privacy of their own home. Emma would watch the rise and fall of his chest when he would fall asleep on the couch next to her and wonder just how his heart looked on the inside. Was it like Regina's? Or perhaps there were clocks inside of him, just like his room. She wondered what hers looked like.

"You would have freaked out," Emma asserted and began to brush her fingers through Regina's hair out of habit. "I bet you would have quizzed him and given him a practical, wouldn't you?" Her fingers stilled. "Regina…I'm sorry. You should have been here for this, for everything. I ought to have apologized sooner. You were worried I would take him from you and I wound up doing it when I promised not to." She brought the back of hand to Regina's cheek and the softness of her eyelashes against Emma's knuckles caused her heart to skip a beat. She recalled Regina doing the same to her. "It was wrong of me to leave you alone for so long…will you forgive me?" She leaned down to whisper it in Regina's ear.

Emma stood and walked over to the nearly finished portrait and laid her hand against it.


"Why would you do this!?" Regina cried up at her mother.

Emma felt her own heart break at the beginnings of a shattered girl on the ground before her. When she first saw the portrait, she had wondered what it would take to break this Regina and she got her answer.

She wished to hell that she didn't.

Cora became agitated and started to speak but another voice sounded lowly from behind Emma.

"I did it because I loved her."

"Holy shit!" Emma yelped and slashed the air sideways with her left arm as she leapt back into a defensive posture.

It couldn't be!

Cora laughed, even as she looked on at the memory of the mess she created decades ago. It was a look of pride and self–satisfaction. Emma felt her body tremble with the force of her anger. The memory dissolved into nothingness and for once, Emma was engulfed in an entirely white area. "Don't you give me that. You can't do things like that, like killing someone your daughter loved, and try to justify them with the bullshit excuse about doing it because you 'loved' her!" Emma roared and the very foundation of Regina's heart began to crumble. "Get out of our heart," she threatened lowly.

Nonplussed, Cora tilted her head back and smirked condescendingly. "Isn't that simply precious? Your heart is shielding me from me own daughter. Why would you ever want to separate a mother and daughter? Surely you must know the love they share would never relent its hold on their hearts."

Emma exhaled loudly through her nose. "How come Regina isn't awake but you're here? I've been searching for her, not you," she glowered.

Cora smiled, a line painted on the face of a porcelain doll. "My daughter has changed herself so many times, and for fools such as yourself, no less. Each break takes more time to repair, as you've noticed. I, however, have always been myself. As to how I'm here, why I have you to thank for that, dear," she chuckled and Emma bristled. Only Regina could call her that. "Each step you take for Regina is another for me." Her smile faded and her eyes locked onto the necklace resting on Emma's neck, no longer a heavy burden. "Where did you get my necklace?"

Emma's hands flew to the item. "Damn him! Gold gave me this, knowing that it'd help restore you!"

Cora simply laughed at Emma. "Not true, but good guess. The Vas Gol spell ties the caster's and victim's souls together and binds them. By restoring Regina you do the same to me."

"Trust me Henry, you will not be happy as long as Cora is alive."

Emma took a deep breath. She wouldn't leave Regina again, not ever, not even if it meant bringing back the most soulless creature she had ever faced. There were plenty of ways to deter Cora back in reality, Emma was sure of it. Gold was on her side now, but there was no need for Cora to know that.

"What's this necklace for, then?"

"I presume Rumple intended it to help you. It contains my price for Regina," Cora said flippantly. Emma knew it was going to be a doozy. "My love for Eva."

"My grandma!?" Emma echoed incredulously. "Putting aside all the weird and just….ew….about that, how is that even possible?"

Cora clucked disapprovingly at Emma's reaction. It was a little disturbing that the action was so familiar that it softened Emma momentarily. "With enough power, anything is possible. Your own mother erased the love in her heart."

Emma's mind whirled. With enough magic…if Cora's love was contained in her necklace, maybe that was a part of her soul, like how a part of Regina was here in Emma's heart. Emma smirked and concentrated her magic in her hands and placed them over the necklace. She wanted to see Eva, she wanted to see Eva, she wanted to…

"You!" Cora's shriek pulled Emma out of her trance and, standing next to Emma, was a hauntingly beautiful woman, whose features Emma could pick out in her own mother.

But the resemblance to Regina was uncanny. It wasn't so much that they looked exactly alike but there was something in the way they held themselves, the tilt of their chins, the gentle way their eyes would crinkle as they looked at Emma. Eva smiled fondly at Emma before it was wiped away by a hideous scowl matched exactly to Cora's.

"Cora."

Cora's body shook with untold fury and she reared back, her right arm poised as if she were about to unleash a blast of magic. She brought it forward with the motion of throwing an object but nothing came of it. Cora looked shocked as she gaped at her hand and kept bringing it back and forth as if the magic would appear the longer she tried. Frustrated curses poured from her lips and the tautness in Eva's shoulders died down. Emma glanced between the both of them curiously.

"Why isn't my magic working?" Cora demanded out loud and looked accusingly at Eva.

Eva gave a sad sort of smile and Emma's heart froze momentarily. "We're in Emma's heart, now, Cora. She brought us here to protect Regina." She turned to smile at Emma and Emma was overwhelmed with the urge to fall into her arms and be held.

The statement gave Emma pause. She thought of the first time she found Regina, and the darkness that engulfed the area. Eva just confirmed that this white area was Emma's heart…so if the dark was Regina, and the light Emma's, then, the more of Regina that Emma restored brought light to Regina's heart…the more Emma that was in Regina…it suddenly made sense to Emma. The poem, the room, everything. She had taken Regina's darkness and now she was giving Regina her light. Their hearts were slowly becoming one, and with it brought a happiness to Emma she had never known. Their family, their son…and each other. It was the life she had searched for all along, and, if what her mother told her about the story was true, Rumplestiltskin had indeed planned it out—Regina had wished for this. There were still unanswered questions but they could wait. Emma felt her breathing become shallow. It was more than just understanding Regina, more than they were just mirrors of each other.

Emma loved Regina. Her heart was made for Regina. It wasn't even just love; it was True Love.

"…Emma…?" Eva gently laid an arm on Emma's shoulder. Emma forced a smile even when her mind and heart were reeling.

"Regina doesn't need to be protected from me," Cora said and her tone was dangerous. Emma returned her focus on the woman. If she tried, really concentrated, she could discern what it was that Regina still loved about the woman. Somewhere, deep inside, Cora must have loved Regina and gone about it all wrong. In that moment, Emma pitied Cora and Regina both.

"I think she does," Emma softly said. "You killed Daniel and abused Regina in countless ways."

Cora recoiled from the statement as if it were slander. "I never wanted Regina to suffer as I had, but she kept finding ways to hurt herself. I only want to be there for her, to help her pick up the pieces. And don't forget, dear, that you broke her, too," Cora sneered.

Emma nodded—apparently the silent admission took Cora by surprise for her posture wobbled for a fraction of a second before she rolled her head down and her lips curled in a fashion that was no less than cruel. "If you're so bent on protecting my daughter, then perhaps you should start to protect her from yourself."

"Like you have?" Eva retorted. "You ruin everything you touch."

"But now you know why it wasn't meant to be. I ruin everything I touch. I ruined you."

"You chose a child over me!" Cora roared. "That curse was meant for you! Don't you preach to me about right and wrong when you did the same thing yourself, you filthy liar," the word dripped with more venom than Emma ever heard from The Evil Queen.

Eva strode closer to Cora and they began to circle each other, tension palpable. "But you always had to have the last word, didn't you? Cursing my daughter wasn't enough, no, you had to crush my heart."

"It was no less than what you deserved," Cora paused and rolled her head back so she look down her nose at Eva. "In fact, that was a mercy. You wouldn't have to live with what you had done any longer."

There was something resigned about the way Eva shook her head. "Cora, you know we're both to blame." Her tone turned pleading. "We can't let our daughters, our families, continue to pay our prices. Let Regina go."

Cora looked affronted at the suggestion. "I love my daughter and I will not leave her, especially now when she needs me most," she insisted.

"I just want to be free."

"I know you love her," Emma said and it caused both women to break their gazes from each other to turn to her, one horrified and the other confused. "…but your love has brought nothing but suffering to Regina and she still loves you anyway. You've gone about it all wrong and you owe it to her to grant her what she wants. She couldn't bear to live a life without you but she loved Henry…and me…too much to let you take us from her." Emma felt tears start to trickle down her face and she wondered if they were from just her heart. "You've already destroyed one of her Happy Endings—do you intend on taking another?"

Cora and Eva remained frozen and it was difficult for Emma to tell who was more taken aback. Emma started and grasped the necklace that Gold had given her. She undid the clasp and walked over to the two older women. She offered it to the both of them.

"That's the necklace I gave you," Eva breathed. She took it from Emma and something broke in her face while she beheld the jewelry.

There was something heart–breaking in Cora's voice when she finally began to speak. "I thought I'd be helping Regina pick up the pieces, but it turns out I only broke her heart more, and in the ways I had sought to protect her from." Cora studied Emma for a long moment. "I saw you take her heart."

"I didn't take her heart," Emma meekly protested.

"She gave it to you and that made all the difference." There was a glint in Cora's eyes that showed Emma her humanity, long since buried. "At least you're the prophesized Saviour—I would expect nothing less for Regina," she airily said and the cover–up was so obvious it brought a garbled chuckle from Eva.

Eva offered her palm and the necklace to Cora. The woman stared at it for a long moment before reaching forward and grasping it, looking at Eva. Emma wondered if Cora would always see Eva in Regina and that's why she did what she did. Eva inclined her head so she could smile at Emma. "Thank you, Emma, and…"

"Yeah, I'll tell her," Emma uncomfortably shifted her weight.

A purple mist erupted from the necklace and engulfed Cora and Eva. When the mist dissipated, there was nothing left but the necklace lying on the floor. Emma bent down to retrieve it and brought herself back to reality. She kicked off the covers from her bed and raced across town to Regina and Cora's coffins. The pulsing blue light was as bright as ever on Regina's coffin but Cora's had gone completely dark. Emma glanced down at the necklace around her neck. She concentrated and brought herself back to Regina's heart.

Emma stood at the foot of the bed for several long moments. She lowered herself next to Regina and took off the necklace and placed it around Regina's own neck. Her right hand wandered up and down Regina's shoulders. She tilted her head and brought her lips to Regina's cheek to kiss away the invisible tear tracks. Emma brought her legs up on the bed and positioned herself so that she was curled behind Regina and brought her right hand up to Regina's and interlaced their fingers. She wished that she could feel Regina's heartbeat, but, as she buried her face in the juncture of Regina's neck and shoulder, her body was pressed so tightly against Regina's she could feel her own heart beat in the woman's body, perhaps she already could.


Instead of going to speak to her mother, Emma returned to the nearly finished portrait of young Regina. Only her eyes were missing. Emma looked back at the body on the bed and kept her eyes trained there as she touched the portrait.

"Princess Emma!"

Emma let out a garbled epithet as a body slammed into quite suddenly. The arms that were crushing her ribs tightly drew back and Emma felt a bit dizzy as she beheld Regina Mills. They were standing in the middle of the fields where Regina would spend most of her time riding around with Rocinante. Regina Mills was gazing up at Emma with unadulterated adoration and, for the first time, Emma was struck by how beautiful the woman was. This Regina was precious, Emma thought, simply because she held onto something so tightly that the other aspects of her tried to repress.

"I remember you, Princess Emma!" Regina Mills grasped at Emma's hands tightly and Emma couldn't help but let out a surprised smile. "You still look a little sad," Regina Mills' smile faded slightly and Emma felt her eyes begin to water. "What of that sweet boy I saw with you? He must love you even now when he is a young man." She looked down for a moment as if trying to recall something important.

"Henry," Emma supplied softly and gripped Regina Mills' hands back. This brought the young woman's gaze back up with their previous light and a sweet smile.

"Yes, that's it," Regina answered and retracted one of her hands to bring it to rest on Emma's cheek. She tenderly brought her fingers from Emma's cheekbone to the underside of her jaw. "I will love you, too, and we can love each other and never be alone. That's the Happy Ending I've always wished for."

Emma was moved in a way she had never felt before and it caused her to drop her other hand and gather Regina Mills into a tight hug. She heard the young woman sigh blissfully, as if she finally were safe at least and Emma couldn't help feeling the same.

With her arms still wrapped around Emma's neck, Regina Mills spoke again, voice slightly muffled. "Daniel…I loved him more than he ever knew. But you, Princess Emma," she drew back and stared up at Emma with an endless adoration. "You know just how much I love you. Our hearts are one because I remember making a wish that you would never be sad or lonely. So my heart stayed with yours. Just like how the sun goes down and the moon rolls up, their love keeps the world bright." She laid a reverent kiss to Emma's cheek and Emma felt herself get tugged backwards and she fell down right underneath the portrait of Regina Mills, now finished.

Emma raced to the bed and placed her fingers on Regina's throat. A faint heartbeat could be felt underneath her fingertips and Emma felt the joy wash over her. Regina was nearly complete. Without wasting another second, Emma ran to the last portrait and skidded to a stop. It was still completely blank. Her magic gathered in her hands and she placed them on the portrait. Minutes ticked by but still nothing happened. Emma began pounding her hands against the portrait in frustration. She could not have come this far and be stopped just short. She paused for a moment and felt her determination rise. There was one person who could possibly know what needed to be done.

"Rumplestiltskin."


Unde esti?

Where are you?

AM nevoie pentru a merge la tine astfel încât arată-mi calea

I need to go to you so show me the path

Poate căvoi găsi răspunsul în inima mea

Perhaps I shall find the answer in my own heart

Apel numele meu din inimă; un sunet am totul a fost în aşteptare pentru

Call my name from the heart: a sound my everything has been waiting for

Locul intre dormit si treaz este unde vă veţi iubi întotdeauna

The place between sleeping and awake is where you'll always love me

Speranta in inima ta este în al meu

The hope in your heart is in mine

Întotdeauna voi fi cu tine

I shall always be with you


Emma slammed the copy of 'The Saviour's Search' down on the counter in front of Gold. The man graced her with his usual unimpressed face and Emma hated that she could see Regina in it. "I've got some questions and I'm pretty damn sure you have the answers."

"Manners, Miss Swan," Gold snarked and, not for the first time, Emma felt completed to slug it off his smug face. "I presume the necklace came in handy?" He pointedly looked at the place where it used to rest.

Emma rolled her eyes. "Yeah, it had my grandma in it and somehow Cora's disgusting ass showed up and blah blah blah they disappeared into it. So tell me how that is."

Gold shot her an exasperated look. "'Blah blah blah' is something no one could possibly explain, Miss Swan." He waited for her to elaborate but Emma merely stared him down. "I presume Cora told you what was contained in the necklace. It didn't have your 'grandmother' but merely who she was in Cora's heart. Does that make sense?"

"Not really," Emma admitted. "But I guess it would explain why Regina looks a little like Eva."

Gold smiled eerily. "That's right, Miss Swan. Magic in one's heart can have an imprint on many things."

"Thank God for small miracles," Emma smirked as she looked Gold up and down. She supposed that, while Gold's noxious influence exacerbated what was already in Cora's heart, Cora knew enough to keep him out of that and into the child she wanted, to not let his influence be a part of Regina, magically or biologically. "What was the deal between them anyway?"

Gold merely stroked the cover of the book upon the counter. "That, dearie, is a tale that is unimportant. Suffice to say, it could easily have been yours and Regina's. You say that they 'disappeared' in to the necklace?"

Unimportant her ass, Emma stewed silently but let it slide. She could always get Neal to help her harass the story out of the old creeper. "Yeah, they said something about a curse and then they both held the necklace and it looked like Cora activated some magic and they disappeared. The necklace was all that was left. I checked the coffin and Cora's no longer glowed."

Gold pondered that for a moment. "Cora was betrayed by Eva and she cursed Snow White to become the Evil Queen."

Emma drew her head back. "Wait, wasn't that Regina's title?"

Gold nodded. "Cora cursed Snow White to have the darkness from her mother's heart become her own. Eva sought out yours truly to swap her 'light' for Snow's 'dark.' Cora, by some stroke of luck," and Emma knew exactly how that happened, "found out what had happened and found Eva. They fought and Eva transferred the curse to Cora."

"Like you have? You ruin everything you touch."

"But now you know why it wasn't meant to be. I ruin everything I touch. I ruined you."

"Oh," Emma exhaled shakily.

Gold eyed her as if he were putting the pieces of a puzzle together. "Cora must have sealed herself into the necklace, which contained her love for Eva. Only Eva would be able to release her."

Emma jerked her head up. "Regina placed a part of her heart in me, so I have to release it! That's why she hasn't woken up yet!"

Gold smiled triumphantly. "It would seem the merger your heart has made with Regina's has had some unexpected benefits."

Emma glowered. "Tell me about that book. How did Eva have it? Is it true?"

"I gave it to her," he answered. Gold looked steadily at Emma. "You know it to be true. I've been accused of forcing Regina into all the choices she made, but, you see, Miss Swan, Regina did choose her life."

"That's impossible," Emma declared. "That woman can't have been Regina."

Gold smiled. "Every fairytale has a bit of truth to it, Miss Swan. I created the book the exact same way when Regina was a baby. I knew she was going to be my monster, but, you know how I like deals. I had to give her something as well, a present." Emma felt her heart stop. "And that's what she chose: You."

Emma let his words saturate in her mind for a minute. "It was never my choice, then, was it?"

Gold picked up the book and shuffled around the corner to stand in front of Emma. "While Regina may have wanted someone to love her like your heart does, the words in this," he waved the book, "are yours and yours alone. You're the one who chose to love Regina, after all."

"Are you saying I chose to go through everything I have?"

"Just so you could be the one to fulfill this promise?"

Emma paused. She remembered that conversation when Regina took her heart, something that had happened before Regina left a piece of herself in Emma's heart. "I heard her…"

"…and you answered her call when you could have ignored it."

Emma backed up. "Are you saying that Regina and I were the first True Love?"

Gold's smile held no trace of malice. "Precisely."

Emma shook her head. "That's impossible! I wasn't even born yet!…I don't believe in that." But she did believe in her and Regina.

"Whether you believe it or not doesn't mean it isn't true."

A shock coursed through Emma as she remembered thinking that very thing so many years ago. "I'm going to wake her now," she hesitated and looked at the book. "I doubt she'll be ecstatic to see you, but all of you know where I'll be."

Gold's eyes softened and he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. "Don't fret, Miss Swan. We won't want to miss this."


Emma stood panting for several seconds in front of Regina's coffin. It had taken a monumental effort to pry the lid off. She rubbed her sweaty palms on her pants and took a steadying breath. The moment had come at last and Emma felt her excitement mount with each second. She placed a hand over her heart and gathered her magic there. The other hand hovered just over Regina's chest. Emma placed her hand down.

There was a plummeting sensation and Emma closed her eyes to fight the vertigo. When she opened them, to her surprise, she hadn't arrived in the portrait room but rather a wide open field, the only object there a withered apple tree. Emma tilted her head. The entire area was different shades of grey and she was confused as she pulled her hand back to see that her body was also rendered in the same bleak manner.

"Regina," she called out as she made her way to the tree. "Regina, answer me. Where are you?"

"I'm scared," the faint voice of Regina rippled in the air. Emma began running toward the tree and kept circling around it frantically. "I've been bad for far too long. That's all anyone will ever see. I'll always be alone."

Emma came to a full stop. "Maybe that used to be true. I understand, Regina. I used to be that way, too. Always alone. And it's sad, it's painful, it's enough to make you never want to come back. I felt that way but I met Henry and you know how he is. Things change, Regina, we change. We've both failed each other and ourselves," Emma reached out to the trunk of the tree and laid her forehead against it. "But we're together now, and if we're together, sometimes we hurt each other and we part but that is never the end. You're always with me and I with you. We made that choice and it's ours."

Something echoed that sounded a lot like laughter and smiles. Emma opened her eyes to see she was leaning against the final portrait. Regina looked just as she was depicted on the bed and in it Emma could see the woman she knew. She turned around to see all four portraits brought to physical forms standing around the bed. She quickly made her way to them.

Regina smiled at her fondly. "Thanks for finding me, Emma, all of me."

Emma looked at each form and then down to the bed to see the body arranged like it was in the coffin in the real world. Her light had restored the room completely.

Her heart had restored Regina's.

She moved to the side of the bed and looked down at Regina. "Can I kiss you?"

The lips moved slowly. "Only if I can keep you."

Emma kissed Regina.


The kiss Emma had bestowed upon Regina felt a lot like life. Emma continued to lightly press her lips against Regina's and each one filled Regina with breath. She opened her eyes and Emma drew back slightly, her emerald–cerulean colored eyes looking at her like they never had before. Regina felt woozy and toppled forward but Emma instantly caught her and held her, safe and secure. Regina burrowed her face into Emma's golden locks and felt her body tremble.

"Welcome back," Emma whispered into her neck, the words searing themselves into her skin.

"Mom!"

Regina lifted her head and drew back from Emma as their son scooped Regina into his arms and lifted her effortlessly off the ground, twirling her around several times. Regina laughed and the sound of it seemed foreign even to her own ears. He set her down and grabbed her hands.

"You're so handsome," Regina fondly said and ran her hands across his face, memorizing it, picking apart the features he used to have.

"I love you," Henry said without hesitation. He looked at Regina with the affection he had when had present her with the little art depicting his handprint so many years ago. The memory flooded Regina's heart and she realized she finally had her son back.

"I love you, too, Henry," she whispered and his grin was all she had ever wanted. He tilted his head and Regina gasped as she followed his cue to see Snow clasping her hands tightly together, the look of the little girl who had adored her painted across her features. David was standing by her side and even he had a gentle smile upon his face. Baelfire was standing next to him as well as a stoic Rumplestiltskin.

"What are you all doing here?" Regina questioned.

"We're here for you, Regina," Snow answered quietly. Baelfire gave her a wink and Regina rolled her eyes fondly.

It hit her, then. They were here for her. They now accepted her, trusted her, believed in her, just like…Emma said they would. All of the conversations Emma had with her in her heart crashed over Regina, the love raw and consuming, and she turned back to face the woman behind her. Emma was looking at her with a smile Regina had only seen a handful of times. Regina felt more grateful with each passing second and each moment she stared into her Saviour's eyes spread the warmth from her heart throughout her body.

Regina made her way to Emma and spent several moments looking her all over, drinking in every minute detail. She flung her arms around Emma's neck and Emma gripped back just as tight. She could feel Emma's heartbeat fluttering rapidly and through it she could feel Emma's emotions, thoughts and dreams. Never before had Regina felt a happiness, a love, more powerful and encompassing as this. It was more addictive and fulfilling than even holding Emma's heart in her hand.

Emma pulled back slightly to cup her cheeks and Regina's hands came to rest on Emma's clavicles. "I said I'd never leave you."

Regina gave a watery laugh as Emma brushed away her tears and felt a thrill race through her as Emma fondly caressed her face. "You gave up your Happy Ending for me."

Shaking her head, Emma tilted her head so that her nose brushed Regina's and each word that fell from her lips was a kiss against Regina's skin. "Just because it isn't the Happy Ending I thought it'd be doesn't mean that it isn't one."

Overcome, Regina ardently pressed her lips against Emma's to have every bit of passion returned. Short of breath, she withdrew slightly and smiled when Emma tried to reengage. Regina brought her hands up so she and Emma mirrored each other's hold on their faces. "Emma," she whispered like a devout prayer. To hear the name was like to receive grace. "You've given me something far more precious than a life, than a Happy Ending. True Love, something that heals and saves a person."

This time, Emma's tears against her fingers did feel an awful lot like absolution.

"Hope."