So I've left everyone in pain and misery for quite a while, so allow me to alleviate some of that suffering.
I promise this chapter is all fluff! Well, mostly fluff and some plot.
Enjoy!
When Emma came to, she let out a groan of pain and a sharp hiss. She felt the surface she was on move, and she shifted.
"Oh Emma! You're alright!" Cracking an eye open, she saw her mother sitting beside her, while she was lying on the back of a cart, jostling ever so slightly as they moved. Everything that had happened in the past few hours came rushing at her. Regina finding out the truth, being taken to the Dark Kingdom's palace, pleading to be believed, her parents storming to the kingdom, her heart willingly taken by Regina to prove a point, and then saving her lover from an incoming arrow. Emotional pangs, physical pain, it all went away the minute Emma lost consciousness, but now it was slowly creeping back up.
What a day.
"Where are we?" she huskily asked, trying to get her bearings. She noted that she was lying on her right side, probably in order to minimize the amount of pressure on her left, which was still hurting from where the arrow had pierced her, though she was glad to note that the arrow was no longer there, and she was all bandaged up. Her jacket was gone, she was only in her white tunic shirt, so she felt a bit more of a breeze in her arms.
Snow gently rubbed her thumb over Emma's right hand. "We're making our way to Storybrooke. We've been going slower to not rattle you, and we also had to stop awhile to remove the arrow and put some salve on the wound."
"You can speed up if you want, I'll be fine," Emma said, shifting. Her left shoulder felt weird, but she couldn't figure out why, and she didn't have the strength to actually look up and see what it was.
"Nonsense, we're nearly there, and besides, you don't want to startle your new friend," Snow said, jerking her head to something she couldn't see.
As if summoned, a tiny blur with black fur leapt down from its perch on her shoulder. That explained the strange sensation. As she focused on what exactly it was, she frowned. "A squirrel?"
Snow nodded, seeming excited. "Its taken a shine to you. Arrived just as we entered the forest and hasn't left your side."
Emma looked at the squirrel's beady little eyes and smiled, going to stroke its fur, and from its expression, it was enjoying the attention very much. Her mother smiled and attempted to join in, but the tiny creature jumped away from the hand, angrily chattering.
"Oh my, it doesn't seem to like me very much," Snow remarked sadly. Considering that all woodland creatures loved her to pieces, it was hard to see that even one creature didn't like her.
"Maybe in the past you smothered the poor thing with hugs and kisses," Emma riposted.
Snow leveled her with a playful glare. "Oh very funny. I'll go let your father know you're awake and clearly feeling better if you're jesting so much."
When Emma was left alone, the squirrel approached her again, moving from where it had hidden under her mane of hair. "Hey little one, why have you taken such an interest in me, huh?"
The squirrel just chattered once more and raised up onto its hind legs, placing its front paws onto her face delicately. She smiled at the gesture. "Aren't you an adorable one."
Shifting a bit, she felt her eyes droop closed, but first she felt the inexplicable urge to do one more thing. She fumbled to get her necklace out from under her shirt, and twisted the silver necklace once so it would form an eight-shape, then placed the empty loop over the squirrel's neck. "If you want to stick around for a while," she sleepily mumbled, "keep that on."
The squirrel didn't budge from its post, keeping a watchful eye on the blonde as she fell asleep, but grabbed onto the necklace's pendant, a swan, and bit into it curiously, pawing at the cool, smooth surface.
Soon enough, the creature looked up startled, feeling that the scene changed. What had previously been a dense forest was now a bustling town. The squirrel let go of the pendant in surprise, and then quickly disentangled itself from the necklace, just as David climbed onto the wagon.
"She's completely out," he remarked, kneeling to pick her up. "Should I take her to her cabin?"
Snow nodded, grabbing Emma's dirty and bloodied jacket so she could wash and fix it. "Yeah, I'll get Fowler to meet us and take a look at her."
From its perch, the squirrel watched for a moment, before following the ex-prince's path towards a little hut. It found a new place to watch, near Emma's dresser, and stayed quiet as Snow reappeared, this time with a dark skinned man who looked to be quite old, with his salt and pepper hair and beard. He deposited his hat by the door and then checked over Emma, redoing the dressing over the wound, before giving his final diagnosis to the parents.
"She's fine. Her heart might take a little while to be recalibrated, unless you want to get Hoffman in to set her heart back."
Judging by Snow's face, that was not an option. "But it'll be fine otherwise?"
"Oh certainly. The heart tends to right itself eventually, it's just helpful to have it done by hand, but she'll be fine. As for the wound, just rest and salve. No strenuous activities, and certainly no gallivanting around the forest. If you need me, just give me a call."
"Thank you so much Fowler," David said, seeing him out.
Snow turned back to her daughter, and saw the curious squirrel there as well. "Goodness, you've really imprinted on her, haven't you? You keep a close eye on her, alright? I'll be back in a bit to check on her."
The squirrel just tilted its head sideways, getting Snow to let out a chuckle at the adorable antics before she left. Once the door closed, the creature moved, approaching Emma once more.
The thief slowly awoke once again, and as she blinked open, she recognized her room as her own. As she looked around, she noted that, curiously enough, the squirrel was still there. "Hey you," she said in a raspy sleepy voice. "You're still here, huh?"
Once more only chatters responded her query. Emma smiled and reached out to stroke its fur. "Well you're certainly a curious conundrum. Why are you still hanging around? Do you want something of mine?"
Suddenly, the squirrel moved away from Emma's touch and leapt down from the bed.
Emma began to protest, "Hey wait, I didn't want you to-"
But the words died on her lips as she saw a column of purple smoke where the squirrel had been. Emma watched, slack-jawed, as Regina appeared, a soft smile on her face. Once the smoke dissipated, she went and sat down on the edge of the bed, letting out a soft laugh at her lover's reaction. "Surprised?"
"Well yeah, you turned yourself into a squirrel!" Emma was flabbergasted to say the least. She hadn't the faintest idea that was even possible, though that did explain quite a bit.
"I did. I thought it'd be the best way for me to get close and keep an eye on you," Regina murmured, stroking Emma's cheek. Then she leaned down and kissed Emma softly, almost as if she was afraid of hurting her. Emma smiled into the kiss, reveling in feeling Regina's lips again.
"You make it sound like you expected me to get into trouble," Emma teased once they parted.
Regina merely gave Emma a look that encompassed how exasperated she felt. "Yes well, you managed to rope me into removing your heart in order to foolishly prove a point to your parents, something I still can't wrap my head around, since it was extremely dangerous and you're very lucky you didn't get hurt even more."
Emma shrugged. "They thought you took my heart, and I didn't want you to be blamed for something you didn't do, it's not that complicated of a concept."
"Perhaps, but I know that mostly anyone who knows of the Evil Queen would be petrified if I was that close to their heart." Regina retorted. Her breath hitched when Emma gingerly took Regina's hand, the one on her cheek, and brought it down to rest over her heart. Emma smiled reassuringly at her.
"I trust you. With my heart, and with my life too. I knew you wouldn't hurt me, even though I hurt you before by not telling the truth," Emma responded.
"We will talk about that later," Regina said with a melancholy smile. "But now, I'm just glad you're safe. And...if you want, I can right your heart from where I left off. The man that just left...Fowler I believe is his name, said that it would right itself eventually, but if you prefer..."
Emma nodded, thumb stroking the back of the hand. "Do your thing."
Regina gently plunged her hand once more into Emma's chest, finding the misplaced heart with ease, and shifting it so it was in its correct place. For Emma, the change was automatically noticeable. She heaved a great gulp of air, and she felt herself relax. "Much better."
Smiling, Regina leaned down again and placed yet another kiss on Emma's lips. "Excellent. Now, I will heal your wound and I refuse to take no for an answer."
"What? No you can't!" Emma exclaimed, raising her hands up to stop Regina.
Regina sighed and leveled Emma with a look. "And why exactly can't I do that?"
"Because I have no way to explain it. Wounds don't just magically heal without a magical practitioner to do it, and we only have one guy who could manage that, and he sure as hell isn't getting anywhere near me."
After pondering it for a few moments, Regina offered, "Perhaps then, you'll allow me to cauterize it? It wouldn't be that noticeable, and it will help alleviate the pain."
Emma agreed, and Regina set to work, moving to sit against the wall by Emma's left side. Once she was done, Regina rubbed the area and gave Emma yet another kiss. "How does that feel?"
"The wound or the kissing?" Emma cheekily asked, getting her arm swatted for her effort. But that didn't deter her from continuing with, "Because the wound still hurts something fierce, but the kissing is making it all so much better."
Regina rolled her eyes, but still gave her another kiss.
"I meant what I said, y'know? I do love you," Emma said.
She believed it. With all her heart, she knew Emma loved her. "I know, I love you just as much, but we still need to talk about what will happen from now on, especially with what you had been keeping from me."
Emma agreed. "I'm all ears."
"Not now, you're still recuperating, and I'd rather you be fully awake for this."
The blonde nodded, already beginning to doze off. Regina moved to stroke her lover's hair soothingly, feelings warring within her. This was her lover, the woman that had made her feel wanted and so much lighter than she had felt in years. But at the same time, this was Snow's spawn, she should despise her and everything she stood for, and yet, she couldn't find herself to hate her. Emma was right, not telling Regina about her parentage - albeit Regina would've preferred to not have been lied to - opened the doors for a romance that she cherished beyond all else. She just wanted Emma to clarify everything, for them to be on the same page from here on out.
She was interrupted from her thoughts when a door slammed open and closed. She heard feet pattering up the stairs, and before she could react or transform into a squirrel once again, a young boy burst through the doorway, hair wild. This must be Henry.
He only regarded Regina for a moment before she looked at Emma. "Mom?"
Emma cracked an eye open and grinned. "Hey kid, how're you?"
Henry clambered up onto the bed by Emma's right, giving her a small and quick hug. "I'm okay, but what happened to you? Snow said you fought the Evil Queen!"
Regina bristled at the mention of the moniker, and Henry noticed it, brows furrowing as he asked, "Who are you?"
"Oh! I'm Regina, and you must be Henry," she greeted, flashing a soft smile at the young boy.
Henry grinned at her, nodding. "Yes I am! Nice to meet you, Regina." Turning to Emma he said, "What is she doing here, mom?"
Emma chuckled, giving Regina subtle wink before explaining, "This is my lover, Henry, and incidentally happens to be the Evil Queen from lore. But!" she hastened to add, bringing a hand to Henry's shoulder, "she's not evil, you see? She's incredibly kind, and harmless, okay? She won't hurt you."
Looking back at her, Henry saw that the brunette didn't give any signs of being evil. In fact, if Emma hadn't mentioned it, he never would've guessed. So he just smiled and waved at her. She readily returned the gesture, before also leaning forward and dropping a kiss on his forehead. He gave her a goofy smile, and Emma let out a soft laugh.
"Just remember Henry, no one can know she's here, okay?" Henry nodded seriously. "Good. Now, can you go to my desk and get a blue velvet pouch on the top left drawer?"
"Sure!" He scurried off to another room, ready to rummage through her desk for his objective.
"Well, you've met my unofficial kid," Emma said, looking at the brunette monarch.
"He's adorable, and he really looks up to you."
Emma hummed. "Kinda why I was so reluctant to have him as my kid. If I was just his older sister, messing up wouldn't be such a big deal, but as his mom, I'm so afraid of doing the wrong thing."
Regina smiled, taking Emma's left hand in hers and stroking it soothingly. "I think you're doing a fantastic job from the little I've seen, so I don't think you have much to worry."
They heard Henry return just as Emma said a soft "thank you", and watched as the young boy made his way back onto the bed, holding out the blue pouch.
"Here you go!"
"Thanks Henry, now," Emma started, turning to Regina. "As you probably realized, getting into Storybrooke isn't easy. You need one of these magical pendants here," Emma pointed to the swan necklace that was resting over her shirt. "I was going to give you your own pendant eventually to you, but since you're here..."
Regina understood what Emma was saying, and took the proffered bag. Inside was a similar necklace to the one Emma was wearing, except this one had an apple pendant. She raised an eyebrow, amused. "Really? Out of all the symbols you could have picked, you chose an apple?"
Emma shrugged, flashing a grin of her own. "Why not? It's fitting, plus I thought you'd appreciate the reference."
Shaking her head, Regina smiled and gave Emma a kiss. Henry looked away with a blush at the gesture, but when they parted, Regina got Henry's attention by asking him to put the necklace on her. Once it was on, she thanked Henry and looked at the apple insignia. Her lover had quite the sense of humour. She was sure that, if Snow ever saw it, she'd outright have an attack
Snow wasn't far from an apoplectic attack at that moment. After she had left Emma's hut, she headed back to her cabin, going to prepare some food to later send over to Emma. She was halfway done with cooking when Fowler knocked on her door. "Excuse me, my lady, something has been bothering me, and I must ask..."
"Certainly, what is it?" Snow prompted, curious as to what could be eating him, opening the door a bit wider to let him in.
Fowler entered the house with a nervous air about him twirling his hat in his hands. "You mentioned Emma's heart being taken out by the Evil Queen, and at first I didn't really take much stock from it, because of the urgency of the matter, but: are you sure her heart was removed?"
"Yes, I saw it myself." She had also almost fainted at seeing her nemesis holding her daughter's heart, so she knew without a doubt that it had happened. Her panic wasn't something she'd readily forget. "Why?"
"It's just...Emma is the child of your true love with David, and in itself is a fascinating phenomenon," Fowler began. As a practitioner of medicine, he had read any and all books that he could involving the human body, even those that were more outlandish or magic related, since it helped to be informed on misconceptions and special cases, respectively. "One of the most vital points to a child of true love, is their unwavering sense of self. They are incorruptible. Which also means that their hearts can never be tampered with or tainted."
Snow wasn't quite sure what this had to do with what happened earlier Emma, but she nodded. She knew all of this. "Yes, I remember reading about this a few years ago. But I'm afraid I don't understand? What is the problem?"
"Snow, the Evil Queen shouldn't have been able to remove Emma's heart. It has to be given willingly."
And that was that! Told you it'd be fluffy!
I hope everyone enjoyed this! How many people guessed that the little squirrel was actually Regina in disguise?
Next up from me will be a few drabbles, followed by Equals, and then In Sickness and In Health!
Let me know what you thought of this chapter!