Hello my Dears,

This one got a bit long, so I've had to split it into two as to do the story justice. Therefore Regina will not be discussing her perchance for spring cleaning in this chapter. Gutting, I know. Thank you for all the reviews and follows. If you haven't followed yet please do. It makes me feel like the pied piper hehe.

Disclaimer: So I don't own this or any of it's ideas if so Jefferson would be Regina's sassy gay friend. I feel like she would have been so much better off with one.

Eleven: Fire and brimstone

Emma was in shock. She had no idea what the fuck was going on and all the sassy brunette could do was glare at her like she had killed her first-born child and was waiting to exact revenge. She couldn't deal with this, any of it. It was as if she was stuck in the bottom of a pit and life or fate or what ever it was, was down there too, digging the hole even deeper. She knew she should stick around and actually talk to the woman about everything but she didn't know where to start. She couldn't bring herself to start, even if she tried and so she left. Getting in her yellow bug with a quick glance back towards the still fuming ex-mayor muttering that they would talk when she returned to the mansion later that day.

She didn't really know where she was driving until she ended up pulling up in-front of the apartment that she shared with her newly found mother and father. It was the closest thing she had to a home, a sense of normalcy and wondered when her life would ever become sane. She sat in the car wanting to move but not wanting to at the same time. The weight of the last few days and months settling over her like a jacket that was too small, restricting and uncomfortable. Her happiness at being back in her own body had significantly faded in a matter of a few hours, replaced by the unsettling feeling that this was only the beginning of her troubles. She felt reluctant to go inside knowing that Mary-Margaret or Snow (she wasn't really certain what to call her) would be upstairs in her bed, barely talking or eating, looking like a lost child after the events that lead to Cora's death. Emma was quietly amazed that Regina hadn't used the opportunity in Emma's body to exact revenge on the woman who was her arch nemesis and was thankful that she had manged to show some restraint. She still had no idea what the woman had done in her body the previous day and assumed that there would probably be some conversations that she wouldn't quite understand. She wanted to tell David and Snow what had happened but was certain that the volatile brunette wouldn't want her to say anything until they knew that the whole situation was over; which according to Gold wasn't. It's not over until the fat lady sings she thought or the ring becomes a ring in my case.

Pulling herself from her beloved bug shoulders hunched and dragging her feet. She headed up to the loft to do damage control on anything Regina had caused the previous day and to ease some of the guilt at not being more supportive of her emotionally traumatized mother. It was hard she thought Snow had lived in a black and white world her whole life, a lot like the one that Henry lived in now, but Emma had always lived in the grey. She didn't believe herself to be a good or bad person, she just believed she was a person who could make good or bad choices. That was why she found it so hard to be around Snow at the moment. Snow believed that she was just an inherently good person and now that she had done something 'evil' she had become a ghost of her former self.

Emma Swan didn't know what to think about any of it. She should in all honesty drag both Mary Margaret and Regina into the station for murder/manslaughter charges but the rules and regulations of this world just didn't seem to coexist with those of the fairytale land. It all just felt like vigilante justice to her and she wasn't entirely sure how she felt about it all, how she felt about her role in it as the proclaimed savior.

Using her key to unlock the door she called out to who ever was home not wanting to startle anyone after the recent events. Everyone was still on high alert for Regina to come crashing through in a murderous rage and wreak havoc on the short-haired brunette. Emma was greeted by only silence as she shut the door and assumed that the other woman was sleeping. After a glance towards her cordoned off section of the main room she noticed that the bed was empty. Weird she thought flicking a text to David asking where she was. The man was already out on patrol fulfilling the sheriff's duties while Emma was monitoring Regina. It had been strange hiring her same age father to become her deputy sheriff but he seemed suited to the job and most people respected him due to the whole prince thing.

She headed up to her room to collect some more clothes considering she was apparently babysitting Regina for who knows how long. Charming had done an OK job at getting her clothes. He had thrown a pair of jeans, tank top and a sweater she never wore into a bag but he had forgotten the essentials or choose to forget them, not wanting to rifle through his adult daughters underwear. Placing everything she thought she would need for a weeks stay at the Mayoral mansion in a black rubbish bag reminding herself she should really just invest in some sort of travel bag, knowing that the ex-mayor wouldn't be able to help herself not to snarkily comment when she saw it.

Her phone rang, David having received her message and called her back.

"Hey Em."

"Hi. Do you know where Mary-Mar- I mean Snow is? Shes not here and she hasn't left that bed in almost a week now. I mean, not that it isn't good she's up."

"Yeah, I'm sorry. I'm not sure where she is. You don't think Regina has taken her do you? he said almost panicked.

"No. She hasn't got her. I was with her all morning and she has a lot more to deal with at the moment than hunting down Snow." Emma trailed off not wanting to give any more information, the silence settling between them.

"Oh, OK then. I trust you Emma but I'll have a look when I'm out on patrol. I was just about to leave now anyway. Could you stop by the station and finish up the invoices they need to be sent out today and I don't have the authority to sign them off."

"Yeah sure. I was planning to catch up on some of my paperwork anyway. It's at least something I can do from the mansion. It will almost be like old times with Regina nagging me for my lack of organization."

"Well at least she doesn't have to read them anymore" He chuckled.

"I doubt that will make her less judgy." Emma sighed. "Oh and I thought Henry could come around for tea tonight with Me and Regina. We will have worked most of the kinks out by then and I think it would be good for her to see him, make her a little less murdery and you can pick him up after." Thinking to herself that having their son around was likely to make the brunette more tolerable, even if only for a few hours, especially after the whole Cora thing and now the body swap issue. She had realized after their interaction the day before just how badly Henry treated Regina and she wanted to try fix it. God, she thought when did I start caring about Regina's feelings. Whatever her new-found reason was, she realized that his presence would only be a good thing for herself. Henry was like a fluffy straight jacket with a Valium drip to the temperamental brown-eyed woman and Emma Swan could do with a bit of professional help when it came to dealing with her.

"Yeah about Henry. Neil was asking to spend some time with him so I told him he could pick him up after school. I assumed you wouldn't mind too much seeing as he's not sure how long he will be in town. I'll get him to drop him off before tea." David mumbled knowing that the situation between Emma and Neil was a raw issue and that Henry still hadn't forgiven her for telling him his father was dead.

"You what?" She sighed. " I guess I don't really have a choice do I? He will just run off to see him anyway if I say no. God knows the kid is good at sneaking around. Fine, tell Neil to drop him off at six. I'll text you with any other details. Call me if you see Mary-Margaret. Got to go, bye." She said reluctantly hanging up.

Emma finished packing the few remaining belongings that she would need for her hopefully short stay with the ex Mayor giving the loft one last glance thinking of her missing room-mate/mother and headed down to her beloved bug.

Regina had headed home after the meeting with Gold pulling into place the mask she wore with the town not wanting anyone to see how angry and confused she was about the encounter. She had decided on the drive home that she was going to find out as much as possible about this kind of enchantment knowing that due to the fact most people died doing it on themselves there was probably very little information to be gained. She was a resourceful woman though and refused to be under the influence of any magic Emma Swan had placed on her. She didn't want to admit it but knew that she was slightly impressed that the idiotic woman had been able to do it at all. On the other hand the fact that she had that much power to complete such a spell and was untrained in how to control it made Regina feel nervous. Emma Swan was a nuclear reactor just waiting to go off; a nuclear reactor full of boundless magic and it was frightening.

Throwing her keys on the side table and putting away her coat she headed into her study to brush up on her magical history, carrying the books that she had picked up from the crypt under her fathers mausoleum on the way home. She had hurried past the room holding her mothers casket at the time not wanting to remember her mothers last words "This would have been enough. You would have been enough." echoing through her brain like a record stuck on loop. They were words that juxtaposed everything Regina had ever known about her mother, everything her mother was, everything her mother had done. They were the words that no mater how hard she tried she just couldn't align them with the woman she had grown up with and so they were stuck in her head building into a cacophony of sound, fueling her desire for revenge.

Regina was halfway through a book from 20th century India called Ichhapuran – fulfilling the wish knowing that even stories at this point would help. She planned to be as thorough as possible in her research not wanting any scrap of information to be missed, worrying that it might be essential to understanding how to reverse any future effects. She was startled to hear a knock at the door, it wasn't as if she got many visitors now that she had once again become the Evil Queen to the citizens of Storybrooke and not just their controlling Mayor. She felt hesitant about answering it at first knowing that the sheriff knew where the spare key was kept and was blasé enough to just invite herself in regardless of whether she was wanted or not. She steeled her resolve checking her mask was in place to confront who ever was on the front steps knowing that she could protect herself with magic if need be.

Opening the front door she was surprised to see the saviors mother standing on the steps looking bedraggled and hollow as if she hadn't slept in days. Well that's the least she deserves Regina thought giving the woman a glance up and down.

"You." Regina said looking at her enemy.

"Kill me." Snow implored her eyes full of pain.

Regina let out a snicker "What?"

"Regina we have been fighting for so long. It has cost us so much. It has to end before anyone else dies. So... please... just do it." implored Snow offering herself up like a sacrificial lamb

Regina smirked at the sight in front of her, shaking her head "Henry would never forgive me." She deadpanned.

"But do you know what my problem is?" Regina asked. "I never learn from my mistakes." thrusting her hand into the open chest of her nemesis in front of her clutching for her heart causing the other woman to stagger and cry out in pain. Ripping the magically enhanced beating organ from her chest. Regina stared at the heart of the person she believed had caused her the most pain in her life, giving a smirk at what she saw.

"Huh." She said.

"What? Asked Snow still recovering from the force of the other woman's hand being in her body.

"Do you see that?" Regina asked holding the woman's heart up for her to see. Her finger moving to point at what looked like a dark swirling mist in the center of the organ.

"What did you do to it?"

"Oh I didn't do that, you did it." Regina stared at her almost daring her to rebuke what she was saying. "you darkened yourself."

"No, no, no." Snow pleaded tears falling silently from her eyes.

"Yes." Regina said surely. "And once you blacken your heart, it only grows darker, and darker. Trust me I know." Glancing once again at the pulsating object in her hand.

"So crush it." Snow begged. "Do it, crush it, get it over with."

"And put you out of your misery. I don't need to destroy you, you're doing it to yourself. And along the way you'll bring down that perfect little family you fought so hard to reunite." Regina stated glaring at the woman who had taken so much from her. "And then Henry will be mine."

"Kill me." begged Snow.

Regina smiled fighting back tears of happiness at the destruction of her enemy and dealt what she believed to be a winning blow. "You see, I can have everything." She smiled in joy as she thrust the now blackened heart back into Snows chest. Leaning forward to whisper in her ear, her hand still holding the woman's beating organ. "Thanks to you."

Swiftly removing her hand and leaving the woman's heart now safely in her body she glared at the intruder on her front steps.

"Now get off my porch." she glared before turning and moving back into her home to celebrate the small piece of happiness that had come from her mothers death.

Walking into the station Emma quickly noticed the file of paperwork David had mentioned on her office desk sitting on top of a large stack of reports he must have dug out for her to finish back at the mansion. The stack looked a lot tidier than what she would have thought he would have been capable of doing. She assumed that he would be more like herself, content for it to just make it to the desk in the first place.

"Yeah, I tidied it up a bit. David had it falling off the desk like a river."

Emma quickly turned around towards the voice startled having thought she was the only one in.

"Oh my God, Ruby! Are you trying to kill me?" Emma asked in mock exasperation.

"Not this time." She smirked. " I worry for the safety of Storybrooke when their sheriff is so easily startled." Ruby joked playfully.

"Haha, funny guy. What are you even doing here? Shouldn't you be at the diner?

"Yes, but I told Granny that I was needed as a volunteer at the station today. I couldn't take any more of her talk about the town council and what everyone is doing wrong. I mean do you blame me? You practically went ape shit at it yesterday. I thought I was going to have to put you on a leash and I'm the one with the wolf problem." She laughed a wide smile playing across her face. "No, but seriously though, I was a bit worried about you yesterday. You didn't seem yourself but then I just figured that you must have had a massive hangover. Mine was killing me, my wolf hearing was killing me. Do you know what it's like to hear the thumping in you head on full sound? It felt like the death truck had hit me and then forgotten to take me with it. Not fun."

"Yeah." Emma laughed. "I have to admit yesterday was a pretty full on day . I'm feeling more like myself today."

She returned to the paperwork sitting on her desk and signed off on the ones David needed to send away that day.

"No kidding. Yesterday it was like you woke up as Regina the she devil incarnate coming down to smite us from your high horse. I was almost wondering when the fire and brimstone was going to make an appearance with the performance you put on." Ruby said trailing off becoming aware that what she was saying might actually offend the blonde.

"Something like that." Emma said awkwardly knowing that if she had stayed to talk to Regina that morning she would have had some context to understand what Ruby was saying, distorted context but it would have been better than none.

"Sorry." Ruby said sheepishly. "I mean it's just that when we were out the night before you and Regina got into it big time. I was surprised that you didn't end up hitting her. At one point I thought to my self, Emma is going to rip her face off, literally, you know? So it was just weird that you were all pro Regina at the meeting. Sorry if I offended you or anything."

"Na, it's all good Rubes. To be honest I can't actually remember anything from girls' night. Would you be able to tell me-

Emma was cut off by the sound of her phone ringing. Noticing that it was David calling she quickly picked up.

"Hey, is everything alright?" She asked.

"No it's not. Emma I found Snow when I was out on patrol. She was just sitting outside Regina's house on the street crying her eyes out and she won't tell me what happened. I wanted go around there and ask but I need to get her somewhere safe and I thought it would be best if you did it."

Emma winced at the stupidity of it all. Snow had clearly sought out Regina and she couldn't understand what her possible motivation for doing it would be. She just hoped that the erratic brunette hadn't done anything she couldn't come back from. There was no way she was explaining that to the kid.

"Take her home David. I'll handle Regina and tell you anything I find out."

Hanging up her phone she quickly gathered the needed files and gave Ruby an apologetic smile.

"I'll catch up with you later Rubes. I've got to go but I really want to hear about girls night."

Wincing as she headed for the door not knowing what she would find when she returned to the Mayoral mansion she resigned herself to the unknown.

A/N:Hope you enjoyed :)

Coming up next: Regina does discuss spring cleaning, Emma and Regina have an I'm the best parent moment and suddenly there are too many forks."

Question: What has been your favorite snarky/funny comment so far? (all chapters included.)

You guys are awesome! Review yada yada yada... P.S LydiaLurker I miss your reviews they always make me smile.