Thanks again for all the great reactions to this story. I love your reviews!
And a huge thank you to my beta Allison who kept helping me, even while she was sick!
Now, I think I should warn you that there's a bit of violence in this one, but with Cora being there, you can kind of expect, right?
"You don't want to play with me, hm? Well, there's always another way."
Without another warning Cora's hand shot forward, reaching into Emma's chest.
Chapter 14
Cora acted so quickly that Emma didn't even have time to be scared. All she felt was a horrible cold grip around her heart, a terrible magic that surrounded her entire being.
She desperately tried to fight, ripping at the ropes that bound her, forcing them to cut into her skin. But the only thing she had left was her fear and her will to survive.
Emma took a deep breath and tried to recall what Regina had told her about her magic. On instinct she gathered all the force she could muster and mentally shoved it against Cora.
With a cry the poised woman stumbled backwards, letting go of Emma's heart along the way.
Emma let out a sigh of relief. Her paralyzing fear seemed to be gone for the moment.
Surprise colored Cora's features as she tried to approach Emma again and was stopped mid-step.
Emma had put everything she had in her protection. Apparently it had done something she hadn't even anticipated herself. It had worked.
A tired smile stretched across her lips as she defiantly grinned at Cora. She was tempted to gloat, but thought better of it. Certainly it wouldn't help her to enrage the witch more, if that was even possible.
Cora's deep red cheeks and the huffing breaths she took said otherwise.
She was fuming.
With apparent effort Cora held a hand in front of her, attempting to cross the shield Emma had put around herself. She thought she imagined a soft glimmer of energy around herself, but she couldn't be sure. More than anything she wished she had listened to Regina. She should have begged her to teach how to handle her magic.
Now she had nothing but her instinct.
Which, judging by the superior look on Cora's face, wouldn't help her very long.
"You can hide in your protective bubble all you want, but I can promise you that it's not going to work much longer."
The threat made Emma break out into a real smile. If Cora could, she would have cracked her protection at once. Instead she was trying to make her feel inferior, not noticing that it just showed her that she had a chance.
"It seems that we're at an impasse."
Emma chuckled, the magic coursing through her made her feel stronger than ever. It was a surprise, since she had never liked her magic before. Now it made her feel unbelievably strong, invincible even.
Her smile faltered, a realization dawning in the back of her mind.
Was this how Regina had felt?
Had Cora pushed her so far, that she didn't have any choice but lashing out, relying on her magic to protect her against her own mother?
At once Emma felt sick.
And with that the hold on her magic lessened.
A victorious grin spread over Cora's lips, though her eyes stayed expressionless. Emma felt her heart clench at the emptiness in Cora's eyes. She didn't even seem human anymore.
Suddenly the edges of her vision blurred and an overwhelming nausea took hold of her. She tried to keep her eyes open, but failed as the world seemed to tilt.
From one instant to another her restraints were gone and she was standing on uneven ground.
"You know, even when you're hiding in your bubble, it doesn't mean I can't move you with it."
Desperately Emma balled her hands into fists, keeping the hold she had on herself. She breathed in fresh air, a definite sign that they were outside. She tried to open her eyes, but the world was still spinning, her vision blurred by dancing dots, so she closed her eyes immediately.
Still she felt like she was standing on a ship in a storm, the ground under her shaking.
Suddenly she felt pushed forward as Cora's hand once again collided with her force field.
As she stumbled she opened her eyes again, confused by the scent of grass and trees.
In front of her a single apple tree swayed back and forth as did the grass under it.
Emma felt like she would throw up any second. All her will was spent keeping her upright, stopping her knees from giving in.
Cora had clearly teleported them and beaming was definitely no fun.
They were standing next to Regina's house and Cora's was forcing her to go into the direction of the backdoor. She heard Cora mumbling under her breath as if she was reciting some old incantation.
Before Emma could understand what was happening, she felt like being shoved through a mass of cold ice.
"I knew that would work!"
Cora's triumphant outcry made her heart sink.
They were walking, or in Emma's case stumbling, to the house now.
"What was that?"
Although she knew the answer, Emma hoped she was wrong. If Regina protected her house, it would mean than someone was inside. And that someone wasn't Regina or she would stand in front of them now.
She tried to shove her fear away, not ready to allow Cora to witness it again.
"We just crossed one of my daughter's protection spells, not a very complex one, if you ask me. I never let her learn how to protect herself very well. It would have made punishing her unnecessarily difficult."
"You couldn't enter."
Emma realized out loud, unintentionally pointing out Cora's weakness. She hoped that it wasn't the only protection Regina had put up.
"No, I couldn't."
Cora admitted nonchalant.
"But I had you for that. I told my daughter once that love is a weakness. Apparently she refused to remember that lesson, since she has left a loophole open for you, or people like you. I'm not entirely certain. It's curious. Do you want to tell me why that is? Why does she care for you?"
It scared Emma to her core what Cora could understand just by looking at Regina's barrier, but she kept up an indifferent expression, intent on not giving up anything.
No matter how much she fought against it, Cora managed to shove her further towards the house. She even broke the glass of the patio door, opening it and pushing her inside.
When they entered the house she listened closely, not paying much attention to Cora, but hoping they were the only ones there.
"Cora."
Snow stated expressionless while Regina just nodded. There was really no explanation necessary.
"Cora?"
Though maybe others needed an explanation, since Ruby didn't seem to understand.
"Your mother? What does your mother have to do with anything?"
Apparently Charming was out of the loop as well.
"I'll explain later."
Snow waved their questions away, not breaking the eye-contact with Regina.
"Do you have any idea where they could be?"
Regina shook her head, blocking the images that her mind was trying to show her of Cora taking out Emma's heart, victoriously crushing it in her hand. She shoved her fear aside, feeling the need to function.
"I only know that she took her. I wasn't able to trace her magic."
"Do you think you could track her now? Do you feel her somewhere in town?"
Regina closed her eyes and concentrated. She firmly folded her hands on the table, desperately trying to keep them from shaking.
Her mother would feel it the second she located her. But even after she overcame her fear, she couldn't find her anywhere. So she opened her eyes again.
"No, it's like she isn't even there."
Snow took a deep breath.
"Do you feel Emma?"
Regina shook her head.
"I couldn't trace her, even if I tried. Her magic is different from anything I've ever encountered."
While Snow's shoulders slumped, Charming cleared his throat.
"So, you're saying that your mother took our daughter? What does she want with her?"
Regina glared at him.
"I have no idea what she wants. I don't even know what she knows. She could just try to make Emma talk, get information about me, the town."
"Or?"
He gave her a threatening glare.
"Or she just wants to kill her. Either in a mislead attempt to exact revenge on you and Snow, thinking I would appreciate it, or to teach me a lesson."
"A lesson?"
Ruby asked shocked, but Regina wasn't ready to answer that.
Regina noticed the green that spread out on Charming's face. He gulped before he found his words again.
"Snow told me that you and Emma, that..."
He cleared his throat again, before he continued.
"You should feel her."
It made Regina furious that he was doubting her.
"Don't you see that I'm trying?"
Charming looked at her, blinking in confusion.
"No, you don't understand. When Snow... When she bit the apple and fell asleep, I could feel it. So, if what is between you and Emma is really true..."
He stopped shortly, unable to form the word, shaking his head as if he wanted to get rid of some disturbing images.
"If anything happens to Emma, you would feel it."
Regina stared at him, wide-eyed. She looked at Snow for confirmation, but the younger woman just nodded and started to speak hesitantly, as if the memory still haunted her.
"I felt it, too. When Charming was wounded just before the curse hit. I felt it."
Snow's hand involuntarily moved to her chest, just over where her heart sat. Hearing this proof Regina's fingers loosened in relief. Her palms stung from the little half-moons her nails left, but she barely noticed it.
"I didn't feel anything like that."
She smiled at Snow and stood up.
"We need to find them, before something happens."
Snow stood too, but shook her head.
"Where's Henry?"
"With Selena, Cora wouldn't know where to look for him."
Shaking her head Snow held her phone out to Regina.
"Call her and tell her to bring him here. He can stay with Charming while we look for Cora."
Although Regina took the phone she shook her head.
"Snow, your husband wouldn't have a chance against Cora, not for a second. You know that. I'll send them to my house. They're barriers I can enable from afar."
"Won't she be able to pass through them?"
"No one except Henry will be able to pass them without hurt."
She explained while dialing, letting out the part that Selena, belonging to her old staff, would easily be able to enter as long as she was keeping up her alliance to her.
"I should go anyway, he needs family with him."
Charming stated and Regina looked at him, swallowing the hurtful words she wanted to throw at him.
"If you want to protect someone, you can go with your wife. I'm going to search the town for traces of magic. You could go and ask around if anyone has noticed something out of the ordinary."
Then she turned to Ruby.
"Since I don't need your help searching this time, would you mind to go and keep an eye on Henry?"
Ruby simply nodded, buttoning up her coat, ready to leave.
"What do I have to do to pass the barrier?"
Gesturing her to wait as Selena answered her phone, Regina shortly explained the situation, before she turned her attention back to Ruby. She held out her hand with the opened palm to her.
"You'd have to trust me to let you enter."
Nodding Ruby took a hesitant step towards her.
"Meaning?"
"Meaning, you need to let me change your energy a bit, so that the barrier will let you through."
Visibly swallowing Ruby raised her hand and met Regina's palm with her own. She shuddered as Regina's magic worked on her aura, but didn't pull back. It took barely a second because Regina only needed to confirm something. Since Ruby had spoken up for her at the town's gathering, she knew that she supported her. No matter what kind of misled feeling of trust was responsible for that, it was enough for Ruby to be regarded as an ally. Her barrier would let her through without any problem.
So she used the rest of the time to connect with the barrier around her house, activating it.
"Done."
Ruby hesitantly smiled at her.
"That was strange, I didn't..."
"Yes, I hope it wasn't too uncomfortable."
Regina interrupted her, before Ruby could blurt out that she didn't feel anything at all. She wouldn't want Charming to try and enter. So she turned around and walked to the door.
"Thank you for looking out for Henry."
At these words Charming gasped. Before he could ask her whether she actually thanked someone, Regina nodded at Snow and turned to the door, ready to leave.
"Wait a second!"
Snow came up next to her, her phone in hand.
"I believe we should be able to call each other if anything happened."
"Really Snow, don't you think that I would be able to contact you if I needed you?"
Her tone made it abundantly clear that she wouldn't need her help. If they were being honest, there was nothing Snow could do to help, except letting herself be killed by Cora. And Snow knew it.
"Well, what if we find her first?"
"I highly doubt that."
Regina stated coldly. But because they were wasting precious time arguing, she reached for Snow's phone and typed in her number.
After handing the phone back, she was confused by the buzzing in a pocket of her jacket. Snow stopped Regina while she reached for her own phone by laying a hand on her shoulder. The touch was so hesitantly she almost didn't feel it.
"It's just me, keeping the lines of communication open."
Shrugging uncomfortably Snow gave her a small smile.
"Good luck."
A strange feeling rose inside of Regina, the urge to meet Snow's need for comfort that was clearly displayed in the uneasy edge of Snow's voice. She was obviously scared. But Regina shrugged it off, just offering her a tight-lipped smile before she left, Ruby quickly following her down the stairs.
They parted ways on the street with Ruby running towards her house in wolf-form and Regina making her way back to the cemetery. She needed to make sure that she hadn't missed a trace of her mother before. Also it would help her to fully remember what her mother's energy looked like.
Not that she had ever been able to forget it.
After Regina and Ruby left, Snow quickly changed into jeans and a white one of Mary-Margaret cardigans, noticing that when all of that was dealt with she definitely needed to go shopping. This wardrobe was truly despicable.
Charming threw on a jacket, following her outside. He immediately noticed that she wasn't planning to aimlessly walk around town.
"What do you have in mind?"
"We are going to see an old enemy ."
"Him? Snow, you can't be serious!"
She turned around, her features suddenly furious.
"Charming, we lost her once and I'm not going to lose her again. I'm sure he wants Cora gone as much as we do, maybe even more."
He nodded slowly, knowing that there was no convincing her once Snow had set her stubborn mind on something.
"Why do you think he wants Cora gone? I mean, what is up with Regina's mother? Why are you both so afraid?"
Snow was baffled by his evident confusion. Had she really never talked to him about Cora?
Well, maybe she hadn't. Maybe that would have required her to accept some ugly truths, for example that Cora was partly to blame for what happened.
She had always been so ready to accuse Regina for being evil, pushing aside her knowledge of how it had come to that.
"Well, Charming, if you still think that Regina is evil, no matter what that would state about our daughter, keep in mind that she is nothing compared to Cora."
"Who is her mother."
He stated, not understanding where she was going with that.
"Yes."
She simply answered.
"I don't understand."
Snow snorted.
"You don't understand, because I never told you about it. And I never told you about it because I knew you wouldn't understand."
She took a deep breath, not stopping her long strides in the slightest. She was on a mission, but while she was walking she could very well let her husband know what was going on.
"Do you remember what I told you about why Regina hates me?"
"You said she blamed you for destroying her happiness. And that she was right."
"Well, she was partly right. I caught her making out with the stable boy, a union her mother would have been violently opposed of. She made me promise to never tell anyone, but I told her mother anyway. Cora killed him, in front of her. It was a lesson for her. Both, to not love and to not give away her affection easily. I understand now that it was easier to blame me than to accept the evil that Cora is."
That gave Charming enough to keep quiet in thought while they reached their destination.
Without knocking Snow rushed through the door of the little shop.
It didn't matter how much she hated what she was about to do, it was for Emma.
And maybe, just maybe, a little part of her was trying to make up for a mistake she had once made.
"Hello dearies!"
The sick smile that greeted them almost made her regret coming here for help.
"What can I do for you today? Maybe you want a trinket chasing your grandson's dreams away or maybe a cloak that can help your best friend not to turn into some bloodthirsty monster?"
"Cut it out, Rumple. You always know what's going on. We need your help with Cora. She's in town and I'm not sure that Regina has enough magic to best her. I'm not even sure she could, even if she wanted to."
Rumple's fading smile revealed far more than Snow could have imagined.
"You didn't know she was in town?"
"Apparently, I kept myself busy with things that distracted me a bit too much."
Snow tilted her head to the side as if she was unsure she was hearing right. Was he just admitting a mistake?
"It's a time-sensitive issue, so don't waste any of our time. Can you help?"
"Of course, my dear. Of course."
He nodded absentminded as he rummaged through the upper drawer of a counter.
"However it all depends on what you wish for. Do you want her to die? A horribly painful death?"
There was a glint of delight in his eyes that made even Charming shudder. Snow herself felt as if her heart was in an icy grip. She was reminded of the time she had tried to kill Regina. Killing someone never made it better.
"No, I want to banish her to a place she can't escape."
She clarified with a strong voice, sounding way surer than she actually felt.
"Are you sure, dearie? With Cora you never know. She could always find a way back to haunt you, even if you sent her to the depths of a land full of wonders, she finds her way back."
"Why do you care?"
Snow asked, feeling that there was something else in his mind, something she couldn't even begin to understand.
"I just don't want you back here in two days, telling me that I couldn't keep a deal."
But maybe that was just always the case with him. You always felt like you got the worse side of a bargain. There was nothing she could do to change that now.
"Can you provide us with something to keep Cora locked up somewhere or not? I already told you that you don't get to waste my time today."
"And I told you that I can help you. I am merely making sure that this is the settlement you want."
Snow nodded, desperately trying to keep the relief she felt at bay. There was always another side of a deal.
"What do you want?"
"Oh, my dear, that is easy. If you can promise that you have the authority to provide what I need."
"That I can."
She stated surely. After all, she was the Queen.
"Yes."
Charming supported her, which seemed to amuse Rumple to no end.
"Wonderful."
He held out a hand and a contract Snow hadn't seen in ages appeared in his hand.
"Now, my side of the bargain is that I, and whoever I call mine, can live in Storybrooke as long as I please with none of you or your peasants seeking to harm me, including your daughter's true love."
Snow nodded slowly. That was surprisingly easy. She tried to find the catch, but couldn't see it. They didn't have the power to hurt him, so it never came to their minds to try. And now he wanted protection. Well, if that was what it took...
"As long as those you call yours only include family and specifically not Cora, and we can harm you if you try to attack us first, we have a deal."
She knew it was all about the careful wording, but she felt that she had achieved her goal until he squealed in delight.
"Done!"
The parchment was handed to her. Reluctantly she glossed over the surprisingly short text. Apparently it was only what they had agreed on, even the stipulation that he could only call his, what was family. Internally sighing she signed it. To her surprise Charming didn't even protest.
Rumple received the roll with a gleaming grin plastered on his face, rolling it up and shoving it into the cupboard behind him, securely closing it with a key.
But it was only afterward that he reached into his drawer and pulled out a silver gilded hand mirror, handing it over.
"That, my dear, is spelled to sent, whoever is magically pushed into it, to a small cell in the ground. It will close as soon as Cora enters and never open again. Now you just have to make sure to bring that to Regina, before she accidentally kills her mother. Or her mother accidentally kills your daughter, or your grandson."
His smile turned devilish.
"So many possibilities, so little time."
He sing-songed as Snow turned back to the door. She reached for her phone, though she doubted that Regina would pick up.
In front of the huge white mansion Ruby changed back. She had been running as a wolf, relying on the speed advantage the four paws gave her, though she had underestimated how it would make her wolf scream out to run.
Now that she could change whenever she wanted, it became harder to keep the wolf calm, even when the full moon wasn't shining in the sky.
Taking a deep breath she centered herself and opened the black iron gate. As she stepped on Regina's estate she felt the barrier wash over her like a wave of comforting warm water. The magic was embracing her instead of casting her out.
Fueled by fresh energy she jumped up the stairs and pushed Regina's huge entrance door open.
"Henry?"
Regina had told her that Selena and Henry hadn't been far from the house. Therefore they should have been back earlier than her.
"Selena?"
She was only met with silence.
"It's me, Ruby. Henry, are you home?"
He should really answer her. She had played his babysitter more than enough times in the last couple of weeks. Slowly she grew agitated.
"Henry!"
"Yes!"
The little boy showed his face at the top of the stairs.
"I'm sorry, but Mom told Selena we should stay in my room."
Ruby let out a relieved breath as she climbed the stairs.
"That's okay. Selena can leave now, I'll be taking care of you now."
"What's going on, Ruby? Where's my Mom? And where's Emma? They were supposed to be back by now. Mom promised to tell me all about the towns council meeting!"
Yep, that was certainly the annoying boy she remembered. With a grin she promised him to tell him everything about the meeting as she entered the room. Then she allowed Selena to leave, telling her that Regina would pay her the next time.
The girl seemed to be incredibly happy though she had the decency to not show it in front of Henry. She just ruffled his hair on her way out.
Ruby sat down on Henry's bed, taking his room in. She was surprised Regina let him keep so many trinkets lying around, especially the clocks. How many freaking clocks does a child need?
"So, why exactly were you supposed to stay in your room?"
Henry shrugged as he threw himself next to her.
"I don't know, something about extra protection. You said you were going to tell me what is happening?"
Ruby raised her eyebrows.
"I only said that I would talk to you about the town meeting."
Henry's little forehead crumpled in thought, suddenly realizing that one thing might not necessarily mean the other. But he quickly surrendered.
"Okay, what happened at the town meeting?"
"Well, Snow and your Mom proved that they could get excellent results when they work together."
Henry scrunched up his nose in disbelief.
"Snow and Mom were working together?"
"Yep, so you don't have to be worried about Regina's punishment anymore. It's pretty genius."
"Punishment?"
Ruby examined Henry's shocked eyes for a moment. For all the trouble he made, insisting that Emma had to break the curse, he never really thought about the consequences it would have for Regina.
"Yes, punishment, Henry. I do remember that you insisted that she had to be punished because she was the Evil Queen."
At least he had the decency to look ashamed.
"But she isn't evil anymore. She wants to redeem herself and she's trying."
He mumbled and Ruby nodded.
"That's right. And that's why Snow was able to convince everyone that it would be punishment enough for Regina, if the Savior would live with her to keep an eye on her."
"What?"
Henry's face lit up.
"Emma's going to live with us?"
Ruby found herself returning his huge grin. She didn't need to tell him what was going on. They were protected by Regina's magic and if they didn't find Emma, he could always worry later. But he needed to be happy for a second.
After all, he hadn't done anything but worry while Emma was gone.
A few moments later though she believed she heard someone groaning in the garden.
She shifted her attention from Henry's ramblings about what room Emma could live in to her surroundings.
There was a strange kind of magic in the air, that wasn't supposed to be there.
Ruby strained her ears, but she couldn't hear anything anymore.
So she shook her head and continued to listen to Henry as he was describing his own happy place until she heard the loud sound of glass breaking downstairs.
"What was that?"
Henry interrupted himself, jumping up from the bed.
With a bad feeling Ruby put a finger towards his lips, gesturing him to be quiet. As soundless as she could she opened his closet and pushed him inside, before she left the room. She needed to know what was happening downstairs.
Cora kept shoving her, but had stopped teasing her. Maybe she had been impressed by Emma's display of magic.
Or maybe she had just gotten tired of it.
"So that is the house my daughter is living in?"
Since she sounded like she was either talking to herself or crazy, or maybe both, Emma didn't feel inclined to answer.
In the next moment a stinging jolt of energy jumbled her magic bubble and for a second she could feel the pain of Cora's magic again. It took her only a moment to find her control and protect herself again. This time protection wasn't enough.
Because she was actually aware of what she was doing now (at least kind of) she pushed her energy in Cora's direction.
She wasn't really sure what she was trying to achieve, but she wouldn't let herself be bullied anymore.
Maybe she could throw her outside. If she got lucky, she could even send her out of Regina's barrier.
Sure enough Cora stumbled backwards as Emma's energy hit her. It wasn't the first time Emma had done that. She vividly reminded her first meeting with Cora, where she had shoved Cora away from her until Regina had rescued her.
Cora staggered again, the distance to the patio reducing itself by half. It felt incredibly good to give a bit of her earlier torture back to her. Emma wished she didn't have to stop. She wished she could hang the woman somewhere and whip her. An intense desire to cause pain rose from deep within Emma. Without her doing her magic shoved Cora's tries to fight back to the side. The woman actually screamed out in pain.
With satisfaction Emma realized that her magic was following her urge to hurt Cora, who didn't look so poised anymore as she wobbled to the door.
Before Emma could lash out again she hurt a creaking sound as if someone was stepping on the stairs behind her.
Henry!
Fear gripped her as she turned around, hoping that she was wrong. She felt relief as she met Ruby's concerned eyes.
"Enough!"
Emma winced, noticing that the hold she had on her magic was entirely gone.
In an instant ropes gripped her wrists and ankles and she was bound to the banister. She struggled desperately, but her magic evaded her, because she couldn't master her fear.
There was only one reason for Ruby to be here. She was looking out for Henry.
"Now, who do we have here?"
"Someone you didn't expect!"
Ruby answered. It was only an instant before Emma saw a shadow jump over her head. Ruby had changed within the blink of an eye and now a huge silver wolf was circling Cora.
Maybe it was wishful thinking but Emma definitely thought she saw Cora's smile falter.
After a second Ruby charged at her, ready to rip Cora to shreds with only the help of her claws and teeth.
Emma only felt sorry for Ruby, since that woman certainly didn't taste good.
Just before Ruby could get a hold of Cora, she was flown across the room, crashing into the wall. A heartbreaking whining erupted from her throat as Cora dragged her across the floor until she came to a rest next to Emma.
Cora bowed over her, curiously tilting her head.
"Maybe you can give me some answers."
With that she let her energies glide over Ruby. Emma felt a sickening change of the magic, but couldn't describe what it was. She tried to find the same desperation she had felt before, attempting to use her magic again, but it simply didn't work.
It took everything she had to keep her lips pressed together and not call out Ruby's name, let the girl know that she was there for her. She couldn't risk Henry hearing her and coming out of his hiding space.
For now Cora wasn't aware of the boy's presence and Emma wanted it to stay that way.
"You are in a unique position to be tortured. You're practically begging for it."
Cora went on, freezing the blood in Emma's veins. She really didn't want to know what Cora was planning to do to Ruby.
It took her only a second to find out. Ruby's wolf started to yowl again, this time in deep pain, as painfully slow the fur seemed to curl in on itself.
Cora was forcing Ruby to change.
"Some kind of guard dog you are, hm? Not even able to protect yourself against my magic. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Now, as soon as you're able to, why don't you tell me what you are guarding here, hm? What does my daughter keep puppies around for?"
Cora's loud musing scared the crap out of Emma. Her honey-sweet voice was worse than any shouting. Emma suspected that Ruby's current incapability to communicate suited Cora perfectly.
"I always told my daughter that her inappropriate feelings towards her pets won't end well for her. I suspect you will have to suffer for her mistakes."
Slowly the wolf's yelping grew more quiet. It was incredibly scary.
But what was even more frightening was the fact that Emma once again imagined to hear the floor boards creaking. With all her willpower she wished Henry to disappear. He couldn't be here.
All the while Emma was forced to watch Ruby change. She could make out the shapes of arms and legs instead of the animal form now. The huge snout was growing backwards into the sharp angles of Ruby's face.
"Rubes?"
Emma whispered, hoping that while neither Henry nor Cora could hear her, Ruby would understand her.
"I'm here Rubes. He's safe for now. Just hold on. I'm here."
Cora was so focused that she didn't seem to hear her. Emma only hoped that if Henry had stood behind them he had gone back to his room now. But suddenly Cora's attention shifted towards her.
"He? So the puppy didn't guard a thing, but a person. Who could that be, I ask myself?"
Again the nausea rose inside of Emma.
"Henry? It's okay, you can come out now. Your grandmother is here to meet you."
The only good thing Emma could see, was that Cora didn't pay any attention to Ruby now. Slowly the girl appeared. Other than before she wasn't wearing anything but her underwear. And Emma had thought she always shifted with her entire clothing.
"Rubes, are you...?"
She couldn't find the appropriate words. 'Alright' or 'okay' were so far from fitting that she rather closed her mouth shut.
Fortunately Ruby managed to nod once.
In the background she heard Cora climbing the stairs.
"Henry?"
She leaned over the banister.
"Emma, dear, don't you want to tell me, where the little Henry hides?"
"I think he's with my mother."
Emma managed to stammer, immediately feeling the jolt of punishing energy. It was weaker than before, her magic not allowing Cora's to take completely hold of her again. She grasped this little piece of hope as tightly as she could.
Now she needed to protect Henry.
Regina had searched the whole town for any traces of her mother's magic, but she had come up empty, even at the cemetery. Tired and despaired she had returned to her her home, pinning the last bit of hope on her books. She needed to discover a way to find her mother, she needed to find Emma.
The only thing holding her up now, was what Charming had told her. She hadn't felt anything. A while ago an icy cold had taken hold of her heart, but it had been gone almost immediately. And then about half an hour ago she had felt an incredible rage, she could only trust that Emma didn't give in to that feeling. Her magic was more powerful than she had ever seen.
Being the child of true magic obviously came with privileges.
Against her will Regina actually managed to smile at that. Emma had more magic than she knew how to handle. And Regina would help her with that, even if she insisted on doing everything in her own stubborn way.
She didn't notice anything out of the ordinary as she passed her barrier, barely recognizing the way the energy washed over her, mainly because she didn't think that her mother would actually find a way through. But as she opened her door she heard unusual sounds in her foyer. There was a painful groan that instantly alerted her.
So she carefully opened the door wider.
Immediately the sight of Emma caught her eye. In the first moment it seemed like she was casually leaning against the banister, but she realized right away that it was wishful thinking.
Emma was tied in place by ropes.
In the second moment she saw an almost naked Ruby laying on the floor.
After she had made sure that her mother was nowhere to be seen she tried to make out her energy on the second floor. At the same time she scanned both Emma and Ruby's energies.
Emma was a whirl of emotions, her energies completely frayed. Regina didn't want to think about what that meant. The utter terror of what her mother had done to Ruby was plainly written across her energy.
Regina grit her teeth, balling her hands into fists.
Almost as soon as she felt her mother with Henry on the second floor, they came outside of his room, appearing at the top of the stairs.
"See, my dear, I found your little secret."
She was gloating at Emma. The blonde's eyes barely fluttered at this. Regina didn't want to imagine what her mother did with her, although she could very well envision it.
Only then Cora saw her, immediately letting go of Henry's arm, spreading her arms out as if in delight.
"Regina, my dear! I have a present for you."
With a broad smile she gestured towards Emma.
"See, Snow White's daughter. Maybe you want to take her heart? Imagine what a great idea it would be to deliver it to Snow!"
A sick feeling settled deep in her stomach.
"Mother."
She acknowledged, her mind racing. How in hell could she turn that around?
"Don't you like your presents?"
Cora pretended to pout, but Regina knew all too well that her emotions were faked. Her mother never had any real emotions, Cora's world was arranged in pretending.
Taking a deep breath Regina made a decision. There was no way she could play along with her mother's strange mood, at least not long enough.
The only way out was to charge ahead.
With a flick of her fingers and a decided movement of her wrist she freed Emma's ropes and took away most of Ruby's pain.
Then she focused on the stairs, loosening her mother's hold on Henry.
"Henry, go back to your room."
With growing fear she witnessed her mother strengthen her hold on her son.
Henry's eyes grew large.
"I can't."
He whispered and she could barely hear him, making out the words by the movement of his lips.
"It's okay, honey. You don't need to be frightened."
She could only hope that Henry would be able to discern the truth of her statement like Emma often did. Her mother wouldn't hurt him, at least not now. For two or three years she would only try to form his character, in the worst way imaginable.
"Oh, Regina, haven't you learned your lesson by now? Love is a weakness. Look at how trusting your little Henry is standing beside me. I could snap his neck without a second thought, teaching you again not to love."
She feigned a look of compassion.
"Even the name, Regina. You named him Henry? In earnest?"
Shaking her head she came down the stairs.
Involuntarily Regina passed first Ruby and them Emma, only pausing in front of her, trying to inconspicuously shield her with her body.
She heard Emma's rattling breath behind her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw that Emma had crumpled to a heap to the ground.
Trembling Henry stood rooted to the spot on the top of the stairs.
Regina welcomed every inch Cora moved away from him, although she had no idea how to handle her.
As her mother was coming nearer a sickening smile played across her lips.
Without any warning she send Regina flying across the room. Keeping her resolve Regina ignored the pain her mother's magic caused, freed Henry from her mother's invisible restraints and shoved him back to his room. As soon as he could he followed her orders and ran away, hiding.
She landed in front of her entrance door.
"Did I never teach you anything, Regina? You were supposed to be my advantage, you were supposed to be my way to power. I was promised to gain incredibly power by your magic. And what did I get? Nothing but trouble. You were nothing but trouble! Right from the start. But now that I've finally detected your hiding place I must tell you that it is deeply disturbing. A place without magic, Regina? What were you thinking?"
Cora scoffed, before she continued with her monologue. It was all the same to Regina, she kept sorting through Emma's energy, helping her to find her footing. Her mother either hadn't noticed that Emma was free or she simply didn't care.
"Now that I'm back, I can lead you back to the life you were supposed to live, my child. You have to trust that mother knows best."
Fighting the urge to throw up Regina looked up at her mother.
"You never knew best, mother. You only ever knew how to make it worse."
At this moment she felt someone trying to enter her barrier. She wasn't sure but she suspected it to be Snow. With no reasoning behind it, she let the barrier fall. The more people gathered, the larger her mother's confusion would grow. Maybe she could turn the distraction to her advantage.
Almost at once the white entrance door burst open.
At first Snow appeared in the doorway, a frantic look on her face.
Regina tried to disregard how her mother kept sending shockwave after shockwave of energy to her, keeping her sedated. Without giving it a second thought her mother had managed to almost knock her out cold, not entirely though. She still needed to witness what Cora was doing, otherwise it would spoil her mother's fun.
"Snow!"
Her mother squealed, not giving Charming a second look.
"How delightful of you to join us!"
With fast strides she drew nearer. Snow didn't even notice the impending danger, her eyes on her daughter.
"Emma..."
Sure, Emma painted a pathetic picture, lying there on the ground, but apart from Cora and Henry she was the only person who had kept most of her energy.
As she saw Cora's hungry gaze, Regina knew exactly what Cora was about to do. With her last bit of resolve Regina managed to find her feet again, hoping that Cora was too focused on Snow to notice her.
Just as Cora reached with her hand she jumped in front of Snow, shoving the younger Queen out of Cora's way. Without any further warning Cora's hand embedded itself in Regina's chest, closing in around her heart.
"No!"
She barely heard Emma's desperate outcry. The icy grip around her heart kept her upright as Cora's eyes widened in surprise.
"You stupid girl! What did you do?"
It was barely over a whisper. Again the emotion in Cora's voice was missing, only the shock of experiencing something entirely unplanned kept Regina alive in the moment.
Just in that second Rumple appeared at the door.
"She did something you never were able to, Cora. She felt. Her emotions guided her, although you worked harder than anyone can imagine to completely rid her of her feelings. For my own good, you failed."
She couldn't believe it, but her mother's grip was loosening. Regina was actually able to breathe for a moment. She knew her mother too well. Taking hearts was like an addiction for her. Once her hand had closed around one, once she lived through these last real emotions a person was having, she was incapable to let go.
The only thing Regina could to was to keep breathing and hoping.
"You've never realized that, but you can't gain anything anymore. Your plans have failed. And I know that I kept promising you bigger and bigger things for handing over Regina while I truly just wanted her. And she did what I wanted her to do. She had enough magic and just too much emotions too handle that I could shape her into enacting the curse. You were never able to achieve any of that. You were lacking basic emotions, Cora."
One more time Cora's fingers were slipping, almost giving her struggling heart free. Regina felt it beating twice the usual rate in her chest, while she was desperately trying to hold on, hoping against all odds.
Still Rumple hadn't finished his glorious speech.
"You were a failure, Cora, nothing but a failure."
Suddenly Cora took back her hands, focusing all her energy on Rumple.
"You are the failure and I'm going to destroy you, if it is the last thing I do!"
Before Regina could fall to the ground two strong hand were holding her upright. While her knees were giving in she couldn't do anything than lean into the person next to her and watch as both Cora and Rumple circled each other, mirroring the sickening smiles on their faces.
Psychopaths, she was surrounded by psychopaths.
They hadn't started anything as Snow shoved the handle of a small object into her hand.
"Use this. Push your mother inside."
Unfortunately her mother wasn't as unfocused as Snow evidently had thought. She jerked around, focusing on their small group.
"What did you do?"
No one knew who she was talking to and frankly no one cared.
"Punishing you."
A strained voice coming through gritted teeth made Regina turn her head.
Standing next to them was Emma. Though she was barely holding herself upright. there was a fire burning in her green eyes. She held her hands out in front of her and before Regina could figure out what Emma was doing a bright light erupted from her, taking everyone's sight away.
Regina felt it stinging, but not as much as everyone else, judging by Cora's scream and Snow's groan. So she moved towards Emma capturing her hand with her own, gripping the hand mirror in her other hand.
"Let me."
For once she didn't order, she asked.
Almost immediately Emma surrendered giving Regina the lead she readily took.
Without further ado she used Emma's glaring anger to drag her mother towards them. The blinding light was slowly fading, allowing her a last look into her mother's surprised face.
"Good-bye Mother." Regina said as she used their combined energies to force Cora into the mirror.
The End...
Just kidding, the next (and last) chapter needs to deal with the aftermath. This chapter is way too long, but I couldn't leave it as a cliffhanger again... So Cora is gone, but there are many questions left that I'll try to answer in the next chapter. Also, I promise fluff as this was full of angst.
Please let me know, whether you liked this chapter! I love to know what you think!