Snow Brigade

Someone screamed in the night. When they found Regina's body in the snow, they thought she was dead. Her body was cold, her skin turned white as the blood constricted to her most vital body parts. "It won't be that easy, dearie" a twisted voice muttered somewhere in the distance. The manic laughter faded into the distance, as a warm rush ran through her body. The servants who found her quickly wrapped her in blankets, and brought her in.

It was days before the queen could be seen walking the castle again, but the cold never seemed to leave her eyes. The paleness were still showing in her skin, and a hint of bitterness added to her voice. Nobody mentioned how the king hadn't visited her when she was barely breathing. Only Snow had sat there, but the queen had sent her away.

The cold had turned her evil, people said, for the change in her was apparent. Where she previously had greeted people humbly and gently, she now stared mockingly at everyone around her. I am their Queen, they better start treating me like one, she thought. When they didn't bow down, she made them. Every day was such a torment, the least they could do was to obey their queen. She was tired of being overrun. She was tired of the bratty attitude of Snow, and certainly of her king. He has to go.

In Storybrooke, Regina was still staring into the mirror. I'm so ugly! If only, oh, if only! She didn't even know what she wanted. Her emotions were so confusing, her memories dark. The only times she seemed to manage to focus was near Henry or Emma. She cast a final glance towards her mirror, and made sure she appeared normal enough.

She left the room, and slowly walked towards Emma's door. She stopped outside it. Better not disturb her after all. Last time they had been alone near a bed things had gotten a bit out of hand. Better not confuse things even more, right? And yet she wanted some sort of distraction. Her mind was buzzing, and if she was back it was better to not be alone. She'll never give up her claim on me, Regina thought, not if she's really back.

As she tried to decide whether to bother the blonde or not, she ended up leaning against the door. Is that a .. moan? Regina listened with her ear stuck to the door. Her body tensed, and she felt the blood rush through her veins. Is Emma...? A smirk could be seen on Reginas face.

In the end her curiosity gave in, and she knocked once on the door while entering quickly in case there was something interesting to see. Two green eyes met her own as she saw the blonde twist her head towards her. She was lying on the bed, books thrown everywhere around her, her phone in her hand, laptop on her pillow. She appeared at the first glance to be multitasking several things, but the red glow in her cheeks told another story.

Emma quickly froze when the brunette entered the room, and praised any higher power she hadn't entered seconds before when she had whispered Reginas name under her breath. Her thoughts were flustered, her body eager. I want her, Emma thought and then cursed silently to herself for thinking it. This was the evil queen, her son's mother, her own mother's enemy. A killer queen.

An unnaturally long moment the two women stared at each other, none of them saying a word. Regina wasn't quite sure why she was there, and Emma didn't dare ask. What game were they playing this time? What was the rules? And who would fall? In games involving the evil queen you would either win or die, and Regina still had the look of terror in her eyes.

It was Emma who finally broke the silence. "You feeling any better? Need anything?" The question itself was harmless enough, but the tone on the word need seemed slightly suggestive. Before Regina managed to think she heard herself reply in her smuggest voice, "And what would you suggest I need, miss Swan?" Emma grinned at her, then stopped grinning, closed her mouth and tried to appear more serious. "How would I know, Regina, you came to my door after all"...

Oh, right, Regina thought. "I just wanted to say thanks for helping out with the tape", Regina replied. Yes, that was a nice excuse. Good mayor. She smiled to herself inside her mind. Emma scanned the woman in front of her. Her face made a sceptic grimace, and made an eye roll. The brunette was still red on some areas, and her current open jacket showed off some of the bruises she hadn't managed to cover completely.

Regina saw the look on the blondes face and as she realised what she looked at, she clutched the jacket tighter around her, tried to cover it up. "It's nothing, really." She told Emma, "don't blame yourself for following my orders for once, like any good peasant should do." But Emmas eyes only narrowed, and she stood up from her bed. She closed the distance between them, looking furious. "Take it off!" She shouted at Regina. "Take that jacket off, right now!"

Regina hadn't expected this sudden rush of emotions, and stumbled backwards through the door. "No." Emma didn't stop. She came closer, ripped off the jacket Regina was wearing, and traced her hand against the bruised marks on Reginas throat and chest. "I'm so sorry!" She gasped, tears showing up in her eyes. One of Emmas hands went to cover her mouth as she gasped at the amount of hurt she had brought on the woman in front of her, the other hand held onto Reginas skin.

Regina didn't know how to respond, and just stood there, silent. She didn't bother trying to pull away when Emma moved more of the fabric from her body, trying to get a grip on the extent of the damage. As more skin became visible, Emma could see white scars along the sides of Reginas body, somewhere beneath the red of her skin. As Regina realised what was being shown, she quickly pulled back. "Really. It's nothing."

I should have known! Regina screamed internally at herself. Coming here was a bad idea. I have to get away. Now. She pulled away from the shocked blonde, who didn't quite seem to grasp the amount of pain this woman had been through. If this was nothing, if all of this was nothing, what would it take to make her break? "Who did this to you?" Emma shouted, "what the hell happened to you?"

Regina didn't reply. What was there to say? After she returned from the cold all those years ago, she had never been the same. Her thoughts had darkened, her heart froze. In turn she had done everything she could think of to feel anything. Anything at all. In the nights screams could be heard from her bedchamber, but the screams were never hers. I never screamed, Regina thought at the memories, not even once.

Emma closed the space between them without looking up from the red marks. "I'm so sorry about everything. Can you ever forgive me?", she whispered with such emotion Regina was shocked. She didn't understand the blonde's sudden feelings, and victimization was not fitting for a queen. She heard the pity in the other woman's voice, saw the sorrow lined in her face. Stop! "I don't want anyone's pity", Regina said in a disgusted tone, "Especially not from someone like you". She hissed at the blonde, fire once more burning in her eyes. Who does she think she is, judging my past, pitying me?

Emma backed away, obviously confused. Reginas walls were back up, shutting the blonde out once more. The look in her eyes suggested there was no way through them this time. She seemed calm and crazy at the same time, like a face of stone. I should never have let her see, Regina angrily thought to herself, especially not now when winter is coming.

"By the way, it all meant nothing the other day", Regina suddenly said as she turned to walk away, "You were simply convenient. Available. Rest assured that won't happen again." As Emma watched her walk away, she for some weird reason felt the words sting inside.