Warning: If you don't tear up at least once during this chapter, you probably have no soul. Enjoy! If you can.
Songs: I Bruise Easily by Natasha Bedingfield, Unconditionally by Katy Perry, Supergirl by Majestee of Sweden
"Okay, so you should get into Storybrooke between 11 and noon, so just give me a call," Emma babbled as she set Regina's bag in her yellow bug, drawing out their goodbye. She'd nearly had a conniption when she realized that her fiancée had driven her screaming metal death trap all the way to Salem just to be with her last night. She offered her the Camry, but Regina refused under the reason that Henry would be safer in the newer vehicle.
"Bye Mom!" Henry piped as he bounded down the front steps and flung himself into her arms. She kissed his head.
"Love you," she whispered.
"Love you, too, Mom," he returned and slithered out of her arms. He and Emma stared at each other with their arms held out to the side, almost like a wild west stand off. She narrowed her eyes. The moment lingered, and Regina glanced between son and lover in confusion.
"Go!" They yelled together and then sprinted towards the bus stop.
Nate, Caley and a couple other kids across the street also took off like a shot. They'd been waiting for them to move into position. Her fiancee had been putting their son on the bus for three days and had already begun a daily racing ritual for half the kids picked up at their stop. Emma laughed, hair flying wildly behind her and pretended to lose, though Regina knew she sprinted much faster than she let on. Caley won the race. Emma double high-fived her and then hugged her tightly.
Regina jerked in surprise as she observed the interaction. She realized then why Emma easily gained the respect and admiration of every child she came into contact with. She was on their level, emotionally. She never lost sight of the fact that she was an adult with responsibilities, but in a way, every time Emma chose to gallivant around backyards and toss children into pools and race to the bus stop, she lived the childhood she'd never had but always wanted. Emma probably hadn't even realized yet why she behaved the way she did, and Regina's smile grew as she watched the swarm of children chatter at their new hero.
Caley said something up at Emma, and the blonde's vibrant face fell into a serious expression a moment before she raised her shirt, presenting her belly to the little girl. Caley said something else, and Emma nodded. She pressed one tiny finger to the scars on Emma's skin. Regina glanced down the street to find Emily, Caley's mother, watching the interaction with reverent eyes. She obviously approved of the friendship Emma struck with her daughter. If Felicia's version of the rumor mill was to be believed, Caley had begun acting out due to bullying, even by the other kids at the bus stop and on the bus. She was different, but so was Emma. When they moved in and Emma worked her magic on the rest of the kids, the bullying stopped when they saw that Emma took a special interest in the girl.
Actually, almost all of the emotional torture their children inflicted upon each other stopped under Emma's gentle influence and open-arms policy. She was quick with a hug or a sharp tongue, depending on what the situation required, and there wasn't a child on the whole block who didn't adore her. She used that admiration to her advantage, implanted life lessons in unorthodox ways, like last night. They were grateful to her for that; though, the other mothers never commented to Emma directly because of her odd aversion to the other adults.
Regina turned her gaze back to her lover to find her jogging back up their driveway to her. Emma smiled brightly.
"I want to be a teacher. I'm going to call my advisor at BC today" she said without provocation, clearly having just made the decision, and Regina smiled, sensing Emma needed no further acknowledgement of the statement. It was a self-revelation, not a discussion topic.
Regina grabbed her hand and pulled her arm around her waist, pressing her back into Emma's chest and watched Henry chatter excitedly with Nathan and Caley. Emma slipped her hands over her hips suggestively, fingers dipping into the crease of her thighs. Regina gasped and then waved at their son when he stopped for one last goodbye before boarding the bus.
Emma moved her hair to the side as the bus sputtered and shook and pressed an open-mouth kiss to the muscle between her neck and shoulder. "Come back inside," she whispered, intentionally dropping her voice to a deeper octave. Regina shivered against her, and she grinned and returned her lips to her neck. Her body pressed back into Emma's momentarily and then turned in her embrace to face her.
"I need to go. We're making some real progress on Mendell's agenda," she said without conviction. Emma grinned, knowing she stood a good chance of this morning going her way.
"Just a couple hours," Emma negotiated and backed Regina into her bug, trapping her between the car and her body. She forced her knee in between Regina's and played with the hem of her skirt with one hand. Lips traced her neck, silently pleading for her to give into their desire one more time before they parted for another three days.
Regina traced the claw tracks on Emma chest she'd left around four that morning. By the time the party wound down, they were both exhausted mentally and physically. They nodded off within a few minutes of laying down, but something in the middle of the night compelled Emma awake. They'd not gone back to sleep yet, only realizing how much time had passed when Regina's morning alarm to wake Henry went off. She hadn't bothered shutting it off this week since Ruby and Belle were both up with the chickens anyway. Why waste her precious time off sleeping?
"I should go," Regina said, losing her battle with the persistent blonde. Emma kissed her neck and pulled her red shirt free from the hem of her skirt.
"Come back inside," she whispered against her ear and then nipped the lobe. Regina sighed into the delicious tendrils of arousal pulling upward into her belly.
"Emma," she said and pushed weakly at her shoulders. Emma responded with another kiss to her neck. "I should go," she protested again. Lips pulled from her neck with a pop, and she shivered, stomach clenching tightly.
"Okay, have a safe trip," Emma said, not entirely convinced Regina meant her words.
Regina reached out when their bodies parted and grabbed the shoulder straps of her tank top and yanked her back into the embrace. Lips crashed, teeth clanked, someone moaned. Emma fisted the silky blouse, wrinkling the button line and tugged on it gently, urging her fiancée into motion. Regina pressed her fists into Emma's shoulders, still gripping her tank top, and gave into Emma's persistence. Awkwardly, Emma backed towards their steps nearly biting it when her heels hit the bottom one, and Regina followed to maintain the kiss.
They remained oblivious to the stares and shared smirks of the other parents who had been outside putting their children on the bus as they stumbled onto the porch. Emma's back hit the wall near the door, and Regina fumbled with the knob. Emma flipped their positions, and Regina's back slammed into the door audibly. They tumbled into the foyer, barely staying upright, and Emma kicked it, shutting out the stares and whispers they hadn't seen or heard.
Despite the heated beginning and trail of clothes leading to the bedroom, Regina slowed the pace, and time slowed as they gave themselves to each other once more. Heated skin slid together as she lowered Emma to the bed. Wide, trusting green eyes stared up at her as toned body easily accepted the weight of its softer counterpart, and long fingers tangled in dark hair as lips met in a slow dance of never-ending desire.
Everything else faded away, their insecurities and reservations. They belonged to each other. Nothing else mattered. Not David's disapproval or Henry's paternity or Regina's fear of scaring her partner with primal sexuality or Emma's lost innocence by Regina's decision to cast the curse. Guilt and anger faded into nothing as Regina's lips moved to Emma's jaw, a soft hand cradling the other side of her face.
Every choice, every tendril of pain they endured led them to this moment. Their connection transcended curses and magic and grief. When Regina slipped inside of her, Emma's quiet sigh released the lingering fear of being abandoned and alone she thought her lonely life had permanently instilled in her soul. Pressure built beneath her skin, and her chest swell with an overwhelming need to bring Regina over the edge with her.
An unwavering belief in her strength pulled through her big, beautiful heart when she pulled Regina down to lay side by side. Regina gasped at the unexpected entry of Emma's gentle fingers. She was good not evil and she knew it in that moment. Emma loved her enough to share this with her. The gesture went far beyond having sex and even making love. This was something deeper.
She'd never shared an orgasm with another person and suspected Emma hadn't either. Senses heightened in the silence as something unnamed slid into place in their souls. Regina gasped, pressed her forehead to Emma's, and gave herself over to the pleasure. Emma felt how close she was and plunged into her painfully, like she always had. She needed pain to finish, even if it was a tiny amount. She shook her head, and Emma faltered.
"No pain," she panted, stilling her own hand in order to keep their pace towards orgasm even. Emma nodded, not trusting her voice.
She'd figured out months ago that Regina used sexual pain to cover the deeper emotions she feared. There were a few times when she'd come undone without it, but those instances were few and far between and never by Regina's conscious choice. The fact that her tortured lover asked her to be gentle raised the stakes of this moment, and she felt her heart reaching for Regina's, cradling it in a protective embrace in preparation of the inevitable and uncontrollable and emotionally volatile reaction she faced in a few short moments. She moved slowly within her.
Lips connected as pressure built again. Foreheads met. Gazes locked. Sighs mingled in hot puffs. Hands stilled when velvet walls clenched tightly, moved again when the small spasm passed. They took each other higher, reaching for that ultimate high, that seemingly unattainable connection. Panic rose with every stroke that brought them closer to that goal.
Hands faltered. Breaths stopped. Over and over again, they brought each other back from the brink of hysteria with honest eyes that reflected the terror her lover felt as the gravity of giving herself so completely to another crashed into her. There was no safety net. No pain to hide behind, no turns to take when emotions grew too intense. Just the give and take of simultaneous surrender. Regina, surprising both of them, acquiesced first.
Brown eyes shut tightly as tears spilled onto flushed cheeks as she gave into the desire filling her veins. Emma followed, no longer as terrified, now confident Regina wasn't going to abandon her to feel this alone. She cupped Regina's neck and smashed their lips together and held on tight as they fell over the edge together.
Hands stilled. High-pitched gasps parted lips. They came back together unconsciously, bringing with them a salty hint of tears. Fire burned in two hearts and slowly encompassed two souls. It was deep and unnerving, moving beneath the surface like the warm flush of alcohol. Regina broke the kiss with a strangled sob, and Emma panted as her eyes flew open.
"Regina," she whispered, choking on a spontaneous sob of her own.
"I feel it," she answered and covered Emma's chest over her heart with her free hand, not willing to pull free from the wet heat of her lover. Tears flowed freely when brown met green in a penetrating gaze.
"It feels like…" Emma's eyes widened as the realization settled into her. Regina moved within her heart. Her passion. Her love. Her rage. Everything that Regina carried within wrapped around Emma's soul like a healing balm.
"Like your still carrying my heart," Regina finished. Emma nodded and searched the deep brown eyes above her.
"How?" Emma breathed, quickly losing her will to continue the conversation as desire for her lover overwhelmed the need to make sense of the unexplainable.
"I don't know," Regina answered and ended the conversation with a weighted kiss.
Emma's essence moved through her chest smoldering the remaining anger and hatred within her soul, cleansing her heart. Nearly half a century ago, she'd felt the protective and vengeful hardening of the organ. Emma's unconditional devotion and love softened it from within Regina's own chest and replaced the rage with forgiveness. The Savior's endless compassion wrapped around the vulnerable heart of her soul mate, insulating the sensitive and easily bruised organ with her unwavering strength.
Emma's tears joined her lover's in their kiss. Wet fingers pulled free and clutched at flesh as their bodies tried to mimic the melding of their souls, frustrating the women when they failed to get close enough. Emma broke the kiss and pressed her face into Regina's neck when her sobs became too violent to continue.
Regina's true heart moved through her own, wrapping it in the feathery fingers of unconditional love. She wasn't alone anymore, not physically and not in her soul. She had wanted to believe in that very fact when Regina agreed to marry her, but believing it and feeling it in her soul were two very different things. She shuddered as she released her insecurities and the emptiness her parental abandonment had caused up to this very moment. She gave her pain over to Regina's tender essence and allowed it to fill her with a compassion that only someone as broken as Regina could possibly possess.
Where Regina's broken and sensitive heart needed protection from the abuse of evil hands and deeds, Emma's heart required a soothing hand to heal her fear of abandonment so that her strength refocused on banishing those abusive and evil deeds from the world. She may have been the savior of their people, but Regina was the savior of her soul. And in that moment, they both understood one could no longer have existed without the other. Their souls were all over each other now, separation of one impossible without killing the other.
"I love you." The words vibrated against the skin of Regina's neck, muffled by tears and hiding lips. She needn't have said anything at all, she realized when she felt the inspiration for Regina's response pull through her a moment before she spoke.
"I love you, too." Regina said and repeated the words over and over in her mind, letting Emma feel the spark of that love in her own heart.
They might have spent the rest of the day in that tight embrace had the rest of the world allowed them. Regina's phone rang five different times, the ring tone telling them it was Ruby, and each time went to voicemail. Emma's rang once from an unknown caller, and on the third call from Belle, Emma stomped through the house to find their pants.
She snatched their phones and immediately returned to Regina's embrace. The older woman had moved and now rested comfortably against pillows propped against the headboard. She felt Emma's irritation and discomfort at their miniscule separation in her chest and stretched her arms towards the irate savior the second she reappeared at the door. Emma immediately slid beneath the blanket and dropped her head to Regina's chest as she pressed her front into Regina's side as tightly as possible.
She sighed in relief at being physically connected again, and at the same time, allowed herself a moment to readjust to the feeling of being unable to get close enough. Regina held her with one arm around her back and her phone with the other hand. Emma also checked her voicemail. Regina jerked as dread pulled into her chest, but it wasn't hers. It was Emma's.
She lowered her phone to the bed and craned her neck to study Emma's face. "Darling?"
Emma hit the replay button on the message and surrendered her phone to Regina, not trusting her voice to convey the information.
"Hello, Emma, this is Maura Isles. I've just received the results of the paternity test you asked me to run. It's a match. I ran the sample twice. I am 100% certain the blood belongs to Henry's father. I apologize for giving you this information in such an impersonal manner, but I wanted to let you know as soon as possible and didn't want to risk being unavailable when you returned my call. Please feel free to contact me if I can do anything else for you."
Regina saved the message in case Emma needed to listen to it again and set Emma's phone beside hers.
"Gold's missing," Regina said, unsure how to approached the new information that he was also Henry's grandfather.
"Belle went to see him early this morning and discovered that some sort of struggle took place in his shop," she continued absently, not really hearing the words coming from her mouth. Her greatest enemy was her child's biological grandfather.
"Why would she go see him? They haven't spoken since she got her memories back," Emma asked, her mind just as unfocused as Regina's.
"I don't know. I'll ask her when I return to Storybrooke this afternoon," Regina promised. Emma's head shot up with wide eyes.
"You're leaving? After… after that?" She sputtered, unsure exactly what to call that.
"Emma," Regina breathed and tangled her fingers in yellow hair. "Whatever is happening with Mendell and Neal is bigger than us, and everyone we love is trapped by the boundary that I set in place. They could be in danger, especially if they've brought something into Storybrooke powerful enough to incapacitate The Dark One. I have to go," Regina explained as gently as possible. She had to, but that never meant she wanted to.
"Then I'm coming with you. Felicia can look after Henry. He practically lives over there until it's time to go to bed anyway," Emma determined, not nearly as terrified by the thought of leaving her son's side.
"No, Emma. You have to stay here. We don't know how many people Mendell has working with him. They aren't bound by the magic of the curse. If either one of us are a target, they will not hesitate to use Henry as leverage. I'll not put our son through that, which means he stays here with you. You're the only one strong enough to protect him outside of Storybrooke. I'm practically defenseless without my magic."
Emma felt Regina's conviction in her soul and settled. She was right. Their son came first. An uncomfortable reticence accompanied the intention, and Emma almost smiled into its warm meaning. Regina wanted her to come, wanted her at her side.
"You know I want you with me," Regina whispered and pressed her lips to Emma's forehead. "I know you feel it."
"And I know that you feel how scared I am that something is going to happen to you and I won't be there," Emma countered. Regina released a shaky breath and nodded.
"I do." She cupped Emma's cheek and brushed her thumb under her eye. "I think I know what happened. True Love. Every book I've ever read about magic has always stated that True Love is the most powerful magic of any world, capable of breaking any curse and transcending any realm. I thought at the time it was flourish and twaddle, the exaggerated ramblings of love struck witches and wizards.
"After today, I'm not so sure. Can you tell me what you were thinking or feeling at the time? I… I let go of my anger today," Regina admitted hesitantly. "I let it go, and I don't even miss it. I don't need it anymore, not when I know you'll hold my heart together if it's ever broken again."
Regina spoke freely, unafraid of the vulnerability of her words. Emma was her safety, her protection. She needn't fear the impact of revealing her deepest secret or the destruction of her greatest weapon. Emma was her tender heart's weapon against the world.
"I believed that I'd never have to be alone again and… I, uhh. Well, I guess I accepted that I was The Savior and sort of… let go of my anger towards you for casting the curse, which led to my parents' choice to give me up. And my anger at them for doing it because I know…" She sighed in frustration and dropped her eyes to Regina's chest when her mind failed to formulate the right words to explain her situation. Regina waited patiently.
"It's like I've spent so much of my strength and energy protecting myself because I was afraid of being abandoned that I couldn't accept even the possibility that I might be the savior. I don't have to do that anymore because I finally believe in my heart that you'll never leave me." Emma shrugged at what she perceived an inadequate explanation and smiled shyly up at Regina.
"As long as my heart beats and has the ability to love, Emma Swan, I will never leave you."
After much hesitation and twice as many kisses than necessary through the window of her bug, Emma finally granted her blessing for Regina to return to Storybrooke. She held her hand to her chest and watched her reliable death trap until it disappeared around the corner. There earlier love making had set Regina back four hours, but every second had been worth it. Even as she drove away Emma still felt her essence swirling and mingling with her own.
Though Regina's true love explanation had merit, it still made little sense since the world she'd grown up in had no magic. Maybe those ancient magician called it correctly: perhaps true love transcended all other magic, all realms, even those without magic. If this had been their recent path, the inability to keep their hands to themselves certainly made perfect sense. The closer they came to achieving the purest form of commitment, one free of doubt and blame and anger and hesitation, the deeper they felt each other inside their own souls. Even poets of her world spoke of that connection, so the magic books were undoubtedly correct. Damn.
She grabbed the third book in The Sword of Truth series that Belle loaned her. She liked them, but the content was far too mature for Henry. Maybe in a few years. She curled up in the sunlight on the porch swing and tucked into the Fantasy novel, distracting herself from the uncomfortable pinch in her chest that being physically separating from Regina inspired. She must have fallen asleep because the next thing she saw was Henry's toothy grin beaming down at her.
"Hi Emma!" He squawked, and she flinched at the loud voice coming from his tiny body.
"Hey Kid," she rasped and sat up. She looked up in surprise when he shoved a mug of coffee in her hands.
"I hope I got the measurements right. I think I made it too strong, so I put extra cream in it," he said, vibrating with pride at his thoughtfulness.
"Thanks, Bud." She sipped the concoction. It was slightly bitter and too milky, and she determined that she'd force every drop down her throat.
"Is it okay?" He asked shyly, clearly wanting his mother to be pleased. She nodded.
"It's great," she responded with a smile and took another swig to emphasize her words. She slung her arm around his shoulder when he sat beside her.
"How long you been home?" She pushed the conversation forward when Henry didn't chitter as her normally did after school and checked her phone, seeing a missed call from Regina and a voicemail from about 30 minutes ago.
"Long enough to make you coffee," he answered and slumped into her side. Something clearly bugged the boy. She shoved the phone back into her pocket, figuring the message consisted of Regina telling her that she'd made it back to Storybrooke safely.
"You okay? Did something happen at school?" She asked and then sucked down half the coffee, taking in as much caffeine as possible in the event she was forced to abandon it to comfort her son.
"Two kids were picking on Caley again. They stayed at Mr. McCarthy's last night after what happened. I think their parents work with him. They were calling her names and telling her that she was like you and Mom because she likes you so much," Henry explained succinctly.
Emma boiled with an instant rage, finished her coffee in two gulps, and set her cup on the floor.
"I stood up for her, like you said a hero should. Stand up for what he believes in. Now, they're picking on me, too, and calling you and Mom mean names. They never said anything before. Being a hero doesn't feel good sometimes, does it?" He turned searching eyes upwards, and she shook her head.
"No, it doesn't. I'm so proud of you, Henry, and I promise it won't last forever. This is because of something that I did, and I'd do it all over again. It will stop when everything calms down. Until then, what can I do to help you feel better?" She squeezed his shoulder in a sideways hug.
"Help me help Caley feel better. She was crying when she went home," he said and completely stole her heart all over again. Where did she get off being so damn lucky to have Regina and Henry in her life?
"Okay, what would make her feel better?" Emma asked, pushing her own anger at the situation away in light of assisting her son.
"She likes soccer. Maybe we can get a game going?" He said brightly, and she nodded.
"Go get the ball. I'm going to go talk to Felicia and get her to help, too," she said, and they parted ways.
Felicia, of course, agreed to call everyone else on the street and tell them about the impromptu game. Emma nodded her thanks and then moved down one more house. She took a deep breath and rang the bell, hoping Caley responded to their efforts.
"Emma?" Was the response she received when the door opened. She smiled anxiously at Caley's mother. She seemed like a kind and sensitive woman who should have raised a prissy prom queen rather than a tomboy. She was clearly upset, and Emma knew Caley divulged the bullying to her mother just like Henry had.
"Hi Emily. Henry told me what happened at school today. And, well… we thought maybe a game of soccer in the street might help her feel better," Emma explained. Her hands fidgeted and finally she shove them into her back pockets.
"If you can coax her out of her room, I have no objections," Emily agreed, and Emma thought she might burst into tears. She was at a loss for how to help her daughter.
"She looks up to you so much, Emma. Maybe you can get through to her," she continued, stopping when her chin quivered with unshed tears.
"I'll try," Emma promised and followed her to Caley's room. Emily nodded and Emma knocked.
"Caley? It's Emma. Can I come in?" No response. She tried the knob and cracked the door.
She found the girl cross-legged on the floor with her back to the door tearing apart one of her athletic trophies. Emma dropped her knees in front of the girl and covered her hands. A tear-streaked face looked up at her.
"Stop that," Emma ordered gently and pulled the trophy from her hands and set it aside. She grabbed her chin and held her head up. Obviously, Emily's emotional coddling had gotten nowhere with the girl, so Emma switched tactics.
"Head high. You're too beautiful to hang your head, and you're too strong to let a couple of bullies tear you down like this. If you want to be mad, get mad, but you never let someone make you feel like you are less than what you are. You hear me?" Emma sniffed as her own emotions got the better of her.
"But they're right. I'm not like the other girls in my class," Caley admitted and sniffed.
"How old are you, Caley?" Emma asked suddenly.
"12." Plenty old enough to begin understanding her own sexuality. Emma took a deep breath.
"I think they might be right, Emma. I don't feel that way about boys. I mean, they're fun to play sports with because they can keep up with me, but I don't think about going on dates with them or kissing them. I think about that stuff with my best friend Kimberly." She confessed and dropped her chin to her chest as her tears fell again.
A movement at the door caught Emma's eye, and she looked up and straight into the shocked eyes of Caley's mother. Would she be okay with a gay daughter? Emily must have sensed Emma's unasked question because she smiled around her tears and nodded. At least now she knew why she wasn't relating to the girl; Caley kept a heavy secret that kept them apart.
"Caley, listen to me," Emma started with renewed vigor. "You are perfect the way you are. You understand? It doesn't matter who you love. Love is love. Boy or girl, it doesn't matter. I'd never dated a woman before Regina. You know that?" The girl's face tipped upwards in shock, and she shook her head. Emma was getting through.
"She's my soul mate, the love of my life, and if I hadn't given into that feeling just because she was a woman, I would have missed out on the love that fills me up so much that I feel like I'm bursting at the seams." Emma smiled as the girl's tears stopped.
"That's why you put yourself in front of her, so that you would get hurt instead of her?" She asked. The kid was fascinated by her scars. Emma nodded.
"I'd do it a thousand times if it meant she never got hurt. Can I tell you a secret?" She whispered loudly, and Caley nodded vigorously, pulling herself onto her knees and inching closer.
"I asked her to marry me. She said yes," Emma confided with a wink. They hadn't told anyone in Salem yet, and Emily gasped happily.
"That's awesome, Emma!" She flung her arms around Emma's neck, and the savior accepted her weight happily. Emily beamed from the doorway.
"Hey," Emma said and pulled back. Caley hung around her neck and looked up at her expectantly. "I hear there's a soccer game going on outside. Wanna go show 'em how it's done?"
"Uhh, duh! Race you!" Caley deadpanned and bounced to her feet, leaving Emma in the dust as she ran past her mother.
Emma braced herself with hands on her knees and released a shaky breath. She changed her mind. Kids were as terrifying as their parents. Emily knelt in front of her, having had several mothering-induced panic attacks herself.
"Breathe, Emma. That was perfect," Emily comforted and set a hesitant hand on her shoulder. Emma followed her command and took several deep breaths, feeling lightheaded from the effort as her heart slowed.
"Being a mother is scary as hell," she said and allowed Emily to pull her to her feet. They walked out the front door to find a bunch of parents on blankets in the lawn, watching the spontaneous game.
"Emma's on our team!" Caley shouted, and Emily smiled at Emma, giving her a push forward.
The next 30 minutes consisted of being bounced around by 10-13 years olds, and she laughed through every blessed second of it. Felicia brought out a speaker and blared music for them to play to. She passed the ball to Caley every chance she had. The girl was really good, and when she shot and made her umpteenth goal, Emma squatted and lifted her on a shoulder. She heaved with the effort, but the girl's bright smile and infectious laughter was worth the back ache she'd have in the morning.
When the perfect song for the moment started, she smiled up at the girl and said something to her that the other parents missed. She lowered her to the ground, and then called Felicia's name. The parents looked between the redhead and the two girls in the street. Emma smiled down at Caley and then held a hand in front of her own waist.
"Crank. It. Up!" They yelled in unison and then started dancing perfectly to the choreography in the video.
"Show me how big your brave is!" Emma yelled out of sync with the lyrics as other kids joined in the dance, some knew the dance and others did their own thing.
"Henry, get over here. You know this dance." Her son flanked her other hip and grinned toothily at her.
"Say what you wanna say and let the words fall out! Honestly, I wanna see you be brave!" Emma sang as she broke away from the choreography and moved however her body wanted to move. She pointed at Caley every time she said, "I wanna see you be brave."
A Katy Perry song came up next, so she continued dancing, knowing the kids followed her lead between dance or soccer. Her phone blared from her pocket, and she motioned for the other kids to keep dancing and moved towards the side walk. Better the adults hear what was probably going to be a dirty conversation since it was Ruby's ring tone.
"Rubik's Cube, Belle turn you back round the right way yet?" Emma answered with a smirk, referencing her tumble from the ladder.
"What?" She snapped sharply, and the adults within earshot turned their heads in her direction.
Emma's face paled instantly. She clawed at her chest with her free hand as she wavered on her feet. Felicia and Emily stood but stayed put. Emma wavered again and caught herself on her hand as she collapse onto her butt. Her knees were spread wide and pulled towards her chest.
"What?" she repeated, an emotional crack in her voice. The phone fell to the sidewalk, and she propped her elbows on her knees and held her head in her hands. Black blurred the edges of her vision and blood roared in her ears. She breathed deeply, trying to avoid passing out. Hands touched her shoulder, but she couldn't have seen who it was if she tried.
Felicia grabbed the phone as Emily held Emma upright. A few other adults surrounded them, mostly blocking Emma from the view of the kids, even though they already saw that something was wrong. Danny caught Henry as he ran towards Emma and walked him away from the group after a small struggle. He promised to bring him back when they found out what was happening.
"Ruby, this is Felicia. Why is Emma having a panic attack on the sidewalk in front of my house?" She listened, her own face blanching. "Oh my god." She caught Emily's gaze with shimmering eyes.
"The sheriff at their hometown in Maine was on a patrol at the town limits and found the car Regina was driving on the side of the road. Her phone was destroyed. There are signs of a struggle. They found blood all over the ground, but they don't know whose it is yet. Regina is missing." She relayed the information to the parents after a quick glance to ensure Henry was out of earshot.
They all jerked back when a hollow scream tore from Emma's throat as she heard the information repeated again. She fell into haunted, hollow sobs that Felicia felt certain would keep her up that night. She wasn't dreaming. Regina was missing and could be anywhere if Mendell or one of his people took her over the boundary line. She was the only one who could cross, and she was too far away to do any good. The tortured sound broke all their hearts now that they knew exactly what Emma and Regina had gone through to get to the place they were now. It wasn't fair.
She clutched at her chest again. Regina still moved beneath her skin. She was alive, and the thought wasn't as comforting as Emma hope it had been. She lifted her head, tears streaming freely.
"Voicemail. Tell Ruby you'll call her back. I have a voicemail from Regina." Emma instructed, and Felicia followed her command. She hand the phone to Emma, but her hands shook too violently to operate the touch screen device. Felicia took it gently with a comforting hand on her forearm. Emma dropped her head into her hands and tried to compose herself.
"Password?"
"That date I got shot," Emma answered. When Felicia floundered, she continued. "April 7th. Zero, four, zero, seven. Put it on speaker." She covered the back of her neck and squeezed as tears spilled onto her cheeks again. "I can't remember her birthday, but I know that date. Stupid. Stupid." Emma berated herself, and Emily rubbed her shoulders, fighting back her own tears.
"Emma, are you sure you don't want me to listen to this first," Felicia asked carefully, not knowing Emma well-enough to know how she might react.
"Put it speaker since I can't hold the damn thing," she demanded coldly, allowing anger to take her fear. Felicia swallowed and nodded. Emma propped her chin on her forearms laid over her knees and stared at the phone with hard eyes.
"Emma!" Regina's scream came over the phone at a distance, and everyone jerked except Emma who allowed the rage of what happened wash over her. A few grunts were heard followed by the sound of someone falling onto pavement.
"It's Neal and Mendell and two others. Black female. Another white male." Regina's terrified voice broke up. "Shackles." Scratching and grunting. "Off me!" Regina fought for her freedom, possibly her life. The phone scratched again, and then Regina's voice was clear as day.
"It's about the trigger. Tell Ruby to find the hidden compartment in my study before they do. They're going to blow up Storybrooke, Emma." Scratching. Grunting. Regina screamed in pain.
"Emma," Regina's weakened voice rasped into the phone. "Tell Henry I love him." Scratching.
"No! Please. Let me tell her that I love her before you kill me!" Regina pleaded. There was a long pause and what sounded like wind blowing into the phone.
"Emma," Regina's voice came back onto the speaker. She was clearly crying. "I'm so sorry that I never got to marry you. You were the perfect partner, the perfect lover. I love that I turned you on more when I gained a little bit of weight after moving to Salem. I know you noticed but never said anything. You just seemed satisfied with more of me to love." She laughed hauntingly and then sniffed.
"It's so silly now. You'll be okay. Henry will be okay if you love him like you do now. He told me that he's angry at you for giving him up, but he's working through it. I told him that we'd listen when he was ready. Take him to see Maura when he's ready to talk. She'll know how to help you work through it. Tell him, when he's ready, that it's okay to call you mom. I'm honored to hand that title to you. I'm sorry I couldn't give you the daughter you wanted. I really like the name Annabel. Keep it if you should ever have a daughter." Her voice cracked with emotion, and a sob burst into the phone.
"You should stay in Salem. The house is paid for, and Felicia will help you take care of Henry. Don't bring him back here to this memory. You'll be okay financially. I never told you before exactly how much money I had, not that you cared anyway. It's enough, Darling, and you are my soul beneficiary. It's enough for you to finish school, and pay for Henry's college education and live comfortably for the rest your lives.
"Get your teaching degree, My Love. You'll be a fantastic teacher," Regina whined into the phone. "You know how to connect with children better than anyone I know. You'll make a difference in their lives." Her voice cracked again, followed by a faint sob.
"Emma," she pushed through her emotion. "Emma, this is not your fault. There's nothing you could have done differently. Love again, Emma. Never stop loving. You're heart is too big to keep it to yourself. Your big, stupid, beautiful, brave heart, Emma Swan was the best thing that ever happened to me. You didn't just save my life that day, Emma, you saved my soul.
"Look after Ruby for me. That stupid mutt is going to take this as hard as you. Tell Granny her apple pie was the best and I'm sorry I never got the chance to learn the recipe when she wanted to teach me. Tell your mother… tell your parents that I forgive them.
"Emma, promise me that you won't fall back into old habits. Go see your sponsor after you listen to this message. Your two year chip is coming up. I won't you to get that chip, Darling. You don't need the drugs. You need Henry and Ruby and Belle and your parents, and they need you. Stay strong for our son.
"And, Emma, I'm glad I went back inside this morning. My soul has never felt so clean. I love you."
Scratching. Voices. Wind. "Now what?" A female voice asked.
"Bash her head in. I want her lover to hear The Evil Queen's death," a male voice ordered. It wasn't Neal's. Mendell.
A loud crunching sound followed and then the line went dead.
"I promise," Emma whispered inaudibly and stared at the phone.
Regina was gone.
Yet, Emma still felt her move inside her soul as though she weren't. She covered her heart as blood roared in her ears, and the world went black.