Emma stood on the back porch of the mansion, trying to take deep breaths. She had just had another nightmare about what would have happened if they hadn't managed to save Henry back in Neverland. That was something she never wanted to see again.
It caused her so much panic to think that she could have lost him that easily, and would never have gotten to spend more time with him. Feeling a slight tingling sensation, Emma looked down at her hands and gasped. White sparks were starting to gather at her fingertips.
Emma felt panic take control. What if she accidentally hurt someone? She would never forgive herself if she hurt Regina or Henry.
Regina chose that moment to step onto the porch. "Emma," she said. "Just take some deep breaths okay? You can control it." She took a step towards Emma, but stopped when Emma violently shook her head.
"Stay away" Emma warned. "I don't want to hurt you."
Regina took another step. "You won't. I promise. But you need to calm down. Your emotion is just making it worse."
"Stop coming closer!" Emma pleaded. "If I hurt you, I would never forgive myself." Emma thought of a great hiding place. Some place that Regina wouldn't think to look. At first.
"Emma wait," Regina pleaded. But it was too late. In a puff of white smoke, Emma was gone.
"Where's ma?" Henry asked, coming downstairs for breakfast.
"I don't know Henry. I don't know," Regina sighed.
"What happened?" Henry asked.
"She had another nightmare," Regina explained. "Her magic was starting to get out of control because of her emotions. Instead of letting me help and calm her down, she poofed. And I don't know where to."
Henry smirked. "You wouldn't. Not right away. It's like, our secret spot."
"Well? Where is this secret spot?" Regina asked.
"Shouldn't we let her be alone for a little bit?" Henry suggested. "Maybe if she has time to think and relax she'll be okay."
Regina shook her head. "I know what unruly magic is like, and trust me when I say that being alone without help is not the way to go."
Henry hesitated. "Okay," he sighed. "There's a clearing in the forest that we go sometimes just to get away from all the craziness."
"That's where you two disappear to all the time?" Regina asked. Henry nodded. "Thank you Henry. I'll be back home before you know it."
Emma sat in the clearing, pleading with her hands to stop sparking. It was just a stupid nightmare. So why was it freaking her out so much?
She suddenly had a great idea. If she used the magic, maybe it would go away! Finding a tall tree, Emma focused on it and let her magic go. On impact, the tree started burning. It slowly started tilting, and eventually started falling.
"Oh that's not good," Emma said. She dived out of the way and let the tree fall. She heard someone shouting her name, but all she registered was the ringing in her ears.
"Emma!" Regina shouted, running into the clearing. She ran over to where Emma lay on the ground. "Are you hurt?"
Emma shook her head before scooting away. "Why are you here?" she asked.
"Because I care about you," Regina said. "And I know what uncontrolled magic is like. I'm not going to let you go through it alone."
Emma wrapped her arms around herself. "I don't want to hurt you," she whispered.
"You won't," Regina said. "I promise." She reached out and grabbed Emma's hand. Emma gasped and went to pull away, but Regina held on tighter. Several beats passed before Emma relaxed.
"See?" Regina said. "I'm not hurt." She pulled Emma into a hug.
"Uncontrolled magic has nothing on me."
